Grain amaranth: A promising crop for marginal areas of Kenya

Abstract

Kenya, a country where grain amaranth has rarely been cultivated, was selected for research to determine whether germplasm and cropping patterns could be developed to accommodate regular biannual wet and dry seasons. In addition to germplasm screening and improvement, yield observations were made to learn more about adaptation in various crop production areas and with various times of planting, times to maturity, fertilizer applications, and planting densities under standardized conditions. The most rapidly maturing grain type in Kenya was the “Nepal” morphological group of Amaranthus hypochondriacus, which matured within 60 days of planting. The A. hypochondriacus “Mercado” morphological group also performed well at many locations in Kenya, although it grew taller and took a few days longer to mature. A few accessions of A. caudatus produced a high‐quality grain, although the researchers felt it took too many days to reach maturity. A. cruentus proved to be of little use. Excessive moisture depressed yields of all accessions. This research program has shown that grain amaranth has the potential to be adapted for food use under Kenyan agricultural conditions.