Monocrop Question from a Beginner

one thing to consider if you are in a commercial tree fruit growing area is that some of these areas  have mandatory spraying schedules. Some people who tried to avoid using the chemical sprays  have been known to have had the trees sprayed by the local authority and then get charged for it (at penalty rates), much as they do for getting rid of noxious weeds. A news story a few years back told of one farm in the BC Okanagon  had to cut their trees down or face huge daily fines because the other growers in the area felt their trees were being threatened.  You might want to check that out. 

I think there are a few things being missed here.  And not to offend anyone I hope, but I'll wager the purists who tell you "no" don't have any more than an acre or two.  There's a scale to everything, both in size and time... and I don't think it's reasonable to expect someone with a large acreage to run out and plant it all to food forest in the first year.

Secondly... quinoa, in case anyone forgot, is a weed.  It's a domesticated pigweed, selected to produce more seed.  If you live in an area where pigweed grows wild and without irrigation, then you can grow quinoa without tillage or irrigation.  As such, if one must plant an annual crop, it is infinitely preferable to wheat or corn.  After harvest, the considerable remaining matter can be mulched directly.  Or, consider strip cropping it with another "weed" grain like amaranth. 

Then, you have some money to slowly start moving more of your land to stable perennial cropping and pasture. 

There's some real gems here in the discussion I would like to summarise.  While there have been a few polarising comments, in general I think everyone sees along the same lines.

- There is a scale for different types of growing.  My home garden consumes much time, yet it is less than a quarter of an acre in size.  Different plants and different practices are applicable at different scales.  Changing land use is also a big task.  One of the benefits of monocropping is that you can say "do this, and you will get $x at the end of the year", even if x isn't much and you are blowing away your soil in the process.  If that funds your ability to invest in something that will grow into long-term value for you, it may be worth it in the short term, just don't lose sight of your overall goals.

- Animals and pasture use represent an alternative worth considering.  They may be a more appropriate stepping stone if you plan to transition towards a more permaculture oriented approach for the entire property, since when managed correctly they help build soil and healthy assemblages of plants.  This is what I would be seriously thinking about.  However I think the prevailing theory is that grazing is done on land which is more marginal for cropping, whereas it sounds like the land in your area is fairly good quality.

- How the local community sees your operation is important.  This can range from social isolation to legal restrictions, forced spraying etc. as have been discussed.

- Get local knowledge!!  So much information about growing is absolutely useless because it is not in the context of climate and soil.

I would suggest you look at an interim solution for managing the majority of your land while you learn more about the long term possibilities.  You will invest a massive amount of time, and probably a lot of money, in this land.  Don't rush into that, take the advice of the other posters here and put yourself in a position where you can try things out and take the time to look at local examples.  Share farming could be an option which would leave you with more time to educate yourself, and minimise the need to buy machinery, which creates a bigger debt burden. 

Ian Okanogan,
I have merged your topic into this topic. I hope that helps.