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CANOPY CHARACTERISTICS OF CONTRASTING CLONES OF CACAO (THEOBROMA CACAO)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 June 2002

A. J. Daymond
Affiliation:
Department of Horticulture and Landscape, The University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AS
P. Hadley
Affiliation:
Department of Horticulture and Landscape, The University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AS
R. C. R. Machado
Affiliation:
Almirante Centre for Cocoa Studies, Fazenda Almirante, Cx. Postal 55 CEP 45630–000, Itajuipe, Bahia, Brazil
E. Ng
Affiliation:
Catalyst-Masterfoods, Information Services International, 100 International Drive, Mount Olive, NJ 07828, USA

Abstract

Canopy characteristics (leaf area index, fractional light interception, extinction coefficient) of mature trees of ten clonally propagated cacao cultivars were measured over a period of 14 months at an experiment site in Bahia, Brazil. Differences in leaf area index between clones became more pronounced over time. When an approximately constant leaf area index was reached (after about nine months), the leaf area index varied between clones from 2.8 to 4.5. Clonal differences in the relationship between leaf area index and fractional light interception implied differences in canopy architecture, as reflected by the range of extinction coefficients (mean values ranged from 0.63 for the clone TSH-565 to 0.82 for CC-10). The results demonstrate the potential for breeding more photosynthetically efficient cacao canopies.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2002 Cambridge University Press

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