HI
Cocoa being a tropical crop, India offers considerable scope for the development. Cocoa is mainly grown in Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Climate:
Rainfall
Average rainfall of 1250-3000 mm. per annum and preferably between 1500-2000mm. with a dry season of not more than 3 months with less than 100mm. rain per month is ideal, but the quantity is less important than distribution. Rainfall can be supplemented with irrigation during dry months.
Temperature
Temperature varying between 30-320C mean maximum and 18-210C mean minimum but around 250C is considered to be a favourable. It can’t be grown commercially in areas where the minimum temperature fall below 100C and annual average temperature is less than 210C.
Humidity
This is uniformly high in cocoa-growing areas, often 100% at night, falling to 70-80 % by day, sometimes low during the dry season. The most marked effect was on leaf area, plants growing at low humidity ( 50-60%) having larger leaves and greater leaf area than plants growing at medium (70-80%) and high (90-95%) humidity under the latter conditions leaves are small and tend to be curled and withered at the tip. The other effects of humidity concern the spread of fungal diseases and the difficulties of drying and storage.
TOP
TOP
Soil
Cocoa is grown on a wide range of soil types and the standards for soil suitable for cocoa vary considerably. Cocoa trees are more sensitive to moisture stress than other tropical crops. In addition cocoa trees are sensitive to water logging. While they can withstand flooding, they will not tolerate stagnant, water logged conditions. The depth of the soil should be at least 1.5m. The best soil for cocoa is forest soil rich in humus. The soil should be such as allowing easy penetration of roots capable of retaining moisture during summer and allowing circulation of air and moisture. Clay loams and sandy loams are suitable. Shallow soils should be avoided. A minimum requirement of 3.5% organic matter say 2% Carbon in the top 15cm. is ideal for growing cocoa plantation. Cocoa is grown on soils with a wide range of PH from 6-7.5 where major nutrients and trace elements will be available. Cocoa doest not come up in coastal sandy soils where coconut flourish.
Regards
Ashwini
