There are three varietal types in cocoa namely Criollo, Forastero and Trinitario.
Forastero types are known to perform well under Indian conditions.
KAU, Kerala CPCRI- RS, Vittal
Varieties Hybrids Varieties Hybrids
CCRP 1, CCRP 8, VTLCC 1 VTLCH 1,
CCRP 2, CCRP 9 VTLCH 2
CCRP 3, CCRP 10 VTLCH 3
CCRP 4, VTLCH 4
CCRP5,
CCRP 6 and
CCRP 7
June – July and September – October.
The bags are filled with pot mixture containing.
Red soil -2 parts
Sand -1 part
FYM- 1 part
Superphosphate – 5 kg/t of the above mixture
This can be filled in 320 gauge polythene bag with 30 cm height and 20 cm width provided with two holes in the bottom. Nursery plants are ready for transplanting at 6 months of age when they attain a height of 60 cm.
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Cocoa is a shade loving plant. During its seedling period it requires about 50% shade and later the shade requirement is about 40%. The plant is grown as a mixed crop with other plants like spices and rubber mainly under rainfed conditions. Cocoa is planted as an
intercrop in coconut and arecanut gardens.
Main crop Spacing(m) Cocoa as inter crop
Coconut 7.5 x 7.5 One cocoa row of plants at 3m interval at the center of two coconut rows and one cocoa at the center of two coconut plants along the coconut row. This layout will hold about 500 plants per hectare
Arecanut 2.7 x 2.7 One cocoa row of plants at 2.7m interval at the center of two arecanut rows. Likewise alternate gaps of recanut rows should be filled in. This layout will hold about 686 plants/ha. Oil palm 4.5 x 4.5 Five cocoa plants would come between four oil palm plants resulting in 400 plants per hectare.
Cocoa is usually grown in areas where water availability is adequate. Cocoa plants are sensitive to drought, irrigation in such cases becomes essential. During summer, as it exists in Southern India, the crop requires irrigation at weekly intervals. When it is grown as mixed crop with arecanut, the crop is to be irrigated once in a week during NovemberDecember, once in 6 days during January-March and once in 4-5 days during April-May with 175 litres of water.
Age of the plant Water requirement
(litre/ plant / day)
1st year 3-5
2nd year 10
3rd year and later 20-25
Trees of 3 years of age and above are manured with 100 g N, 40 g P and 140 g K per tree in two split doses during April – May and August – September. Trees younger than three years may be applied with half of this dose.
Fertilizer I year after planting(g) II Year after planting(g) III Year after planting(g)
Urea 75 145 200
Super phosphate 85 165 250
Muriate of Potash 80 160 240
Time of application 2 split doses / year 3 split doses /year 3 split doses / year
Micronutrient application: Foliar application of FeSO4 @ 0.5% + Zn SO4 @ 0.5% in 2 split doses/ year.
Fertilizers can be applied through drip irrigation system (fertigation). Weighed quantity of fertilizers as per schedule was dissolved in water and then injected to sub-main through venturi and then to lateral lines as per treatment. Drip irrigation was resorted once in
2 days. The fertilizers are applied through drip irrigation at weekly intervals. 100:40:140kg of N, P and K are applied through drip and fertigation in different stages of crop growth as detailed below.
Phases of crop Months Weeks No. of weeks *Water soluble fertilizers (NPK (%)
1st season flower initiation January & February 1-8 8 12.5
Fruit set March 9-13 5 10.0
Fruit development April and May 14-22 9 12.5
Fruit maturity, harvest and
2nd season flower initiation June and July 23-30 8 20.0
Fruit set August 31-35 5 12.5
Fruit development September & October 36-43 8 15.0
Fruit maturity and harvest November & December 44-52 9 17.5
Total 100
*Water soluble fertilizers : All 19 (19% N: 19 % P: 19 % K), Mono – Ammonium Phosphate (MAP – 12:61:00 % NPK), Proprietary water Soluble form of N and K fertilizers containing 13% N and 45 % K (Multi ‘K‘) and Urea (46% N)
Formation pruning
Done in young plants of cocoa (1 year after planting). The height of first jorquette is kept at 1-1.5m from the ground.
Structural pruning
Done generally 16-24 months after planting. Done to maintain tree at optimum height.
Pests
Tea mosquito bug
Monitoring the incidence of tea mosquito bugs at regular intervals.
Removal of alternate hosts like neem, cashew, guava in the surroundings
Spray any one of the following:
o Imidacloprid (0.6 ml/l)
o Thiamethoxan (0.6 g /l)
Mealy Bug
Monitoring the incidence of mealy bugs at regular intervals.
Removal of alternate weed hosts like Parthenium.
Collection and destruction of infested plant parts before spraying.
When the infestation is lesser: Spraying of neem oil 2 % or fish oil rosin soap 25 g/l.
On severe incidence, spraying of any one of the following chemicals is recommended.
o Dimethoate (2 ml/l)
o Chlorpyriphos (5 ml/l)
o Imidacloprid (0.6 ml/l)
o Thiamethoxam (0.6 g/l).
Release coccinellid predator Cryptolaemus montrouzieri @ 10 nos/tree.
Aphids
Spray dimethoate 35 EC 1 ml/lit at monthly intervals.
Rodents
Rats & squirrels
Keep 10g of Bromodiolone (0.005%) wax cakes on the branches twice at an interval of 10-12 days.
Black pod
Spray 1% Bordeaux mixture or 0.2% mancozeb or 0.25 % copper oxychloride at 20 days interval
Stem canker
Remove the infected areas (main trunk, jorquettes or fan branches) and apply Bordeaux paste
Dieback
Spray 1% Bordeaux mixture or copper oxychloride @ 0.25 %
Charcoal pod rot
Spray 1% Bordeaux mixture or copper oxychloride @ 0.25%
Cherelle wilt
Spray carbendazim @ 0.1% or mancozeb @ 0.2 % or copper oxychloride @ 0.25 %
Pink disease
Prune the affected branches and swab the cut ends regularly with Bordeaux paste
500 – 1000 kg of dry beans/ha