Abstract

ALVAREZ-CARRILLO, Faver; ROJAS-MOLINA, Jairo  and  SUAREZ-SALAZAR, Juan Carlos. Simulation arrangements cocoa agroforestry as a diagnosis and planning strategy for producers. Corpoica cienc. tecnol. agropecu. [online]. 2012, vol.13, n.2, pp.145-150. ISSN 0122-8706.

In tropical Latin America, agroforestry systems (AFSs) with cacao and coffee are the most common and cover about 17.7 million hectares; and about 70% of cacao production comes from small farmers. As a strategy for performing diagnosis in cacao agroforestry arrangements, simulations were made with SExI-FS® to identify interactions and propose alternative management for agroforestry arrangement structures, given the key elements for making decisions to optimize production systems. We evaluated the chemical composition of the soil and diagnosed each arrangement to obtain information for the SExI-FS® simulation. Variations in the amounts of Ca, B and Cu due to amended management practices were found. The percentages of tree cover found in each agroforestry arrangement were low, with 10.8% for the El Salado and 6.3% for the El Palmar. In our case, where nutrient availability is a limiting factor, it is necessary to increase the shade level since there is a positive correlation between the production of cacao and light; the coverage level should be increased to 30% for the ideal level of shade for cacao. The SExI-FS® simulation serves to implement management plans within plantations, such as improving the shade level, pruning management and type of species used.

Keywords : SexI-FS®; Theobroma cacao; design of plantations; interactions.

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