Fruiting patterns of cacao as affected by shading regimes

Effects of different shading regimes (dense, moderate, and no shade) on the fruiting pattern of 2-3 years old cacao was investigated at the Teaching and Research Farm of the Federal University of Technology Akure, Nigeria between October 2014 to April 2015 which marks the first production season of the cacao plants. Plantain shade and no shade treatments that have been imposed on the cacao from establishment were studied to determine its effect on the fruiting pattern and yield. The treatments were dense shade, moderate shade and no shade which were arranged in a completely randomized design. No shade treatments significantly influenced pod production compared to dense and moderate shade at every period of data collection. More so, no significant difference was observed in the number of pods produced between moderately shaded plots and the densely shaded plots. No significant difference was observed among the treatments in weight of one pod, but the total pod weight was significantly higher under no shade compared with dense and moderately shaded plots. A number of beans per pod were not different significantly among the three-shade treatments. However fresh weight of bean per pod was significantly higher under no shade over other shade treatment. The total bean weight per treatment was significantly higher in no shade treatment compared to dense and moderately shaded plots. It was generally observed that pod production pattern in 2-3-year-old cacao production was positively influenced under no shade compared with dense and moderately shaded cacao.