![]() Planting cacao trees in beat-up rain forest could relieve pressure on virgin rain forest, like this one, near the continental divide in Costa Rica. |
This is only a test...
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after selective logging (to simulate planting in disturbed forests); | |
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in forest that resembles old growth; and | |
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in plantations, under the shade of larger trees. | |
![]() These pods have been harvested and will be split open to release the cocoa beans they hold. Courtesy of Allen Young, Milwaukee Public Museum. |
In the first two conditions, the cacao trees were planted randomly, without clearing or soil preparation. "We're trying to reproduce how cacao grew in its natural state, in small, isolated clumps," Young says.
The goal of the long study is to examine survival, growth, and productivity. Young expects that trees in the extreme shade of the forest will yield less, but that lowered costs of production (due to reduced needs for pesticides) could make the process more attractive to farmers.
Slow and steady
This happy conjunction of the ecological needs of cacao and migratory birds has sparked an unusual cooperative workshop between the chocolate industry, international conservation organizations, and the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center in Panama. Curiously , a similar synergy has been proposed for another "can't-live-without-it" tropical tree product, coffee.
Even if the cacao-in-the-woods idea works, there's still a question to be answered: Would such a low-yielding enterprise attract small farmers who need cash to survive? Perhaps, Young says, if cacao becomes part of a larger economic picture. "If they have a diverse revenue base, it could become part of a sustainable system of life. ... The current test is intended to answer the first question: Is it biologically feasible?"
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