Establishment of young cacao trees in West Africa can be severely impeded by the onset of the dry season. To address this issue, a field experiment was conducted in Ghana to examine whether different mulch treatments and irrigation applied during the dry season combined with overhead shade could improve survival, early growth and yield of cacao. The mulch treatments used were polyethylene film and coffee husks placed around the young plants. Irrigation was used as a positive control, and no mulching or irrigation was a negative control. Three shade regimes were provided through different arrangements of Gliricidia sepium and plantains. Four different cacao clones were used in the study in a replicated split-plot design. Early growth of cacao was stimulated under the irrigation and plastic mulch treatments. Higher rates of photosynthesis during the dry season appeared to underlie these increases. Significantly higher early yields were also observed under the irrigation and coffee mulch treatments compared with the control. Plant survival varied significantly between treatments; irrigation was associated with the highest plant survival (94%), followed by the plastic mulch treatment (91%), coffee husk (82%) and the control (70%). There was also an increase in survival when more intense shading was used. Under zero mulch conditions, differences in survival were observed between clones. The clones P 30 [POS] and SCA 6 were more sensitive to drought (in terms of survival) than PA 150 and T 79/501. It is concluded that relatively simple mulching techniques or controlled irrigation in conjunction with appropriate shade management can significantly improve early establishment and cropping of cacao.

中文翻译：

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通过覆盖、灌溉和遮荫改善可可（Theobroma cacao）的田间种植

旱季的到来可能会严重阻碍西非可可幼树的生长。为了解决这个问题，在加纳进行了一项田间试验，以检查在旱季应用不同的覆盖处理和灌溉结合头顶遮荫是否可以提高可可的存活率、早期生长和产量。使用的覆盖物处理是聚乙烯薄膜和放置在幼苗周围的咖啡壳。以灌水为阳性对照，不覆膜不灌水为阴性对照。通过不同的安排提供了三种遮荫制度枸杞和大蕉。在重复裂区设计的研究中使用了四种不同的可可克隆。灌溉和地膜处理促进了可可的早期生长。旱季期间较高的光合作用率似乎是这些增加的基础。与对照相比，在灌溉和咖啡覆盖处理下也观察到显着更高的早期产量。不同处理之间的植物存活率差异很大；灌溉与最高的植物存活率（94%）相关，其次是塑料覆盖处理（91%）、咖啡壳（82%）和对照（70%）。当使用更强烈的阴影时，存活率也有所增加。在零覆盖条件下，观察到克隆之间的存活率差异。与 PA 150 和 T 79/501 相比，克隆 P 30 [POS] 和 SCA 6 对干旱（就生存而言）更敏感。得出的结论是，相对简单的覆盖技术或控制灌溉与适当的遮荫管理相结合，可以显着改善可可的早期建立和种植。