Influence of three pruning intensities on productive characteristics of cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) CCN-51 clone

The cultivation of cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) is a widespread crop and occupies an increasing number of hectares of agricultural land distributed throughout almost all of Ecuador. The agronomic management of this crop consists of different agricultural tasks of which pruning is one of the main ones. In many cocoa farms, pruning is done incorrectly, causing the cocoa trees not to reach their ideal structure and leading to low production. Cocoa is of great importance as a source of external income for the country. The objective of this research is to evaluate three pruning intensities in CCN-51 cocoa and their influence on production. Three treatments with different pruning intensities of 25%, 50%, and 75% (T1, T2, and T3, respectively) were studied. Each treatment consisted of 10 plants and 4 replicates, for a total of 120 plants. A RDBC randomized complete block design was used. Health and production data were evaluated for each plot. For the healthy fruit variable, T1 pruning at 25% obtained the best result, while for diseased fruit, T2 pruning at 50% obtained a good result.