Agroecological zoning of Coffea arabica L. in Cuba. Sagua-Nipe-Baracoa mountains

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F. Soto

Abstract

Even though the coffee is tolerant to a wide
range of ecological conditions, under which it grows and
develops appropriately, many coffee plantations are located
in areas with one or more limiting factors to reach appropriate
yields; also there are zones that are not dedicated to this
crop; however, they could be useful for their agroecological
conditions. In Cuba, 80 % grain production takes place in the
eastern region, consequently, this work is very important for
coffee culture in the country. Keeping in mind these elements,
then it was necessary to determine those ecological factors
affecting coffee crop which do not allow to reach high yields,
thus, an agroecological zoning of Coffea arabica L. was
demanded. The following factors were taken into
consideration: rainfall and its distribution, temperature and
soils, regarding also height above sea level. By using the
Geographical Information Systems (GIS), it was possible to
classify the region in four zones: good, moderately good,
acceptable and useless. The potential coffee yields are fitted
in each of these zones. This result allows to implement a
coffee-developing program in this eastern region, and the
methodology employed in this work could be further used for
the agroecological zoning of other crops.

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How to Cite
Soto, F. (2013). Agroecological zoning of Coffea arabica L. in Cuba. Sagua-Nipe-Baracoa mountains. Cultivos Tropicales, 22(3), 27–51. Retrieved from https://ediciones.inca.edu.cu/index.php/ediciones/article/view/683
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Original Article