The influence of drip irrigation and tree density on the yield and quality of Arabica coffee.

Abstract

The effect of drip irrigation and tree density on the yield and quality of Arabica coffee, cultivar SL 28 in its second cycle of production was studied in a field trial. Two irrigation rates and six tree densities planted in varying configurations of spatial arrangement were tried. Single berry fresh weight was positively correlated to tree density under rainfed coffee but poorly correlated to density under irrigation. It was observed that while rainfed optimum tree density in the first and second cycle did not vary, under irrigation, the optimum tree density was lower in the second than in the first production cycle. It is concluded that the existence of an established root system may account for the low optimum density.