Search results
Theobroma cacao ( cacao tree or cocoa tree) is a small (6–12 m (20–39 ft) tall) evergreen tree in the family Malvaceae. [1] [3] Its seeds, cocoa beans, are used to make chocolate liquor, cocoa solids, cocoa butter and chocolate. [4]
Fruit. The fruit is a pod, 10-32 cm long, spherical to oblong, with 5 to 10 longitudinal ridges. Unripe fruits are white or green, turning to yellow, orange, red or purple when mature, with 20-60 seeds per fruit. Cocoa seeds are ovoid to elliptic, measuring 2-4 cm long and 1.2-2 cm wide. Habitat.
May 25, 2024 · Asian cacao trees are affected by a fungus (Oncobasidium theobroma) that causes the tree to dry out, starting from the branch tips—a condition called vascular streak dieback. Swollen shoot is a viral disease transmitted to the plant by mealybugs that has devastated Ghanaian and Nigerian cocoa crops.
Cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) is a tree that belongs to the Malvaceae family (Fig. 3.1). Theobroma genus includes 22 species; nonetheless, Theobroma cacao is the only species with global economic significance (Afoakwa, 2014).
The cocoa bean (technically cocoa seed) or simply cocoa (/ ˈ k oʊ. k oʊ /), also called cacao (/ k ə ˈ k aʊ /), is the dried and fully fermented seed of Theobroma cacao, the cacao tree, from which cocoa solids (a mixture of nonfat substances) and cocoa butter (the fat) can be extracted.
Plant description. An evergreen tree with shiny, leathery, egg-shaped leaves that start red and turn green. The young leaves are red and droop to deter herbivores. It is cauliflorous, meaning the tiny, yellowish-white to pale pink flowers grow in clusters directly from the trunk and large branches. The oval fruit are yellow to orange when ripe.
Jun 22, 2024 · Cocoa beans in the fruit of the cacao tree (Theobroma cacao), the source of cocoa and chocolate. The plant is native to tropical regions of Central and South America but is primarily cultivated in western Africa.
