The coffee pruning can increase the productivity by 20%
If done well, the process increases the production life of the coffee tree with vigor, as well as eliminating branches affected by pests and diseases
The coffee harvest is in full swing in most Brazilian regions. However, in addition to the usual concerns of this time of year, producers need to start preparing for a stage that comes soon after the beans have all been bagged: pruning the coffee.
Between July and August, this practice begins in some regions that reinvigorates the crop and can increase productivity by about 20%, according to the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa). In an article published in G1, Ihara brings the details.
Coffee pruning
From now on, the use of highly productive coffee varieties with great vegetative vigor, in addition to the greater number of plants per hectare of coffee and the use of efficient fertilizers, made new cultivation techniques necessary. This is to avoid the closure of crops and the loss of productive branches of the coffee tree.
According to Roberto Antonio Thomaziello, a retired researcher from the Agronomic Institute (IAC), in intensive cultivation systems such as the current ones, the productive area of the coffee branch is reduced after a few cycles and accentuates the biennial nature of production.
“It is necessary to renew the productive branches in order to resume their productivity capacity”, he explained in an article published on the website of the Luiz de Queiroz – School of Agriculture (Esalq/USP).
Main advantages
Thomaziello also mentions the renewal of the productive branches and modifications of the architecture of the plants and the proper maintenance of the leaf-fruit relationship. Still, greater luminosity to stimulate production in places with closure or self-shading.
Innovation
Above all, there is research related to coffee pruning, which brings even more advantages to farmers. For example, the Capixaba Institute of Research, Technical Assistance and Rural Extension (Incaper) developed the Programmed Pruning of Cycle in Arabica Coffee (PPCA). In short, it is a crop management technology, coming from the results of research conducted since 2008.
The system, therefore, was developed based on the principles used to establish the programmed pruning cycle for Conilon coffee. The goal, according to Incaper, is to offer a more sustainable alternative for the management of Arabica coffee. To provide more longevity and maintenance of productive potential.
Did you see how coffee pruning can be an important ally of productivity?
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