Seasonal Vegetative Growth in Genotypes of Coffea canephora, as Related to Climatic Factors

Knowledge about the seasonality of different genotypes of Coffea canephora is an important tool for this crop management, particularly with regard to irrigation and fertilisation issues. This study was conducted in Espírito Santo, Brazil and aimed at to evaluate the seasonal vegetative growth in genotypes of C. canephora, as related to climatic factors, based on the growth of groups of orthotropic and plagiotropic branches with different ages. Three groups of plagiotropic branches and one group of orthotropic branches of 14 genotypes (Ipiranga and 13 that belonged to the variety Vitória) were selected and marked to followed along the one-year experiment. Three-year-old plants were cultivated under full-sun conditions, with a spacing of 3 m between rows and 1 m between plants. The growth rates of the orthotropic and plagiotropic branches differed among the genotypes and underwent seasonal variation during the entire year, with high correlations to the air temperature. Under the natural experimental conditions, the growth rate of the branches decreased when the minimum air temperatures were below 17.2ºC for most of the genotypes studied. The plagiotropic branches presented lower vegetative growth, mainly for the coffee berries, compared to the younger branches. Presumably, the genotypes of C. canephora demanded more nutrients for growth between mid-September and the second week of May.