Observaciones sobre la incidencia de Monilia del cacao en Ecuador

The pod rot of cacao caused by Monilia roreri (Cif. and Par.) was studied at the Tropical Agricultural Experiment Station, Pichilingue, Ecuador, during 1956. Inoculation of pods at different ages, showed that the organism may act as a wound parasite entering either the peduncles or sides of the pods. Infection was foun to be more common in the peduncles of fruits in the beginning stages of their growth. There were no significant differences in field occurrence of infected pods, between those of yellow or of red color. Data indicated that presence of shade over cacao trees did not have a controlling effect in Monilia pod rot infection. However, it would appear that shade may have more controlling effect than experimental data showed.