Larissa Fatarelli Bento de Araújo

Coffee cultivation in the Western Amazon is based on Coffea canephora Pierre ex A. Froehner clones with limited nutritional characterization. This study aimed to quantify the genetic variability in leaf mineral concentrations among 64 widely cultivated genotypes. The experiment was conducted at the Embrapa experimental field station in Ouro Preto do Oeste, Rondônia, using a randomized complete block design with three replications. Leaf concentrations of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S, B, Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, Na, and Al were evaluated. Significant genotype effects were observed for all evaluated elements (p ≤ 0.01), with high heritability estimates for K, Cu, Mn, N, and S. The decreasing order of leaf macronutrient concentrations was N > K > Ca > Mg > S > P. Among the evaluated elements, Fe, Mn, Zn, Na, and Al showed the greatest variation, with clones LB33, N8G8, BRS1216, and GJ30 standing out for their higher concentrations of Zn/Na, Al, N, and K, respectively. Multivariate analyses indicated that variation in foliar mineral concentrations was predominantly continuous, although the clones were partitioned into two groups with contrasting profiles. Group 1 was associated with higher concentrations of P, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Al, whereas Group 2 showed higher relative concentrations of N, K, Ca, Mg, S, Na, and Zn. These findings reveal distinct foliar mineral profiles among the evaluated clones and provide a basis for selecting contrasting genotypes for future studies on clone-specific nutritional responses.

Agricultural research helps us to reduce the risks associated with climate variability, pests and diseases, market fluctuations, and biennial bearing. However, genotype characterization is often conducted independently of economic performance and yield stability, limiting the identification of genotypes that combine high yield, stability, and economic return potential. This study characterized the genotype × harvest season interaction and gross revenue of Coffea canephora clones evaluated in Rondônia, Brazil, over five harvest seasons (2021–2025). Twenty-eight genotypes were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with four replications and five plants per plot, and yield stability was assessed using the centroid method. Cumulative yield over five harvest seasons totaled 306.22 bags ha⁻¹, with a mean of 61.24 bags ha⁻¹ per harvest season. The genotype × harvest season interaction revealed distinct temporal yield patterns. Genotypes closest to the ideotype of maximum yield and stability included BAG19, BRS1216, GJ8, GJ25, AS2, and BAG24. Gross revenue simulations based on contrasting historical coffee price scenarios indicated the economic superiority of these clones. Differences in yield potential contributed more to gross revenue variation than biennial bearing. Relative to the overall mean of the 28 genotypes, these clones achieved an 85% increase in mean yield and a 61.2% increase in mean gross revenue.

Understanding the vegetative vigor of clonal genotypes under nursery conditions is essential for efficient seedling production and the development of new cultivars. This study aimed to evaluate the initial vegetative vigor of Coffea canephora genotypes cultivated in the Western Amazon. Twenty-one genotypes from the Embrapa Germplasm Bank, four registered cultivars, and three publicly available clones were assessed in a completely randomized design with four replicates and six plants per plot. Vegetative traits were evaluated 128 days after planting the cuttings and included: shoot length (SL), shoot diameter (SD), number of roots (NR), root volume (RV), shoot dry mass (SDM), root dry mass (RDM), total dry mass (TDM), leaf area (LA), the SDM/RDM ratio, and the Dickson Quality Index (DQI). Genotype performance and experimental accuracy were analyzed using genetic parameter estimates and genotype divergence. All commercial genotypes, except GJ25 and AS2, exhibited superior vegetative vigor during the seedling stage. Genotype BAG15 was initially the most vigorous. Genotypes BAG30, BAG31, BAG21, BAG29, BAG19, BAG26, BAG24, BAG28, BAG39, BAG41, BAG33, BAG38, BAG43, BAG23, BAG34, and BAG32 were considered promising due to their high RDM/SDM ratio and/or proximity to ideotype III, which was characterized by greater root development a trait likely to enhance survival following transplanting in the field.

Plant breeding of Coffea canephora is based on the characterization and use of the natural genetic variability of the species. Thus, the objective of this study was to quantify the genetic diversity and gains from selection of the fruit and bean physical traits of the C. canephora plant, seeking to understand the relations among the yield components and identify genotypes with superior traits. For this purpose, 42 genotypes were evaluated over two crop years while considering a randomized block design in a factorial arrangement to quantify the effects of genotypes, crop years, and the interaction between these two factors. Coffee fruit samples in the cherry stage were used to evaluate the weights, volumes, and dimensions of the fresh fruit and beans after drying. Genotypic variance prevailed over environmental variance for all of the fruit and bean physical traits of the coffee plants, except for the greatest fruit width (FWG). These associations indicate that the constituent parts of the fruit increased in a manner proportional to an increase in weight. Such associations can facilitate or hinder plant selection. The total gains obtained through the selection indices were similar to those obtained through direct selection for greater bean weights. However, the use of selection indices made it possible to identify clones with more balanced traits.

Planting coffee in agroforestry systems (AFSs) provides diverse advantages to farmers interested in producing environmental services, such as increased local biodiversity, reduction in soil erosion, improvement in water infiltration into the soil, and regulation of climate extremes. It can also be economically attractive due to the possibility of serving alternative markets that have higher and more stable prices for coffees integrated into alternative systems and the generation of products complementary to coffee. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of different planting densities of three forest species on the composition of AFSs with coffee plants under the conditions of the southwestern Amazon region. The study was conducted from November 2014 to June 2021 in the experimental field of Embrapa in Ouro Preto do Oeste, RO, Brazil. The coffee plants were intercropped with three forest species: i) Brazilian firetree (Schizolobium parahyba var. amazonicum), ii) Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa), and iii) teak (Tectona grandis). The treatments used in each experiment were four plant densities of plants: zero (coffee plants only, in full sun), 111 plants ha−1 (10 × 9 m), 222 plants ha−1 (10 × 4.5 m), and 444 plants ha−1 (5 × 4.5 m). The experiments were conducted in a split-plot arrangement, with plots consisting of plant densities and subplots consisting of harvest periods (crop seasons). The experimental design was completely randomized, with nine replications. The part of the plot used for data collection consisted of one planted row with 12 coffee plants. The average and accumulated productivities of coffe plants were evaluated over five harvests (2017-2021). Afforestation of the coffee field with Brazilian firetree plants reduces the mean yield and cumulative yield of C. canephora ‘Conilon’ in the first five commercial crop years. Brazil nut and teak planted at densities of up to 222 trees per hectare did not lead to a reduction in the mean and cumulative yield of coffee plants.

This study aimed to establish production curves of cuttings for Coffea canephora coffee plants in response to nitrogen doses. A clonal garden of the botanical variety Robusta was used to evaluate the effects of seven nitrogen doses divided into four applications. The subplots corresponded to two evaluation periods: January and June 2019. The following traits were evaluated: number of stems, number of viable cuttings, number of cuttings per stem, cutting fresh and dry mass, and cutting macronutrient contents. The results showed that C. canephora produced a higher amount of vegetative mass and propagules during the period from September to January compared to the period from January to June. Nutrient concentrations in the tissues varied with the period of the year due to soil nutrient availability and the amount of accumulated dry mass. Increasing nitrogen doses resulted in higher vegetative and propagules mass associated to higher nitrogen and potassium concentrations in the cuttings; but had no effect on phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, and sulfur contents. Nutrient contents in the cuttings followed the order K>N>Ca>P>Mg>S regardless of the applied nitrogen dose.

Cutting is the main vegetative propagation method used to produce Coffea canephora plantlets. In this method, the nutritional quality of the vegetative propagule (stem cuttings) is one of the determining factors for the rooting speed and the final quality of the plantlets. Thus, the objective in this study was to verify possible variations in nutrient content and anatomical characteristics in cuttings collected at different times of the year and their relationship with the production of Coffea canephora clonal plantlets. The study was divided into two phases: 1) Nutritional composition and anatomy of C. canephora cuttings grown at different times; 2) Production of C. canephora seedlings under greenhouse conditions. The treatments consisted of cuttings collection and plantlets production at different times of the year: January, May and September 2017. We observed that there is seasonal variation for the content of N, P, K and Mg; and anatomical changes in xylem, phloem and vascular cylinder thickness in cuttings harvested at different times of the year. We conclude that although nutritional and anatomical aspects of the vegetative propagule may result in different vegetative growth rates of C. canephora clonal plantlets, this result is more dependent on the management of the nursery environment conditions, especially temperature and relative air humidity. Key words: Coffea canephora; cutting nutrition; clonal plantlet; vegetatif growth; physiological quality.

The objective of this study was to quantify the export of macronutrients by coffee fruits Coffea canephora “Conilon - BRS Ouro Preto,” under different doses of the fertilizer formulation 20-00-20 under rainfed conditions, in the Western Amazon. The treatments were six doses of fertilizer 20-00-20, in the proportions: 0; 250; 500; 1,000; 2,000; 3,000 kg ha⁻¹year⁻¹ and the experimental design was completely randomized with 15 replications. There was a difference for the accumulation of dry mass, content and export of nutrients when comparing straw and grain. The export of nutrients by the grain follows a decreasing order: N > K> Mg > P> Ca > S and the export by straw follows the order: K > N> Ca > Mg > S> P. The doses of the formulation not influence the levels of nutrients in the fruits but promoted an exponential increase in dry mass of grains and straw, with a maximum accumulation of 6,413 kg ha⁻¹ of dry mass of grain and 5,455 kg ha⁻¹ in straw at a dose of 3000 kg ha⁻¹. It is concluded that the doses of fertilizer formulation 20-00-20 do not promote changes in the concentrations of nutrients N, P, K, Ca, Mg, and S in the fruits of the coffee tree “Conilon - BRS Ouro Preto.” However, it promotes greater accumulation of dry mass in both grains and straw and greater export of nutrients by the fruits.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the production of cuttings of Coffea canephora genotypes, in a new system for training mother plants called “vertical clonal garden”. The proposed new system consists of training coffee plants with only one shoot and without bending the main shoot, so that the secondary orthotropic shoots, from which the clonal cuttings will be taken, are formed across the length of the stem in the vertical direction. The capacity for the production of cuttings of ten hybrid genotypes of coffee plants was evaluated over ten production cycles. The 'BRS 2314', 'BRS 3213', and 'BRS 3210' genotypes showed cutting production per cut of 425,000 cuttings per hectare, considered above the obtained average. The 'BRS 3193', 'BRS 2336', 'BRS 3220', and 'BRS 3137' genotypes were the least productive. Coffee plants trained in the “vertical clonal garden” system can produce about 425,000 cuttings per hectare per harvest period or about 1.275 million cuttings per hectare per year, over three harvest periods, with a greater ease in crop management and treatments.