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(Last Modified On 1/29/2013)
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(Last Modified On 1/29/2013)
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Species
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THEOBROMA CACAO L.
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PlaceOfPublication
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Sp. P1. 782. 1753
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Reference
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Cuatrecasas, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 35: 495, figs. 1-6, 20-26, pl. 6, map 6. 1964.
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Synonym
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Theobroma pentagonum Bernoullii Uebers. Art. Theobroma 6-7, pl. 2. 1869. Theobroma leiocarpum Bernoulli, loc. cit. 6, pl. 2. 1869. Theobroma sphaerocarpum Chev., Veget. Util. Afr. Trop. Fr. 4: 12. 1908. THEOBROMA CACAO subsp. CACAO; Cuatrecasas, loc. cit. 513. 1964. THEOBROMA CACAO subsp. SPHAEROCARPUM (Chev.) Cuatrecasas, loc. cit. 515. 1964.
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Description
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Tree usually 4-8 m. high, rarely taller and up to 20 m.; growth below jorquette; primary branching quinate; young branchlets terete, grayish-green or brownish, densely or sparsely pubescent with slender, patulous, acute, simple or furcate hairs, later glabrate, rugulose and sparsely lenticellate; stipules subulate, deciduous. Leaves alternate, distichous, the petioles thickened-pulvinate at both ends, 1.5-2 (1-3) cm. long, on orthotropous stems 3-10 cm. long, pubescent or tomentose with slender, spreading, acute, simple hairs; blade subobovate-oblong or elliptic-oblong, slightly asymmetrical, rounded or obtuse at base, attenuate and acuminate at apex, entire or slightly and irregularly sinuate, 15-50 cm. long and 4-15 cm. broad, cori- aceous or chartaceous, the acumen acute or subacute and 1-2.5 mm. long; upper surface green, glabrous except for the pubescent or puberulous, prominent costa, the secondary nerves filiform; lower surface lighter green, glabrous or with very sparse, minute, simple, furcate or stellate hairs, rarely puberulous, the costa prominent, the 9-12 secondary nerves on each side prominent, subpatulous. Infiorescences on the trunk and on the branches, usually borne on small tubercles, the cymose peduncles 1-3 mm. long, stellate-pubescent, hirtellous and with scattered, glandular hairs; bracts and bracteoles ovate or ovate-oblong, acute or subacute, pubescent, deciduous; pedicels capillary, rigid, 5-15 mm. long, pale green, whitish or reddish, hirtellous with patulous, stellate or furcate hairs and glandular, capitate hairs; buds ovoid or oblong-ovoid, acute, white, whitish-green, lilac or reddish, subglabrous or sparsely puberulous. Flowers with lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate sepals, these shortly united at base, acute at apex, 5-8 mm. long and 1.5-2 mm. wide, thick- membranaceous, white, greenish-white, pale violaceous or reddish, slightly 3-nerved, glabrous or with stellate and glandular hairs outside, glabrous or with rare, glan- dular hairs inside; petals thick-membranaceous; petal-hoods obovate, rounded at apex, 3-4 mm. long and 5-2 mm. wide, white, 3-nerved; petal-laminae stipitate, the stipe linear and 2-4 mm. long, obovate or rombic-obovate, the apex attenuate, acuminate or subtruncate and shortly mucronate, rarely blunt, the margin entire or sinuate, 1.5-2.5 mm. long and 1.5-2 mm. wide, pale yellowish; staminodes nar- rowly subulate, very acute, 4-6 mm. long, the middle vein thick, angular, red or purplish, minutely papillose-pilose, the thin margin whitish, ciliate with slender, flexuose, simple hairs; filaments 1.5-2 mm. long, glabrous, 2-antheriferous; ovary glabrous or usually glandular, the glands numerous, stipitate, white or reddish, pluricellular; styles adherent, glabrous. Fruit variable in shape, from globose to fusiform and acute, with a very smooth to a strongly ridged and rugose or verrucose surface; pericarp consistently fleshy, 5-15 mm. thick, usually made of 2 more or less conspicuously different, carnose layers (epicarp and endocarp) separated by a thin, ligneous membrane (mesocarp), the latter sometimes reduced to isolated bundles of fibers or lacking, the endocarp also sometimes lacking; pulp white and sweet; seeds 20-40, ovoid, ellipsoid, amygdaloid, more or less complanate or almost round in cross-section, variable in size, 20-40 mm. long and 12-20 mm. broad, the testa subcoriaceous, brown; cotyledons white, purplish, violet or intermediate in color.
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Habit
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Tree
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Note
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A polymorphic species, especially with regard to the color, size and shape of the parts of the flower and the fruits. Several species and varieties have been de- scribed based on these variations, the most significant are those related to the shape of the fruit and to the color of the cotyledons. Two main underspecific groups may be considered: in one group the fruits are more or less angulate, verrucose, grad- ually elongate and narrowed to the acute apex, and the cotyledons are white; in the other group the fruits are obtuse and smooth with shallow furrows, and the cotyledons are purplish. The first group comprises the commercially known criollo cacaos, which produce the best quality of cacao beans. Probably this type of cacao, since ancient times widely spread in Central America, represents the form of the original species described by Linnaeus. To the second group, of South American origin, belong the commercially known forastero cacaos, which can be classified under the subsp. sphaerocarpum. Cultivars of both groups of cacao may be found in Panama as well as in many other tropical countries. T. Cacao originated in Central and South American rain forests, but is now cultivated throughout the humid tropics of the world. Being the source of the cacao beans, it is one of the most important tropical crops of the world. In Panama, T. Cacao is cultivated in more or less extension in the lowlands of all parts of the country. It may also be found spontaneous or wild in the rain forests, but the lack of good collections prevent me from identifying the varieties and from speculations on the role played by the Isthmus of Panama in the origin and evolution of cacao. The common Panamanian name is cacao. For further information concerning infraspecific taxa, typification, etc., see my Revision of the genus Theobroma, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. 35: 495-517. 1964. No citations of specimens are given because the existing collections are lacking fruits and flowers and do not have much significance.
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