Plan Shade Trees for Cocoa Agroforestry
Define a desired mean-shade target or design manually, using one to three shade species selected by you. TSA can propose a provisional arrangement, validate it over the annual evaluation period, and adjust spacing before you apply and simulate it. This does not prescribe a universal shade level.
- Two layouts can distribute shade differently when tree density and arrangement change.
- Different species, modeled heights, and crown dimensions change the expected contribution to shade.
- The pattern also changes with location, period, evaluation hours, and orientation.
- Combine selected species: Use up to three shade species that you choose within one target-based proposal.
- Validate before applying: Evaluate expected mean shade, including existing trees, and review the provisional result before adding it to the scenario.
- Iterate spacing: Let TSA test spacing changes toward the target, or compare denser and more open manual arrangements.
- Check a reference range: Choose cocoa as the production system to see a 30–40% reference range from a 2022 study in eastern Ghana (Frontiers in Plant Science). It is a single-context reference, not a universal recommendation.
- Compare two cocoa shade-tree arrangements: Set a cacao shade target, select up to three available shade species, and review the proposed pattern and spacing. Validate the annual mean shade, adjust toward the target if needed, then apply and inspect the scenario in 2D and 3D.
- Parameters: Tree arrangement and count, Tree height, Crown height and width, Date and hours
- What to inspect: Inspect where modeled shade concentrates, where gaps remain, and how trees of different represented dimensions contribute.
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