THEOBKOMA 



THEOBROlMA 



1793 



Clos.i, T. aiujastifnli,, ami T. Inrolor. TJu'ohrnwa x,//- 

 vfstris. Aiil.l. (T. Jf<irfl.niii, Diftr.) is soitirtiiufs w- 

 ferred U* ;is a native, bar does nor apiirar to have Ihtu 

 reeordeil bv nnxlerti writers fur (.'eiitral Auieriea and 

 rile West Indies. 



TheohroiiKi I'mtotjona \i> a speeirs wlii.di in vi.ii'or uf 

 growrh and {irodiu-rive capaeity ri'snnhlrs to a verv 

 large dey:ree tiie ,i;*oneral]y eulTivali'd \avierirs of T. 

 CiCito, Imr it differs in tiie liowrrs, in rlie size of 

 beans, and espoeially in rhe shapr of rlie i-ods. Th 

 beans are lari^or in size than tliose id' T. (''^ 

 equal if nor suporior in flavor, and are eapable 

 workeil n[> in rhe same wav as The roninionoi 

 This kind is keown on rln- niainhind as " Alli- 

 garor' Cacao, from thr faniMod rrsmibjanru 

 of its skin ro llio hido of an allii^aror. Thi- 

 oiUside of the pod is soft and easily lu-okon. 

 and does not alford surh --<io,| protoi-tion m 

 rhe interior as The harder slndl possi.'ssod 

 by T. C'lrno. In Xieara.^•na T. i'ar'!o and T. 

 pri/t'iijoiht are ^-rown ri>i;'ether. and rhr jn'o- 

 duoe is nn'^rly a mixtnre of the rwo s]u-cit'v. 

 From the prosenee of T. pentiKjon-i . ir is pos- 

 sible that hyliridixation has takon pho-o be- 

 tween two species. Ir has been notod rhar rho 

 pods of T. C'li-'to produce nnieli hiri^or soods 

 or beans in Nicaragua than in ci amrrii-s 

 where rhis speciL--s is not grown in company 

 wirh T. pent(i(/o>i,i : and the beans of rhe two 

 species are almost impossible to disringTiisli 

 when cured togerher. The product of Nicara- 

 guan plantations also requires much less time 

 for fermentation than the produce of Grenada, 

 Trinidad or Vt^nezuela. some forty-eight hours heing 

 the usual period, while more than four times that num- 

 ber of hours will be retiuired for tlie proper fermenta- 

 tion of the produce of the last mentioned countries, 



Theohroma speriosa is a plant that produces the 

 "Monkey Cacao" of the mainland. This is never made 

 into market Cacao, as it is very inferior in quality and 

 has a disagreeattle flavor. The pods are hard, much cor- 

 rugated, warted, and of a dirty brown color when ripe. 



Theohroma bicoJor is a very distinct species in every 

 way. The leaves are large, and in the juvenile stages 

 of growth are broadly cordate in form, and only assnme 

 the mature or oblong form on reaching the third or 

 fourth year's growth. The pods are ».tval, ribbed and 

 netted, hard and woody, with an outer shell half an imdi 

 in thickness which can only lie cut with a saw. The 

 seeds are oval, much flattened, wirh a ilark. hard aiul 

 smoorh exterior. The interior is wliite. and has a some- 

 what nutty flavor. They are used* in sweetmeats iu the 

 same way as almonds, but cannot be made into com- 

 mercial Cacao, suitable for the manufacture of choco- 

 lates. This species, though without doubt a true Theo- 

 broma, is very widely distinct from any of the varieties 

 of T. Cacao which produce commercial Cacao. The 

 produce of T. bicolor is known in sonu-- parts of Central 

 America by the names of "Wariba," ''Tiger," and "Pas- 

 taste " Cacao. 



Many names have arisen for the varieties of TJnn- 

 hronuA Cacao which are in cultivation, as many as f'.-rTy 

 having been listed by a Trinidad cultivator of largo 

 experience. Looking at the matter fnnn a practical 

 point of view, all these are merely strains of the one 

 species, produced by natural cross-fertilization of the 

 older types. According to Hart's "Cacao," Trinidad, 

 1900, there are but three major strains or classes of T. 

 Cacao, respectively, "Criollo." " Forastero,"and "Calaba- 

 cillo." The type of the first is found indigenous in 

 Trinidad and various places on the niaiidand, its dis- 

 tinctive character being its bottle-necked pod, witli a 

 thin skin and flnely ril)l)ed exterior. toi,'fther with its 

 white or whitish seeds or beans, wdnrh are mihl in 

 flavor and somewhat rounded in form. 



The characters of "Forastero " are its rouglily corru- 

 gated or verrucose pod, containing large tlattish seeds, 

 of a purplish color. It is a tree liavini,^ i,M-eater vitality 

 than "Criollo," and gives a mucii lai-i,^er crop. "Foras- 

 tero" means foreign, and this type is said to have beeii 

 found on the mainland of .South Anu-rica, whence it was 

 imported to Trinida-l bvArragonese <'a])uchin Fathers 

 about 17.".7. (De Verteuil, History of Trinidad, iss-l.) 



"('alaliacilh>" is the third form, its chief .■haract.-ris- 

 tics beiTigthe vigor of its -Towth and irs small M;ii ami 

 strongly davored bean. Hv som,. it is consldereil as a 

 de-raded form of Forastero. 



While rlie above gives a bi-ief sketch of the ehief 

 characters of the principal types, it must be underslood 

 that there are varieties intermeiiiate between the forms-. 



Tlietruitis s l^m.l.n^. 

 The tren grows from lO-.'^o 

 ft. tall. 



in facf, on the majority of ostatt-s ir is impossible ro 

 tind any two trees exacily alike iu all their ))ofanica.l 

 characters, occurring, without tloiibt, from the unin- 

 terrupted cross-fertilization whicli has taken place. 

 Still, each country appears to maintain certain charac- 

 ters more permanent than otln.n-s, and thus secures for 

 itself a name upon the markets of the world. It is 

 probable that this is due. in a measure, to the uncon- 

 cious preference taken by some to distinctive features 

 of the produce by the continuous cultivation of a fairly 

 fixed strain which has arisen. It may also be due in 

 some measure to the influence of climate and environ- 

 ment. Certain it is, however, that there are to-day 

 strains of Cacao which are possessed of distinctive 

 characters, not readily produced by any process of pre- 

 paration in places other than that in which they are 

 u'rown. A flne set of illustrations of varieties comnK'u 

 to different countries has lately Iteen published in a work 

 tty I>r. Paul Prenss, who recently traveled in ("'acao-pro- 

 du(dng countries on I'ohalf of the (.Tcrman goviTunient. 



These different brands are liought by manufacturers 

 and blended to suit their parrimlar market, but there 

 are certain kinds possessing si.rrial flavor which are 

 readily sold at high vahie. The value of the commercial 

 l")roduct fluctuates and the price rules considerably 

 lower than some years ago. Whether this results from 

 increased production or from a deterioration in the 

 quality i-aiinot be asia-rtained. It is clear that if culti- 

 vators growl'acao for si-i-d wifhout regard to the best 

 rules of selection, the quality must deteriorate. What 

 mitiirates this fact is that all the Cacao world has, up 

 to a recent date, followe<l the same practice. The pro- 

 cess of grafting, to which the Cacao tree readily snl)- 

 mits, as was recently pro-\-ed iu Trinidad, will cnalde 

 o|M-rators to make large h<dds (if the choicer varietii^s, 

 and ir may be t'onfidenrly oxpecred that in a fi-w years 

 a gi'eat improvement will be sliown in the "\"ai'ious 

 grades placed upon tlie market. But little ( 'acao is 

 mainifai'tured in the countries wliereit is grown, exceiit 

 for lionn- use, and then ucnerally in a crude manner. 



( 'liocoiare is the term used foi- sweetened and hardened 

 preparations of the roasted anil L::round Cacao bean, wirh 



