Effects of simulated climate change conditions of increased temperature and [CO2] on the early growth and physiology of the tropical tree crop, Theobroma cacao L.

Despite multiple studies of the impact of climate change on temperate tree species, experiments on tropical and economically important tree crops, such as cacao (Theobroma cacao L.), are still limited. Here, we investigated the combined effects of increased temperature and atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration ([CO2]) on the growth, photosynthesis and development of juvenile plants of two contrasting cacao genotypes: SCA 6 and PA 107. The factorial growth chamber experiment combined two [CO2] treatments (410 and 700 p.p.m.) and three day/night temperature regimes (control: 31/22 °C, control + 2.5 °C: 33.5/24.5 °C and control + 5.0 °C: 36/27 °C) at a constant vapour pressure deficit (VPD) of 0.9 kPa. At elevated [CO2], the final dry weight and the total and individual leaf areas increased in both genotypes, while the duration for individual leaf expansion declined in PA 107. For both genotypes, elevated [CO2] also improved light-saturated net photosynthesis (Pn) and intrinsic water-use efficiency (iWUE), whereas leaf transpiration (E) and stomatal conductance (gs) decreased. Under a constant low VPD, increasing temperatures above 31/22 °C enhanced the rates of Pn, E and gs in both genotypes, suggesting that photosynthesis responds positively to higher temperatures than previously reported for cacao. However, dry weight and the total and individual leaf areas declined with increases in temperature, which was more evident in SCA 6 than PA 107, suggesting the latter genotype was more tolerant to elevated temperature. Our results suggest that the combined effect of elevated [CO2] and temperature is likely to improve the early growth of high temperature-tolerant genotypes, while elevated [CO2] appeared to ameliorate the negative effects of increased temperatures on growth parameters of more sensitive material. The evident genotypic variation observed in this study demonstrates the scope to select and breed cacao varieties capable of adapting to future climate change scenarios.