Cocoa Beans - Specimen details
| Catalogue Number: 65103 | |||||
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Plant Name | 32.00 STERCULIACEAE Theobroma cacao | Entry Book Number | 10.1912 | |
| Artefact Name | Cocoa Beans | Vernacular Name | |||
| Iso Country | Ghana | TDWG Region | Ghana | ||
| Parts Held | Cocoa Beans | Geography Description | Gold Coast, Aburi | ||
| Uses | Cocoa BeansUse: User: Not defined | TDWG use | |||
| Storage | Bottles, boxes etc | Related Items | |||
| Donor | Botanic Gardens, Aburi | Donor No | |||
| Donor Date | Donor Notes | ||||
| Collector | Collector No | ||||
| Collection Notes | Collection Date | ||||
| Exhibition | Expedition | ||||
| Number Components | Publication | ||||
| Notes: | Label source: Copy of letter No 2047/73/1911 dated 21st Dec 1911 - Sir, I have the houour to inform you that I am sending to you for your Museum, by this week`s mail a small parcel of cocoa of the variety we are calling 'Cundeamor' prepared at Aburi Bota, nic Gardens. 2. This variety is interesting in that it appears to have been received from Kew along with some seedlings named 'Pentagona' in 1901. Nine of these seedlings were planted out and one tree, the first to bear fruit, yields a quite distinct pod, and bean from that of pentagona. This was not specially noticed at first (until the other trees came into bearing) and a small plot was established of this type under the name pentagona. The sample of cocoa sent you is from this plot. 3. The pods are l, arge, yellow in colour, some of then blunt and others with sharp pointed ends, wrinkled and more closely resembling the Cundeamor type of Ceylon, but quite distinct from Pentagona, which has 5 prominent ridges. The young trees are prolific (more so thant, he parent) and the beans are large in size and exhibit a better sample than the ordinary cocoa in cultivation in this colony (Amelonado). It would appear to be a valuable introduction. 4. We are experiencing a great demand for the pods at 2/6each. I beli, eve it is a valuable hybrid as the trees do not all exhibit an exactly similar type. Pentagona yields with us very few fruits annually. I am sending a sample to the Imp Inst for investigation. (Signed) W SD Tudhope Director of Agriculture. Received Jan 11, 1912, ack 16 Jan 1912 JHH Submitted to Lewis & peat for report, copy of report sent to Mr Tudhope JHH Report by Lewis & Peat 13 Jan 1912 - Gentlemen, We are much obliged for your letter together with sample of cocoa from the Gold Coast. We have examined, same and beg to hand you our report upon quality and valuation. The cocoa is good extra bold pale reddish, well cured and prepared, worth about 53/- to 54/- per cwt. From the size and appearance, it is worth 8/- to 10/- per cwt more than ordinary qualit, ies from Accra and West Coast of Africa. The market is quiet and prices during the past few weeks have declined 2/- to 3/- per cwt. | ||||