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A 2-dimension contour model (2-DCM) for rainfall distribution. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0289873.g004
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Cocoa is a climate sensitive species that has never been reported to grow or survive outside its natural climate belt (20°N-20°S of the equator). Recent reports claimed that cocoa is currently cultivated in Eswatini (26°S), Botswana (22°S), Namibia (22°S), Lesotho (29°S), and the Republic of South Africa "RSA" (30°S). How true are these reports? Cl...
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Context 1
... day time or maximum temperature limit for RSA was the best (25.8˚C) among all the profiled climates, as it was far below the highest tolerable day time temperature limit for cocoa production (maximum temperature limit = 35˚C), and well within the optimum temperature (27˚C) favorable for active cocoa farm activities (Fig 3). The rainfall supply in RSA was very poor as it was well below 500mm per year (on the average) compared to the least required rainfall distribution for cocoa production i.e., 1,200mm per year (Fig 4). On the average, the rainfall distribution for the other cocoa producing nations like Ghana (>1,000 mm per year), Côte d'Ivoire (>1,500 mm per year), Nigeria (>1,000 mm per year) and Cameroon (>1,500 mm per year) were above or within the limits of the water requirements for cocoa farming i.e., 1,200 mm per year, as shown in Fig 4. All the profiled climates had substantial amount of air-water vapour saturation volume but that of RSA was the least, with an estimated value 10-20% higher than the least possible humidity requirement for cocoa production (Fig 5) i.e., the humidity of RSA was between 60-70% while the other countries whose climates were profiled alongside were between 70-80% compared to the benchmark (50%), as shown in Fig 5. ...
Context 2
... rainfall supply in RSA was very poor as it was well below 500mm per year (on the average) compared to the least required rainfall distribution for cocoa production i.e., 1,200mm per year (Fig 4). On the average, the rainfall distribution for the other cocoa producing nations like Ghana (>1,000 mm per year), Côte d'Ivoire (>1,500 mm per year), Nigeria (>1,000 mm per year) and Cameroon (>1,500 mm per year) were above or within the limits of the water requirements for cocoa farming i.e., 1,200 mm per year, as shown in Fig 4. All the profiled climates had substantial amount of air-water vapour saturation volume but that of RSA was the least, with an estimated value 10-20% higher than the least possible humidity requirement for cocoa production (Fig 5) i.e., the humidity of RSA was between 60-70% while the other countries whose climates were profiled alongside were between 70-80% compared to the benchmark (50%), as shown in Fig 5. In summary, the climate of RSA was described thus: temperature range was 10.8˚- C�Temp.�25.8˚C, ...
