ABSTRACT
When well-managed, both coffee and tea are capable of protecting the soil against erosion, loss of structure, and desiccation. Projects designed to increase yields in areas already producing tea or coffee that include pilot plots of alternative taller perennial food crops will assist future diversification. Coffee trees, whether Coffeaarabica, C. robusta, C. canephora, or "Liberian" C. liberica, thrive on deep but well-drained loamy soils. Soil protection by mulching is preferable to intercropping with annuals, which inevitably compete with the coffee for moisture during the dry season. Soil protection by mulching is preferable to intercropping with annuals, which inevitably compete with the coffee for moisture during the dry season. On established coffee and tea estates, the ideal condition would be to maintain a minimum growth of broad-leaved weeds or selected ground cover controlled by overhead shade, occasional weeding, and an annual mulching. Several serious tea diseases have responded to non-chemical control methods.
