Impact of drought associated with high temperatures on Coffea canephora plantations: a case study in Espírito Santo State, Brazil

Abstract

Droughts are major natural disasters that affect many parts of the world all years and recently affected one of the major conilon coffee-producing regions of the world in state of Espírito Santo, which caused a huge crisis in the sector. Therefore, the objective of this study was to conduct an analysis with technical-scientific basis of the real impact of drought associated with high temperatures and irradiances on the conilon coffee (Coffea canephora Pierre ex Froehner) plantations located in the north, northwest, and northeast regions of the state of Espírito Santo, Brazil. Data from 2010 to 2016 of rainfall, air temperature, production, yield, planted area and surface remote sensing were obtained from different sources, statistically analyzed, and correlated. The 2015/2016 season was the most affected by the drought and high temperatures (mean annual above 26 °C) because, in addition to the adverse weather conditions, coffee plants were already damaged by the climatic conditions of the previous season. The increase in air temperature has higher impact (negative) on production than the decrease in annual precipitation. The average annual air temperatures in the two harvest seasons that stood out for the lowest yields (i.e. 2012/2013 and 2015/2016) were approximately 1 °C higher than in the previous seasons. In addition, in the 2015/2016 season, the average annual air temperature was the highest in the entire series. The spatial and temporal distribution of Enhanced Vegetation Index values enabled the detection and perception of droughts in the conilon coffee-producing regions of Espírito Santo. The rainfall volume accumulated in the periods from September to December and from April to August are the ones that most affect coffee yield. The conilon coffee plantations in these regions are susceptible to new climate extremes, as they continue to be managed under irrigation and full sun. The adoption of agroforestry systems and construction of small reservoirs can be useful to alleviate these climate effects, reducing the risk of coffee production losses and contributing to the sustainability of crops in Espírito Santo.

Understanding the Impact of Drought in Coffea Genotypes: Transcriptomic Analysis Supports a Common High Resilience to Moderate Water Deficit but a Genotype Dependent Sensitivity to Severe Water Deficit

“…Ultimately, the primary response beyond ABA levels will be the stomatal closure in coffee leaves, regulating ion transport in guard cells and decreasing drought severity in coffee genotypes as reported in other species [96][97][98] Climate changes are expected to include an increased frequency of water scarcity events, including the intensity of severity and duration, posing a growing threat to coffee's global supply chain. Agroforestry systems can be useful to mitigate some of these harsh effects, reducing the risk of coffee production losses and contributing to the sustainability of crops [18,31]. However, to maintain the global supply of coffee, it is also important to promote the screening and development of tolerant varieties to face the increasingly expected impacts of droughts.…”

“…Currently, there is evidence that C. canephora has some tolerance to drought through enrichment of secondary compound metabolic genes, namely antioxidant genes, which play an essential role in coffee drought response [29]. Recent studies underline that at least some genotypes of C. canephora could be far more sensitive to thermal stress than previously thought [30,31]. Other genotypes of C. arabica and C. canephora were found to have the ability to endure harsh temperatures [23,24] and water deficit [25] to a greater extent than usually assumed.…”

A Transcriptomic Approach to Understanding the Combined Impacts of Supra-Optimal Temperatures and CO2 Revealed Different Responses in the Polyploid Coffea arabica and Its Diploid Progenitor C. canephora

“…The quite low levels of genetic variation found in C. arabica when compared to its diploid progenitors are a concern in the context of environmental changes regarding the sustainability of this crop [20]. The predicted increase in global temperature could be catastrophic to C. arabica yields and quality, since some works consider this species more sensitive to elevated temperatures than C. canephora [15], with impacts being already felt on field plantations [21,22]. In fact, classical studies suggested that coffee photosynthesis would be particularly sensitive to temperatures above 20-25 • C (e.g., [23][24][25]).…”

Brazilian Coffee Production and the Future Microbiome and Mycotoxin Profile Considering the Climate Change Scenario

“…The effect of climate change on microbial diversity and the resilience of toxigenic fungi through culture-independent technology has yet to be explored in the coffee crop. Drought is the main environmental restriction affecting coffee growth and production [ 79 ], not only for arabica coffee but also for robusta, which until recently was considered resistant to temperature increases, having been recently demystified by research conducted in Southeast Asia [ 80 ]. Some studies provided evidence that potential mycotoxigenic fungi may not be affected by the CO 2 treatments [ 81 ], nonetheless, these studies need to be better designed in order to include other climatic factors linked to the natural microbiome associated with coffee production/productivity [ 82 ].…”

“…Thus, it is still mandatory to design indirect means of assessing the vulnerability of coffee microbiota to temperature change in the field allied to stress and other climate factors, such as water and CO 2 , to verify how these climatic factors influence the population fluctuation of microorganisms and microbial succession directly associated with the production of coffee beans. This information is still necessary for decision-making related to the sustainability of the coffee sector, since its production is considered the main agricultural product in some Brazilian states and may be jeopardized by climate change [ 79 ].…”