Final Weblog

An overview of Guaraná 

Guaraná is a special plant and it needs really specific conditions to grow and becomes productive. The Brazil Rain Forest from where the plant comes from could not be a better place for this plant to grow.

Currently, the fruits that are commercialized and have a commercial value, but also other parts can be used, as the leaves, trunk, and seeds. All them have different properties and teas are made from it, it can provide several benefits for human health which makes guarana a magic and unique plant, and the levels of caffeine that the plants contain are incredibly higher than coffee's!

Because the guaraná plant pass through dry periods the type of photosynthesis that it realizes is the C4 and the photoperiod is relevant for the growth, due to the location, the Amazon forest, the day light is always similar, once Brazil is located in the Ecuador line do not have changes in the day light. So, a regular daylight is necessary.

Guaraná is monoecious, so a cross pollination happens in those plants, by insects and wind. For guaraná production the plant needs low altitude, warm and humid climate with 85% relative humidity, 26ºC average annual temperature and annual rainfall between 1,500 and 2000 mm.  The soil need to be well drained, due to guaraná cannot support soggy soils. And some environmental conditions that could affect the guaraná production are: rain (need to be more

than 1500mm per year) deep soils and well drained, and warm temperature. So, you can see how specific needs to be the environment for this plant develops

The main disease that attack this plant is the anthracnose disease, and to solve this problem, Embrapa (Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation) created genetic improved guaraná plants, the plants are disease-resistant with high commercial productivity. The name of the two new cultivars are: BRS Saterê and BRS Marabitana. The new plants also exclude the use of fungicides to fight against the fungus

The harvest of the guarana is done by human labor even in large scale of production.

Most of the guaraná plantations in Brasil use the conventional agriculture, but this does not mean that it is the best practice. Once the price for organic guaraná is 40% more than the conventional product price, so if the farmer chooses to grow in an organic way, he will help the environment and also increase the production profit. Various companies are available to help farmers and give information about growing guaraná in an organic way and certification process as the Sebrae.

Interesting links:

General information about guaraná (portuguese)

http://www.portalsaofrancisco.com.br/alimentos/guarana

http://www.almanaquedocampo.com.br/imagens/files/a%20cultura%20do%20guaran%C3%A1.pdf

Growth habitat

http://www.worldagroforestry.org/treedb/AFTPDFS/Paullinia_cupana.PDF

Photosynthesis 

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247849363_Transpiration_and_stomatal_resistance_variations_of_perennial_tropical_crops_under_soil_water_availability_conditions_and_water_deficit

Organic certification(portuguese)

http://www.clicrbs.com.br/especial/sc/planetaatlantida/19,0,2592221,Guarana-de-Maues-AM-mantem-certificacao-organica-para-colheita-2009-2010.html

Example of organic guaraná farmer

http://g1.globo.com/economia/agronegocios/noticia/2013/11/guarana-organico-e-aposta-de-pequenos-agricultores-de-rondonia.html

Information about Amazon ecosystem 

http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/where_we_work/amazon/about_the_amazon/ecosystems_amazon/rainforests/

http://www.soil-net.com/dev/page.cfm?pageid=casestudies_trf&loginas=anon_casestudies

Cultivation and market of guarana (portuguese)

http://www.sebrae.com.br/sites/PortalSebrae/artigos/o-cultivo-e-o-mercado-do-guarana,969a9e665b182410VgnVCM100000b272010aRCRD

Intercropping (portuguese)

https://www.embrapa.br/amazonia-ocidental/busca-de-publicacoes/-/publicacao/665230/cultivo-de-batata-doce-nas-entrelinhas-do-guarana.

http://g1.globo.com/economia/agronegocios/noticia/2013/11/guarana-organico-e-aposta-de-pequenos-agricultores-de-rondonia.html

Genetic improved guaraná plants

https://www.acritica.com/channels/governo/news/embrapa-lanca-novas-plantas-de-guarana-resistentes-a-doencas-e-de-alta-produtividade-comercial 

Weeds

http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0100-83582004000300004

Soil erosion and deforestation at the Rainforest

https://sciencing.com/soil-erosion-due-rainforest-deforestation-23042.html