Divisi
Cocoa swollen shoot virus
Cacao swollen shoot virus · Viral
Photo: DiSnouk · CC0
Cocoa swollen shoot virus (CSSV) is a devastating viral disease of cocoa, caused by a badnavirus and spread from tree to tree by mealybugs that ants move and protect, as well as by infected planting material and grafts. It swells the shoots, stems and roots, red-bands then yellows the leaves, shrinks the pods, and kills the tree within a few years, with no cure. It is a leading cause of cocoa decline across West Africa (Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, Togo and Nigeria), and control rests almost entirely on cutting out infected trees to stop the spread.
User:DiSnouk/D. Snoeck · CC0
Why it matters
Swollen shoot is the tree-killer of cocoa. There is no cure — once a tree catches the virus it slowly dies over two to five years, and a bad, uncontrolled outbreak can take your whole planting (up to 100% loss). It is so hard to stop because the virus lives inside the wood and sap, where no spray can reach it; tiny mealybugs, carried and protected by ants, pass it from tree to tree; and by the time you can clearly see it, it has usually already infected the neighbouring trees whose branches touch. The only way to save the rest of your cocoa is to cut out the sick trees early — and keep cutting.
When to act
Zero tolerance: cut out and destroy infected trees plus a ring of contact trees as soon as symptoms are confirmed, and act on mealybug colonies feeding on the canopy.
This guidance is general, compiled from published agronomic references including FAO and CABI. Thresholds and timing shift with your crop, your variety and the season.
In much of the region a spray is simply called mushonga — medicine. But a chemical group you cannot name is one you cannot rotate, and a product you did not write down has no pre-harvest interval you can observe. Mushonga, and other farming words →
The full cocoa swollen shoot virus field guide
- Identify it
- Scout for it
- Control it
16 field-guide sections in the app
The full guide to cocoa swollen shoot virus — every symptom to check, how and when to walk your field looking for it, and the controls that actually work, ranked. Built into your crop plan, so you are told to look before it costs you a harvest.
Crops it affects
Frequently asked questions
How do I identify cocoa swollen shoot virus?
The first tell-tale sign — red along the veins of the young flush. When a tree pushes out a flush (a burst of soft, newly-opened young leaves), look closely along the veins. Healthy young cocoa flush is red all over and then hardens to an even green. With swollen shoot you instead see bright red or pink banding that follows the veins — red running as stripes ALONG the leaf veins, not spread over the whole leaf. This vein pattern is the surest early sign.
When should I take action against cocoa swollen shoot virus?
Zero tolerance: cut out and destroy infected trees plus a ring of contact trees as soon as symptoms are confirmed, and act on mealybug colonies feeding on the canopy.
How do I control cocoa swollen shoot virus?
PREVENT — start clean and stay clean (your strongest tool). Plant only certified virus-free (tested-clean) seedlings from a trusted nursery, and never take seed, budwood or suckers from a sick or unknown tree — grafts and planting material carry the virus. Where they exist, plant tolerant varieties that suffer less. Keep a barrier between your cocoa and any old, abandoned or infected cocoa nearby — a real gap or a band of non-host plants (plants the virus and its mealybugs cannot live on) — so the carrier cannot cross. This cultural line is the mainstay of control.
Which crops does cocoa swollen shoot virus affect?
Among the crops covered here: Cocoa.
Catch it before it costs you a harvest
Divisi builds scouting into your crop plan — it tells you when to walk your field, what to look for at that stage, and what to do when you find it. Free for farmers, works offline.
Check what grows on your farm