Similar to that observed in Brazil for some Icatu lineages of C. arabica, which were more tolerant to cold in frost seasons (Fazuoli et al. 1995), experiments in zmbabwe also showed evidence of the existence of genetic variability for this characteristic (Bauer et al. 1990). For Icatu cultivars, it was suggested that the accumulation of potassium in the leaves might explain the higher tolerance to cold, but no evi-
dence stronger than foliar analyses have been shown so far.