Read the passage below carefully:
In cocoa-growing communities across southwestern Nigeria, farmers have traditionally maintained locust bean trees (*Parkia biglobosa*) within their agricultural plots. While modern monoculture practices initially encouraged the removal of non-cocoa trees to maximize sunlight, recent agronomic evaluations reveal that maintaining these indigenous trees significantly stabilizes farm microclimates. The dense canopy of the locust bean tree shields cocoa plants from extreme heat during severe dry seasons, reducing thermal stress and moisture loss from the soil. Furthermore, the deep root architecture of the tree draws nutrients from lower soil horizons to the surface, enriching the topsoil layer. Although harvesting and processing locust beans provides secondary income for rural households, agricultural scientists emphasize that the primary value of integrating locust bean trees lies in their capacity to buffer cocoa farms against extreme climate variations.
Which of the following statements best captures the main idea of the passage?
- Integrating locust bean trees into cocoa farms primarily serves to protect the crops against environmental and climatic stresses.Answer
- BThe deep root system of the locust bean tree brings essential nutrients from lower soil horizons to the topsoil layer.
- CProcessing locust beans offers rural households a supplementary stream of income during severe dry seasons.
- DModern monoculture cocoa cultivation has been entirely replaced by indigenous agroforestry throughout West Africa.