|
|
Post by Indilwen on Aug 4, 2010 19:23:04 GMT 12
Coffee (Coffee Arabica)
Drinking your own home brewed coffee would be a real talking point around the weekly coffee group!
A coffee shrub grows about 3-4metres. It is evergreen with white flowers in the spring which smell like Jasmine. Plant in rich soil, high in nitrogen. Protect from full sun. The coffee plant can withstand cold nights but does not like frosts. Use this plant as an indoor specimen if you live in a frost prone area. Makes a good hedgerow or feature plant outdoors.
|
|
|
|
Post by Indilwen on Jun 23, 2011 15:00:15 GMT 12
has its history as far back as the 9th century. It is thought to have originated in the highlands of Ethiopia and spread to the rest of the world via Egypt and Europe. By the 1500s, the first traders were selling coffee in Europe, and coffee entered into Western life and custom. Coffee is the second most commonly traded commodity in the world. Landscape Value Indoors as a foliage specimen or outdoors in a hot sheltered position as a hedgerow or feature plant in a tropical garden. Nutritional Value Coffee beans contain high levels of polyphenolics, which can act as excellent antioxidants. The longer the beans are roasted the less antioxidants they contain. High levels of caffine in coffee beans can help clear congestion, help prevent asthma attacks and boast athletic performance. Too much caffine will result in jitters, migraines and / or insomnia. Coffee is addictive, regular users develop intolerance and require more coffee to obtain the desired affect. If deprived of caffeine, withdrawal symptoms can include nausea and headaches. Spent coffee grounds are a good fertilizer in gardens because of their high nitrogen content. How to Eat Coffee is a popular beverage prepared from roasted seeds (not beans, though they are almost always referred to as coffee beans) of the coffee plant. Once the beans are cleaned, fermented and dried the beans are roasted. The length of roasting determines the darkest and taste of the coffee. Coffee is usually served hot as your espresso, latte or instant, but also can be served cold. Used in deserts like banoffee pie or as flavouring. Expected Yield The coffee tree does not begin to produce its full yield until its sixth year, 0.4 kg per tree Generic Fruiting Time J F M A M J J A S O N D Growing Sun They do best in filtered sunlight and don Wind Coffee plants are not wind or salt tolerant. Climate Coffee plants prefer warm/hot climates but will tolerant some cold nights. They are not frost tolerant. An ideal house plant. Soil Coffee plants prefer a slightly acid soil with plenty of nitrogen. Plenty of moisture and free draining. Can not be planted where there is a clay pan as coffee plants have a tap root. A good potting mix for container growing where they will receive plenty of moisture and nutrients. Fertiliser Coffee plants are heavy feeders, regular applications of a complete fertiliser throughout the growing season with additions of compost and organic matter. Pruning Prune tips to maintain desired size and shape in late winter early spring. Pests Coffee plants suffer from very few pests and those that appear will be when the plant gets stressed. Mealy bug and aphids can be controlled by insecticides available at your local garden centre. Hardiness Hardy to -1°C Attachments:
|
|
|
|
Post by Indilwen on Jun 23, 2011 15:01:34 GMT 12
Coffee White starry flowers in spring form in clusters along branches having a strong Jasmine like fragrance, followed by green, coffee cherries. The coffee cherries turn bright red for Christmas, changing to brown/black when ripe in late summer. Each Cherry contains 2 seeds (beans). Habit - A cone shaped, shallow rooting shrub. Evergreen with glossy green lanceolate leaves up to 20cm long. Size - The coffee plant will grow to 2-5m with a vertical central leader and horizontal branches. Pollination - Self-fertile Harvest - Coffee takes 3-4 years to fruit. Harvest your coffee cherry when almost black and dry in the sun and then separate the seed from the cherry by breaking away the husk. Coffee Beans of Coffee Plant your coffee in a decorative container slightly larger than the container you brought it in. Use a good potting mix and water in well. Position in your house that is not in direct sunlight. During winter let soil dry out then water but in the summer water regular to keep the soil moist. Feed with general slow release fertiliser in spring and again in summer Attachments:
|
|
|
|
Post by Indilwen on Jun 23, 2011 17:51:11 GMT 12
Basic information on Arabica coffee
There are about 10 species of coffee. The 3 most commonly used are Coffea arabica, Coffea canephora, and Coffea liberica. This page is about the Arabica coffee.
Scientific name: Coffea arabica
English: Arabica coffee
Coffee shrub of Arabia
Mountain coffee
Dutch: Arabica-koffie
Spanish: Cafeto arábigo
French: Caféier d'Arabie
Café arabica
Caféier
German: Arabica-Kaffee
Bergkaffee
Italian: Pianta del caffè
Other: Buna (Ethiopian name)
Family: Rubiaceae
Order: Gentianales
Origin: Coffee originates from Ethiopia and north of Kenya.
Distribution: Tropical regions with a suitable climate: Eastern Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, etc), South-West Arabia, South and Central America (Brazil, Colombia, Nicaragua, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, etc.), and Asia (Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, India, etc.)
Evergreen or deciduous: Evergreen
Flowers: Coffee flowers are white and can be 10 to 15 mm in diameter. The flowers grow in clusters and have an nice aromatic smell.
Leaves: The coffee leaves are opposite, with an elliptic-ovate to oblong shape. Leaves are from 6 to 15 cm long and from 4 to 8 cm wide. The leaves are glossy with dark green color.
Fruits: Coffee berries are round to oblong and about 1 cm long. At first they are dark green in color, but as they mature they turn first yellow and finally red. Each berry contains two seeds, which are what we call the coffee beans.
Climate and weather: Coffee requires a cooler tropical climate. In the tropics it is usually grown at altitudes between 1300 and 1500 meters but sometimes higher. Further away from the equator it can be grown on lower altitudes, even sea level. Coffee does not tolerate frost.
Pollination: Coffea arabica (Arabica coffee) is self-pollinating.
Height: Coffee plants can grow to 7 meters tall or more, but are usually pruned to just 2 or 3 meter for easier harvesting.
Crown size:
Blooming period All flowers bloom simultaneously. It takes 7 to 9 months or the fruits to be ripe.
Type of soil: Coffee prefers rich fertile soils. Responds well to compost and manure and the use of a thick mulch.
Preferred pH:
Moisture: Coffee requires 1000 to 1500 mm of rain, preferably spread over the entire year.
Light: Traditionally coffee is grown under shade (inter-planted with shade trees: the "coffee-mama") but modern cultivation is also done in full sun light. The shaded plantations have often lower yields, but higher quality coffee. The shaded plantations are also more environmentally friendly because of the greater bio-diversity, and they use less fertilizers and pesticides.
Growth rate:
Spacing (close range)
Spacing (wide range)
Canopy:
Propagation: Usually propagated by seed, but also grafting.
Insect pests: Several insects attack coffee, for example leaf miners and coffee berry borer.
Diseases:
Fruit development: Coffee fruits take 7 to 9 months to mature. The color changes from dark green, via yellow to bright red.
Harvesting: Pick the berries when ripe.
Uses: From ripe fruits the flesh of the berry is removed (usually by machine). The seeds (coffee beans) are then fermented to remove the slimy layer which still covers the bean. Then the beans are washed to remove fermentation residue and dried. The green seeds are then roasted before they are used to brew coffee. There are many different ways to brew coffee: boiled, steeped, or pressured.
|
|
|
|
Post by Indilwen on Jun 23, 2011 18:00:23 GMT 12
|
|
