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Home |
Popper Roasting |
a Gas Grill Roaster |
Cooler |
Grill Roasting |
a Coffee Tree |
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Coffee Will Grow In Pennsylvania For those coffee enthusiast who would like to grow a coffee tree at home, it is possible to do this even in the northern climates. Coffee is a tropical plant that thrives in temperatures in the 60’s and 70’s. I keep the tree outside about 6 months a year, and inside under 4-4 foot fluorescent bulbs during the cold months. Coffee requires a considerable amount of water and some sunlight or strong indirect light. I purchased my coffee tree from a Kona grower in Hawaii, who’s web site no longer exists, I assume he is out of business. The tree survived a week of shipping in priority mail. The small tree about 6” was shipped in a plastic deli hoagie type container, the type with the lid that snaps shut and is very rigid to prevent crushing. I have had the tree six years and it is thriving, despite some unintentional abuse. Live coffee trees (when in stock)are available from The Coffee Project Soil for the coffee tree is important, most planting guides recommend a soil type for cactus that drains well. The growing instructions that came with the tree recommended a soil for a specific plant that grows in California, unfamiliar to garden centers in Pennsylvania. I used commercial cactus soil, and mixed an additional 20% Perlite into the cactus soil. Perlite is a man made volcanic type material, it was the closest substitute for its native volcanic soil. This may have been a waste of time, but the cactus soil is mainly sphagnum moss, not at all like the volcanic cinder soil that was in the original container. The original soil appeared to be mainly volcanic cinders, with very little organic material. Short of playing Hawaiian music I wanted to duplicate the soil as close as possible. I have transplanted the tree numerous times into successively larger planters, it is now in a 14” pot. This 14” planter is about as large as I am going to go, as it is quite heavy and awkward to lift, and the tree barely fits through my back door. The tree must be lifted into a watering pan every 4-6 days when it is inside.  The number of leaves increases significantly during the summer, and the dense foliage acts very much like a sail. I have had to anchor the plant in a crate like base. The crate container has legs with bricks to hold it in place. I also had to secure the planter to the crate with a wood strap running over the top of the crate. My tree has blown over several times in thunderstorms, and during windy conditions associated with a cold front passage, cracking the old terracotta planter each time. I recommend using a plastic planter containers. When the tree is first brought outside in May and is exposed to direct sunlight some of the leaves develop sunburn. The tips and edges of the leaves turn a copper color, and eventually drop as they brown and yellow. After the initial sun shock, the new leaves are fine and do not sunburn. The tree receives direct sunlight from 9 AM to 3 PM.  Watering
One of the most critical aspects of caring for the coffee tree is how the tree is watered. If the roots are exposed to standing water, the leaves will turn brown and drop off. This applies to even a small amount in the saucer under the pot if the water contacts the roots. All the water must drain away from the roots after watering. I had to drill a hole in the plant saucer base for the plant outside as the rain water collected in the saucer, killing some of the leaves. To water the plant, the soil and roots need to be completely soaked, and then well drained. Place a small plant in a sink and pour enough water in so that it thoroughly wets the soil and drains out the bottom. Allow the plant to sit in the sink and drain for several minutes before returning it to its saucer or stand. My coffee tree now is too large to fit into the sink, I place a plastic dish pan on the floor next to the tree, and place it in the dish pan when I water. Allow at least 5 minutes from the time the last of the water is absorbed on the surface to drain the excess water into the dish pan. I use about one drop of liquid fertilizer for every pint of water each time I water in the summer and about half that amount in the winter when the plant is inside. During the hot summer months I water the plant with three liters of water every day. A coffee tree should be able to withstand a light frost, but must be brought in doors before a hard frost or freeze. When the tree was smaller and more portable, I use to move it inside at night during an early frost and back outside when the temperatures moderated. As the tree has become quite awkward to move, I leave it inside after the first frost. The tree will drop about 1/2 of its leaves the first month it is inside. My cats have a ball with the leaves, and I end up finding them under the furniture for the next six months. A friend who is an avid gardener told me that many of his exotic plants drop leaves when they are brought inside. The tree is fine the rest of the winter, there is not much growth, but the green beans continue to grow. The tree is kept near a window, I have two 4 foot fluorescent shop light fixtures in the ceiling over the plant. The fluorescent lights are on a timer that gives them 12 hours of light a day. When I return the plant to the stand after watering, I rotate the plant about 45 degrees from it’s last position so the leaves are more evenly exposed to light. I have had the tree for six years, and last year was the first year I had flowers and coffee beans. Last year I had probably 40 greens beans on the plant. This year the plant was loaded with flowers and it is looking like I will have a lot of green coffee beans on the plant. Both years the tree had a small early bloom in June followed a month lather by a heavy main bloom. The first ripe cherries appeared in April or about 10 months after the first flowers. This year, the second year it flowered, there were hundreds of flowers, I may get enough coffee to brew a couple of pots. ;void(0)) After picking ripe cherries, I squeezed the bean out of the cherry skin. What came out reminded me of a skinless immature grape, whitish light green, somewhat firm and extremely slippery. I read about wet processing by fermenting the bean to dissolve the pulp, and the dry processing method, of drying the whole bean and retrieving the coffee bean after the cherry was dry. I did not feel comfortable trying either method. I did not want to chance rotting the few beans that I harvested. I took the slippery beans and held each one between my fingers and rubbed them against a Scotch Brite scouring pad. The pad removed the sticky pulp layer covering the parchment enclosed bean. Next I dried the parchment enclosed bean with a paper towel to remove the excess moisture, and set them on the window sill to dry for a week. I dried them for an additional two weeks in a cupboard. I stored them in a sealed jar for another 6 weeks to allow the moisture in the beans to equalize. I have peeled away the parchment and they are ready to be roasted. They have a nice dark green color, and smell like green coffee . I am going to roast them in a popper, and brew in a press pot, I'll be happy to get two cups from this first harvest. The 2004 harvest looks good. | Green Beans | Ripe Cherry | 2003 Harvest | Sunburn | Coffee Flowers | More Flowers | Another Flower Photo | 2004 Harvest | | Return Home | Popcorn Popper Roasting | Building a Gas Grill Roaster | Bean Cooler | Gas Grill Roasting | Growing a Coffee Tree | Links | Contact | |
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