how to grow coffee?

Question

does anybody know how to grow coffee and is it possible in the uk?

Answer 1

no and no. but they do below.

Typically, the geography of the coffee plant is in a tropical 25 degree latitude belt on both sides of the equator. The Arabica coffee plant grows best at altitudes between 3000 and 6000 feet. Coffee plants can be grown at lower altitude but attack from various parasites cause problems which make low altitude cultivation hard.

Desirable temperature averages between 65 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. The Arabica coffee plant will grow in hotter areas but is not well suited for higher temperature. The Robusta coffee plant is typically located in hotter and more humid areas at lower altitudes around 600 to 1500 feet. Frost will kill every variety of coffee plant known. Such freezing temperatures only takes minutes to start killing the coffee plant too. Thus, it limits the altitude which this plant can thrive and the latitude. The coffee plant is susceptible to changes in temperature. Temperature affects the color of the leaf, the hotter the lighter the color green. The longer periods of deep green, the healthier the coffee plant.

Generally, the coffee growing area takes at least 75 inches per year. The rainfall should be spread over a 9 month period, with about 2-3 months of only a few inches of rain. The dry spell is needed to allow buds, flowering, and new growth. Erosion aside, the coffee plant will grow well with much more water so long as it does not sit in water. In areas with less than 75 inches per year, careful irrigation will provide adequate water.

The soil should be humus, generally porous, and a slight tendency toward acid but more or less a neutral pH. Coffee plants can grow in slightly base soil. But too much acid or base will kill the coffee plant. Additionally, there is a preference for pH which depends on the type of coffee plant. Mulching the surface with grass, compost, or vegetable refuse is desirable. Preferably it should be a soil that is heavy to work and not too loose and sandy. Very generally speaking, the planting conditions of the coffee plant are similar as for a camellia. The coffee plant doesn't like hard pack soil or sitting in water for long periods of time. The subsoil should stay moist but not soggy as to promote rot. The roots breath and actually need some air. Thus, constant water cause the leaves to turn yellow, young shoots wilt, and the tree dies.

The coffee plant likes humidity of about 90 percent. The humidity in the air performs two functions, one is to keep evaporation from the plant at a minimum, the other is to diffuse the light. Humidity is microscopically small water droplets in the air. These droplets lightly disperse the light. Again, this varies with the type of coffee plant.

Coffee plants like filtered to moderate lighting. Coffee grows on sides of mountains best which it is said makes for natural partial lighting conditions. However, many types of coffee plants can take direct sun light without overhead shade trees or a mountain cutting off a half days light. And again, this differs with coffee plant types. There are four kinds of shade; temporary, permanent, forest, and soil shade. Bare soil loses its richness and character by being baked by the sun and beat on by the rain. If the sun bakes the top soil too much, the roots die. Therefore, for most coffee plants, the soil should be shaded as much as possible. Both mulch and the way the coffee plant is cropped accomplish this task. In some places cover crops as Leucaena glauca are planted between the coffee trees to keep the soil in good shape. Depending on plant, the leaves may need shade too. The coffee plant generally requires direct sun light for a portion of the day, so absolute permanent shade is not a good practice. Forest shade has a problem with the type of plants surrounding the coffee tree. The wrong type of forest plants can take nutrients from the soil or actually strangle the coffee plant. On the other hand, the nature of the shade is ok.

The coffee plant does not take well to wind either. Wind dries the leaves out too quickly. A cold wind is one where the air is cooled by low temperatures and snow in the distant mountains. If a chill hits the coffee plant, it starts dying right a way. Additionally, windy areas bring in grasses and weeds from a distance. The plant does not do well if surrounded by the wrong type of grass or weed. The plant really doesn't take a joke when it comes to chemical grass and weed killers. Consequently, the drying effect, quick temperature changes, and the transportation of unwanted seeds makes windy conditions undesirable.

Typically, the coffee plant can produce berries for about 60 years but most commercial coffee operations limit the life of the coffee plant to about 20 years. Some coffee growers feel earlier termination is appropriate. Although the coffee tree produces berries at the age of 3, it starts producing at about 5 years old.

The two basic propagation methods both work with the coffee plant, grown from seeds, or cloned from cuttings. Seeds take about 5 to 6 weeks to germinate. Tender shoots require more shade. Generally, the cuttings, or seedlings are nurtured in a nursery before being planted in the field. A general rule of thumb is plant the seedling when it has more than four and less than eight branch pairs, which tends to be 5 to 6 months. Coffee plants can be grafted. Grafting tends to adapt a plant for growing conditions and disease resistance. The coffee plant has been worked over almost as much as dogs and cats, so grafting is not as important as choosing the right subspecies. It should be noted that the coffee seed will not remain fertile for long periods of time. Due to the pulpy nature of the berry, the seed either starts to germinate when it is removed from the tree or it ferments. The coffee bean, after being removed from the berry can grow but has sever problems

Answer 2

Coffee growing
The coffee tree is a small evergreen of the genus coffea, has smooth, ovate leaves and clusters of fragrant white flowers that mature into deep red fruits abut ½ inches (1.27 cm) long. The fruit which is green when young, then yellow and then bright red when ready for harvesting, usually contains two seeds – these are the coffee beans.

The coffee plant prefers the cool, moist, frost-free climate found at higher altitudes in the tropics and subtropics. Optimum growing conditions include: a temperature of about 75ºF (24ºC); well-distributed annual rainfall of about 50 in (127 cm) with a short dry season; and fertile, deep, well-drained soil, especially of volcanic origin. While coffee can be grown from sea level to c.6,000 ft (1,830 m) – indeed, coffea robusta is produced at low elevations in West Africa - the better coffea arabica grades are generally produced above 1,500 ft (460 m). Strong winds limit coffee production and therefore coffee is often grown in the shelter of taller trees.

The coffee tree will start to bear fruit three to four years after planting. A coffee tree yields its maximum sometime between its fifth and tenth year and may bear fruit for about 30 years.
Don,t think we have the climate do you?

Answer 3

The coffee bush is a slow-growing plant which is unlikely to survive as a house plant. It prefers well-drained mountainsides in Kenya or Colombia. After several years you MAY get a few beans. Does that answer your question?

Answer 4

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
how to grow coffee?
does anybody know how to grow coffee and is it possible in the uk?

Answer 5

Dont think you could grow it because it to cold, Latin America, East Africa,Arabia and Asia are the main growers and it grows off a pretty big bush so It really wouldnt live outside in the uk and inside its to big. There might be another type of bean that grows from another type of plant but the common ones are large.

Answer 6

You can really only grow coffee in warm climates, especially in Latin America.

Answer 7

In England, you don't.
The soil, chemistry, climate are all wrong.

Answer 8

you can not grow coffie you guy because it is hhand made

Answer 9

you go buy it at a store!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!......cough.........um yeah.............im crazy................