Coffee Plant

The coffee plant -- often referred to as a coffee tree given its height, vertical structure, and long horizontal branches -- is grown in two different forms or species: arabica and robusta.  Arabica, which is commonly referred to as "specialty coffee" (though actual quality can vary tremendously depending on how the coffee is grown and processed) and being used and marketed by large companies like McDonald's and Maxwell House, accounts for about 70-80% of the world's production.  It grows best in the tropical highlands (between 800 and 2000 meters above sea level) in temperate but relatively rainy climates, under a canopy of diversified tree species that not only provide shade but add to the ecological system that is the coffee farm!  Robusta which has traditionally been used in lower grade coffees (think Folgers, truck-stop coffee, etc) is a sturdier version of the arabica, can be grown in lowlands, has a greater crop yield and a lower stock market price than the arabica.  Hence Vietnam, which only started growing and exporting coffee in the later part of the 20th century, has become the world's single largest exporter of robusta.

Coffee farmers can either grow seedlings directly in their fields or, as many of the coops with whom we work do, they grow the seedlings in a nursery until the plant reaches a size where it's sturdy enough to handle the "wild."  It takes between 2 and 3 years of solid growth (and tender-loving care!) for a coffee plant to start flowering.  The little white flowers precede the coffee cherry -- the "fruit" of the tree -- which will start to form after 6-8 weeks after the first blossom.  Each plant goes through one blossom (and therefore harvest) per year but not every blossom sprouts at once meaning that the cherries will mature at different times throughout the course of the harvest.  

The first important step (well, after the farmer has ensured that his soil and surrounding trees are healthy and nutrient-rich, of course!) to high quality coffee is to pick the cherries when they're good and ripe. It typically takes about 30 to 35 weeks for a cherry to reach its optimal maturity.  The cherry holds two little "seeds" or grains (in the case that it holds only one which is known as a "peaberry" bean which has to be pulled out from the rest of the beans at the time of processing as its unique shape and density affects the way it can be roasted)

After being picked, the cherry must be depulped to extract the grains from within.  Click here to learn more about how coffee is processed.

Here's a great flash video on the development of the coffee cherry.