Kono coffee beans tree
Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2011 2:53 pm
by angelikabertrand64
Hello,
through Amazon.com, I ordered a Kono coffee bean tree. I live in Northern Utah. I wondered have any of you ever grown coffee beans? What is there to do to make sure they are growing and there adjusting to our climate? Thanks.
Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2011 4:43 pm
by lorax
I'll weigh in from a coffee-growing country.
Coffee is not at all frost hardy, and it would behoove you to keep it in a pot rather than planting it in the ground (it doesn't particularly love being transplanted either). Very rich soils with good drainage are a good idea (at least 25% rich compost, and after that the mix is up to you, as long as water runs through it.) It's also a relatively heavy feeder, so low-dose fertilization on a weekly to biweekly basis is a good idea.
Coffee begins to produce berries at about 3-5 years of age - if you've only got one plant, you'll have to hand-pollinate to get the berries. They're ripe when red. The flowers are delicate and have a lovely sweet jasmine scent, and in my opinion if this was the only thing the plant did, it would be enough! One plant will yeild enough beans for about one pot of coffee.
[url=https://ispeakforthetrees.blog.com/2008/08/22/coffea-arabica-coffee/]The process for turning those coffee cherries into the drinkable product can be found here.[/url]