Why grow coffee in the forest?

By Chelsie Vandaveer

March 20 2003

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The genus Coffea has twenty-five to forty species depending upon the authority. Of those species, only one, Coffea arabica Linnaeus, has come into general cultivation in tropical areas around the world. Coffees are small, subcanopy trees native to Africa. Traditionally, coffee was cultivated within forests or under large shade trees.

In the mid-1900s, coffee producers were encouraged to remove trees shading their coffee trees or to clear land and plant new coffee trees in full sun. The idea was to reduce fungal diseases and increase yields. Coffee bean production increased. By the 1970s, most coffee was cultivated in open-style plantations. There is little evidence the sun reduced coffee tree diseases.

The Red Coffee 'Cherry', Arabica Typica.,
Honaunau, Hawaii (Big Island), Hawaii, U.S.A.
Ann Cecil
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According to Michele Ataroff and Maximina Monasterio, soil erosion more than doubled; the new coffee plantations needed extra fertilizers and water. The coffee trees senesced (aged) rapidly, the trees had one-fifth the lifespan of trees grown within the shelter of the forests. ("Soil erosion under different management of coffee plantation in the Venezuelan Andes", Soil Technology, 1997)

N.W. Osorio, J.M. Alzate, and G.A. Ramirez tested coffee seedlings under different growing conditions. Some trees were cultivated in plain mineral soil, some in soil amended with composted coffee pulp and some in each type of soil were inoculated with mycorrhizal fungi--Entrophospora colombiana, Glomus manihotis, and/or Glomus fasciculatum. The coffee trees grew best in soil containing both compost and any of the mycorrhizal fungi. ("Coffee seedling growth as affected by mycorrhizal inoculation and organic amendment", Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis, 2002).

The coffee trees did better in soils similar to the soils found in a natural forest setting. Coffee is being planted back into the forests. Best of all, the beans are said to have better flavor than sun-grown coffee.

Rain Forest Rescue of the National Arbor Day Foundation is working to mitigate damage to the rain forest. Part of the program includes planting coffee on El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve as a viable crop that will not damage the ecosystem. To learn more about Rain Forest Rescue, click on the link:

http://www.arborday.org/programs/rfrCoffee.html

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killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5~~

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Comments: Species is the major source of best quality coffee. Very easy to grow. Coffee beans are the seeds of the plants pulpy fruit. Variety stays dwarf, up to 4 feet tall. APPLY HALF STRENGTH FERTILIZER EVERY OTHER WEEK. POLLINATE BY HAND TO ENSURE FRUIT SET. WATER TWICE A WEEK AND MIST REGULARLY. WILL NOT PRODUCE FRUIT FOR 3-4 YRS.

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