Coffee Leaf

Coffee Leaf

Coffee Leaf

Coffee (Coffea arabia) is a tropical plant, which belongs to the genus Coffea L. It can grow to a height of 10 to 15 m at maturity, but is kept at 3 m in plantations for harvesting purposes. The shrubs remain productive for 15 to 20 years. The elliptical leaves of the coffee tree are shiny, dark green, waxy and up to 15,24 cm long. The leaves are simple, petiolate and have persistent stipules. Their underside is marked by small cavities or domatia. On the trunk and suckers, the opposite leaves are in crossed pairs, whereas on the branches they are on the same plane.

The white to pinkish flowers are very fragrant and arranged in glomerules of 3 to 16, which, in turn, are grouped together in the axils of the leaves or above the leaf scars. The flowers are ephemeral, withering a few hours after they have bloomed. Flowers occur in large bunches on old-growth wood, are generally self-fertile and will produce fruit without pollination.

The coffee fruit is oval, similar in size and shape to a small olive and turns red from green during ripening. The fruit is a fleshy berry, in which two seeds are imbedded. Blossoming and fruit setting occurs mainly 2 to 3 times a year. About 6 to 7 months are required to ripen the fruit. The interim period between the flowering and ripening of the fruits.