326 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[October i, 18&2. 



it was brought here by the Portuguese m remote times 

 and hail become acclimated ; but at present the opinion 

 prevails that the Liberia coffee is a native of the country. 

 The reasons for this opiuion are— 



1 There is no coffee found in any other country of 

 the' world, or in any other part of Africa, like this variety. 

 There is a coffee here, the loug-pomted kind from han 

 Domingo; but the Liberia coffee is confined strictly to 

 the sectiia of country included between 4° and 7= north 



latitade^ has been found wild from the sea-shore to the 

 section where the mountainous or hilly land descends into 

 the grassy plains on the borders of the Maudingo country. 

 Herl the Liberia coffee apparently stops. It has not been 

 Sund eas-t of this line; nor has it been discovered at 

 |°erra Leone ou the north, or below Oape Palmas on the 

 south. In either direction, one meets a coffee ot smaller 

 size and inferior quality. . ., ,i- 4. j 



3 The wild coffee is httle inferior to the cultivated 

 kind, and, in the instance referred to above, coffee has 

 been found wild in the forest larger than that cultivated. 



SOILS BUST SUITED TO ITS GTiOWTH. 



The coffee tree delights most in hUly regions, although 

 found in other situations. In Liberia, \vhile grown m all 

 v»riptie8 ot soil, it prospers most m soils of a loose na- 

 toe ?ch as°the sandy and loamy soils especially if these 

 are strengthened by the addition of rocks. Tliere are two 

 Secies of sandy soil in Liberia. One has been the bed 

 of the sea most recently. This .sod has not been enriched 

 by decayed vegetable and other matter. Its substratum 

 of c av or other earth is at too great a depth to be of 

 service to it; and hence it is barren, or nearly so. The 

 other sandy soil has been somewhat enriched by decayed 

 vegetable and other matter. It has near the surface a 

 Inbstratum of clay. This serves as a reservoir to hold 

 the ^Xs water, which, rising through the sau.l by 

 capUlary attraction, keeps plants growing even m dry 

 weather TlUs soil is suited to coffee, which grows rapidly 



'°But the soil which must be selected for the coffee plant- 

 ations owing to the abundance and superior quality of 

 Cd of this nature, is to be found on the gramtic and 

 tWckly wooded hills of the interior and the plams that 

 Buirouml them. These begin their ascent not far from 

 the coast Their soil is loam, generally intermixed with 

 ferruginous gravel and granite rocks. Gneiss, oxide of 

 iron feldspax, tourmalin, and other minerals abound in 

 some localities. In some places the granite i.s more friable 

 tbrr, flat near the coast, and the fertility of the soil is, 

 to a considerable extent, maintained by the disintegration 

 ^f the rock -^Vhere the soil does not consist of hungry 

 fravel" but 'has a due proportion of loam and gravel and 

 fmall stones, and this mixture extends to a considerable 

 dwtl. it is rich and porous. The surplus water, instead 

 of ben" carried off by -wash." which causes so much 

 damage to land, sinks th rough _ the porous soil. On one 

 oSn the writer was surprised to see, at an inland 

 to^ some vegetables growing on the steep face of a hill. 

 S^rkiS that on his farm plants would not tlmve m 

 thaT situation without terracing, and mquiring what be- 

 came of the surplus rain-water, he was f own the water 

 trTkling through the soil at the base of the hill. 



But the coffee tree delights especiaUy m a B.tuation 

 .^n^l granite rocks. Here the roots seize with avidity 

 resurrSug rocks, and, probably by catalytic force, 

 derive more nutriment than by the ordinary wear of the 

 rock The potash obtained by disintegration of the felds- 

 par is most beneficial to it. It is m such situations that 

 fhl Liberia coffee acquires that superior flaram- that it is 

 not emialed by any other coffee on the globe. On low 

 Undsihe largest berry and largest crops are produced ; 

 but it is to the dry, rocky hills one must look for finest 

 quality. 



TEJIPEHATUBE. 



■Situated between latitudes 4= and 8= north, for the 

 production o? the finest coffee the climate .of L>b"- ^^ 

 Unsurpassed. The teinperature ranges from ,4= to S8 

 St,, in the shade. It occasionally reaches 90 ° . The 

 w^st 0° served in Monrovia was during the prevalence 

 ffh^ Wmattan winds ui the month of .Tanuary, when 

 the thermomttrstood 62= Fahr. at suurise^The range 



is not so high in the interior, as the land rises rapidly. 

 About '25 miles from the coast the land in some places 

 is 550 feet above sea-level; and at the distance of 198 

 miles from the coast it is 2,200 feet. But notwithstand- 

 ing this difference of altitude the coffee is of the same 

 superior quality wherever found, whether it be neai' the 

 sea or in the interior cieteris paribus. Our long, dry sea- 

 son tends to mature the beau thoroughly and develop its 

 peculiar aroma. 



METHOD OF CULTIVATION. 



The method of cultivation is somewhat similar to that 

 adopted in the East Indies. The forests are cleared in 

 the same manner. The undergrowth is first cut, then 

 the large trees are felled, lopped, and, when sufficiently 

 dry, the whole is set on fire. The stumps of the trees 

 are sometimes immediately removed, but not always. Most 

 of these rot after a few years. The entire ground is 

 not plowed or dug up; but holes are dug at proper in- 

 tervals for the reception of the plants. These should not 

 be loss than 12 feet apart, and should be dug in straight 

 parallel lines. Plowing, by loosening the soil, would, on 

 sloping land, render it liable to be washed away by the 

 heavy rains. The plants are taken from the nursery when 

 from a year to two years old. Plants a year old grow 

 faster than older ones. 



In planting, the cherry hull is removed, and the seeds 

 are deposited in the nursery in rows 2 to 3 feet apart, 

 and 3 to 4 inches apart iu the rows. They can be thinned 

 out when large enough. The seeds are inserted in the 

 ground at a depth of 1 inch, if the showers are regular ; 

 but if the weather be dry. then 2 inches. The transplant- 

 ing is be.st done at the beginning of the rainy season, in 

 May and June, for then the plants have the entire rainy 

 season to grow and get a good start before the " dries" 

 set in. 



The Liberia coffee tree does not need shading. Of a 

 harder nature than any other coffee, it is able to endure 

 the tropical sim. The plants in the nursery must be shaded 

 or mulched during the tlry months. The young plants also 

 must be mulched in the dry season, until they are large 

 enough to shade their roots with their own foliage. In 

 Liberia, the coffee tree does not produce largely under 

 shade. In dry weather shade is beneficial to its roots, 

 but the leaves must have the sunshine, to elaborate a 

 due proportion of sap into fruit buds. 



The trees are topped at 5 feet height. This rule is not 

 observed by all the farmers. But topping increases the 

 production of fruit, enables the fruit to be gathered 

 more easily and with less damage to the tree. After having 

 been topped the trees shoot out a number of suckers from 

 the body. These should be pulled off by hand ; and no 

 secondaries should be allowed to grow on the primary 

 branches nearer to the trunk than 18 inches. This would 

 give an opeu space of 3 feet in diameter in the centre 

 of the tree for the penetration of sunshine, and for the 

 circulation of ah^. The trees should be regularly primed. 

 But if they are properly handled at first, severe pruning 

 will not be necessary. 



The Liberia coffee tree does not produce all its flowers 

 at one blooming. The time of blossoming depends upon 

 the occasional showers that fall in the dry season. For. 

 notwith.standing the blossom buds may stand out promin- 

 ently, they mil remain without opening for a space of 

 two months, or until there falls a shower of rain sufficient 

 to saturate the soil. A light shower, that does not soak 

 the ground, will not cause them to open. There is a 

 light blossom in December. The fullest blooms occur in 

 January and February ; trees that are cultivated produce 

 blossoms and fruit throughout the year. There is, how- 

 ever, only one full crop, and this is gathered during the 

 months of December, January, February, and March. The 

 cause of the crop requiring so long a time to be gathered 

 arises from the fact that the crop does not ripen at once. 

 The berries are of different colors when ripe, as stated 

 above, but the red color greatly predominates. It is the 

 rule; the others are the exceptions. 



Surface manuring is best suited to the Liberia coffee 

 tree, as it belongs to the class of forest trees whose feeders 

 keep near the surface. Even where the manure is placed 

 in trenches the fibrous roots or fet-ders penetrate it and 

 seek the siuface long before the manure is consumed, 

 seeking air and sunsliine, which they need as well as 



