COFFEE. 451 



five, and are said to be the product of the new shoots or wood of the previous year s growth. 

 They are found singly in the pod, the old wood producing flat berries with two in each pod. 

 The Male Berries are selected from the flat beans and sold in market as a separate product. 

 There are many other varieties and sub-varieties besides those already mentioned, produced 

 by a difference in climate, soil, and cultivation. 



Cultivation. The climate suited to the successful cultivation of coffee is tropical. 

 It should be so warm as to be secure against frosts in winter. Hence, in this country it can 

 be profitably grown only in the extreme South. That it can be grown in Manatee county, in 

 Florida, has been fully proven by experiment extending over a period of several years, and 

 we believe there are other localities of about the same latitude in which it will thrive equally 

 well, and that planters in such sections will do well to try the experiment. At Togartyville, 

 Florida, coffee-seed from Cardova, Mexico, was planted, which, after four years cultivation, 

 resulted in trees that were full of berries of different sizes, and in all stages of growth, some 

 of which were ripe, others half -grown, together with the blossoms and buds. At this age, 

 one of the trees was six feet high, contained eighty branches, and measured sixteen feet 

 around the tips of the branches, and three inches around the trunk. The berries hung in 

 clusters of five- and six, from one and a half to two inches apart. Trees will also bear when 

 three years old, under good cultivation, and continue to be productive for twenty years. In 

 regions subject to occasional slight frosts it is well to protect the trees in winter with pine 

 branches. Setting the coffee-plants among banana-trees is sometimes practiced, as a protection 

 against cold winds. There is at present a small coffee-plantation at the previously-mentioned 

 town in Florida, located near the mouth of the Manatee river, which is in a thriving condition, 

 and has been pronounced by experts in coffee-culture in Mexico and India, a decided success. 



Coffee, like tobacco, owes much of its difference in quality to the climate and soil upon 

 which it is grown. It requires a very rich soil and warm climate. It thrives best in a soil 

 that is rather moist, but not wet. In very dry sections artificial irrigation is practiced before 

 the fruit begins to ripen, the supply being cut off at the ripening period to improve the 

 quality of the product. Coffee plantations are generally laid out in quadrangles, the trees 

 being from eight to ten feet apart each way in rows. The ground should be kept free from 

 grass and weeds, and the trees pruned or topped so that they will not exceed the height of 

 from six to ten feet. The trees will continue to bloom for eight months in the year, which 

 results in the fruit ripening very irregularly. In the West Indies and Brazil there are three 

 annual gatherings of the crop. 



Gathering. The fruit is picked by hand from the branches of the plant, and spread 

 on the floor or large mats in the sun to dry. It is frequently raked over or turned, in order 

 to dry evenly. When thoroughly dried, the outer pulp of the fruit, together with the case 

 that encloses the seeds, are removed by being crushed between heavy rollers, which causes 

 the seed to shell out. This seed, or the coffee-bean, is then separated from the refuse by 

 winnowing. It is then ready to be packed for market. 



The care with which it is cultivated and prepared for market, makes a great difference 

 in the price of the product. 



