134 Select Plants for Industrial Culture and 



Coffea Arabica, 



The Coffee-plant. Mountains of South- Western Abyssinnia, 

 extending as idigenous according to Welwitsch and Peters to 

 Mozambique and Guinea. A shrub or small tree. The cultivation 

 within extra-tropical boundaries can only be tried with any prospect 

 of success in the warmest and at the same time moistest regions, 

 frost being detrimental to the Coffee-plant ; it fruits however still 

 occasionally, though scantily, at Port Jackson, but gives good results 

 already in the northern part of New South Wales, the Mocha-variety 

 being best adapted for the more temperate regions [Turner]. In 

 Ceylon the coffee-regions are between 1,000 and 5,000 feet above 

 the ocean ; but Dr. Thwaites observes, that the plant succeeds best 

 at an elevation of from 3,000 to 4,500 feet, in places where there is 

 a rainfall of about 100 inches a year. The temperature there hardly 

 ever rises above 80 F., and almost never sinks below 45 F. Coffee 

 requires moist weather whilst it ripens its fruit, and a season of drier 

 weather to form its wood. Average-yield in Ceylon 4 to 5 cwt. per 

 acre. An extraordinarily prolific variety of Coffee was introduced 30 

 years ago by the writer of this work into Fiji, where it now forms 

 the main-plantations. The Coffee-plant has been found hardy as far 

 north as Florida. For many particulars see the papers of the 

 Planters' Association of Kandy. Chemical principles of Coffee : 

 caffein, a peculiar taunic acid and quinic acid. The importations of 

 Coffee into the United Kingdom in 1884 amounted . to 1,134,000 

 cwt. (almost one-quarter being for home consumption), valued at 3f 

 million pounds sterling. The import of Coffee into Great Britain 

 during 1886 was 1,006,165 cwt., valued at 3,295,028, about a 

 quarter of which came from British India. The loss sustained in 

 1878 alone by the ravages of parasitic fungus-growth on Coffee- 

 plants in Ceylon amounted to 2,000,000, the total loss since 1869 

 from this source reaching 15,000,000 [Abbay]. The destruction 

 of this Coffee-leaf fungus (Hemileia vastatrix) is to some extent 

 effected by applying flowers of sulphur, particularly in dewy weather, 

 and by dressing the ground with quicklime [Morris]. Still more 

 powerfully acts a weak solution of sulphate of copper mixed with 

 lime. Dr. Bruck recommends spraying with a weak solution of 

 sulphate of copper to which some sugar is added, to prevent its 

 crystallization on the leaves. He also uses an infusion of tobacco. 

 The unpruned plants are less subject to the Hemileia. Mr. J. Storck, 

 of Rewa, Fiji, found the vapours from a 5-10 per cent, aqueous 

 solution of carbolic acid to be an effectual remedy against the 

 Hemileia, the evaporation being effected from sheltered vessels placed 

 somewhat above the ground. Another fungus-disease is the leaf-rot 

 or Candelillo, caused by Pellicularia Koleroga (Cooke). The Coffee- 

 plant is also liable to suffer from the attacks of several insects, 

 viz. : Xylotrechus. quadrupes, called the borer, the bugs Lecanium 

 coffeas, L. nigrum, Pseudococcus acloniurn and the larvae of the moth 

 Agrotis segetum [Dr. G. Watt]. See also essay by Mr. T. Dyer in 

 Journal of Microsc. Soc., new series, vol. xx. The Coffee-plant 



