Coffee

Did you know that 50 million coffee cups are thrown away each year?

The high demand for coffee also has many farmers using unsustainable practices. This includes deforestation to create coffee plantations.

Basically, your java addiction is trashing the planet. Bummer right?

But did you also know that you can grow your own coffee bean tree? Yep, —that’s right! For just a few sheckles you can be the proud owner of coffee seeds or even a small coffee bush!

By growing your own coffee, you’ll be able to rest easy knowing that you’re not contributing to the coffee cup epidemic.

If you want to know how to grow coffee for yourself, read on.

How to Grow Coffee

The best thing about the coffee bush is that it’s a very resilient plant. So if you’re a beginner, don’t worry, you’ll have a hard time killing it. It’s also an evergreen which means it won’t shed its leaves. Combine that with its jasmine-like aroma and you have yourself a wonderful house plant.

Whether you decide to grow your plant indoors or outdoors, here are some tips for coffee plant care:

Replicating its Natural Environment is Key

The coffee bean tree’s natural environment is a shady and somewhat humid one. optimal temperatures range from 60 to 80 degrees during the day. (Anything below 50 degrees can actually hurt your plant!).

If growing indoors, you’ll want to keep your coffee bush somewhere roomy, as it can grow up to 11 feet. You’ll also want to position it in a place where it will only receive four to five hours of sunlight each day.

Maintaining Your Coffee Plant

Once you’ve found the sweet spot for your coffee plant, the next step is maintenance.

Your coffee plant should be well-fed and kept moist, yet well-drained. You’ll want to water the plant daily and mist it often to maintain humidity.

From March through October, the coffee bush needs to be fertilized every two weeks. Then, from November through February once every month. (Note: the soil should be organic potting soil and the fertilizer should be water-soluble).

Once the plant reaches eight inches in height, it’s time to re-pot it into a larger vessel. Then again when the plant reaches 24 inches. It should take about a year for the plant to grow to this height.

If you don’t re-pot the plant when it’s time, it won’t flower.

Speaking of Flowering

When small, green berries begin to appear on your coffee bean tree, it’s on its way to producing your well-earned cup of joe. Once you see these berries, you have about 7-9 months before they turn red and ripen.

Keep in mind, this entire process could take up to five years.

It’s also very important to know that just one plant will most likely not yield enough coffee beans for an entire pot.

Sounds like a lot of time and work for so little, doesn’t it? Don’t be discouraged, you can always grow more than one plant. If you’re really ambitious, you may want to claim stock in your very own coffee plantation. —sustainable of course!

If this is the case, you’ll need the right equipment. The tractor supply stock forecast is the first place you’ll want to check!

First Coffee, Then the World

Now that you know how to grow coffee, you’re ready to take on the world!

And, there’s more where that came from. For more lifestyle hacks, read more about us sometime.