COFFEE. (Frt., Cafe ; GER., Kaffee.) Coffee is the fruit of a series of plants belonging to the family Bubiacecs. The genus, known as Coffea, is divided by botanists into some sixty species, of which about twenty-two are referred to America, fifteen to Africa, and seven to Asia. There is abundant reason for supposing, however, that the majority of these so-called species are mere varieties, due to different conditions of soil, climate, and cultivation. For all practical purposes, it will be sufficient to distinguish two species only, Coffea Arabica, and C. Liberiea (Liberiana). The former is the well-known coffee-shrub. It attains a height of 15 to 20 ft., and its foliage resembles that of the Portugal laurel ; the small, white blossom is not unlike that of the jessamine in form and scent; the berries are at first dark-green, changing, as they mature, to yellow, red, and finally, deep crimson. Beneath the skin of the ripe berry, or " cherry," as it is called, is a mucilaginous, saccharine, glutinous " pulp," closely enveloping the " beans,'' usually a pair of oval, plano-convex seeds, though sometimes there is but one seed, called, from its shape, " peaberry"; these beans are coated with a cartilaginous membrane, known as "parchment," and beneath this by a very delicate, semi-transparent, closely adhering jacket, termed the " silver skin." The range of this species is at elevations of 1000 to 4000 ft., between latitudes 15° N. and 15° S., and its cultivation may be extended to 36° N. and 30° S., in localities where the tempera ture does net fall below 13° (55° F.). Perhaps the most favourable climate would be a temperature ranging from 15° to 27° (60° to 80° F.) in the shade ; and as to humidity, there should be no month in the year entirely devoid of rain, the total of which may be 100 to 150 in. per annum—absence of extremes of temperature, with a constant supply of moisture. The shrub is cultivated chiefly in Brazil, Java, Ceylon, India, the Central American Republics, West Indies, Arsbia, Natal, and reeently in Australasia. It furnishes almost the whole of the coffee of commerce. Increasing atten tion is, however, being devoted to C. Liberica. This species is a native of Liberia, and is distin guished from the ordinary shrub by much more vigorous growth, by affecting flat and coast lands as well as hill-sides, by attaining greater size and age, and by withstanding greater extremes of climate. It possesses additional advantages in that it is capable of improvement by cultivation, and, though as liable to disease as C. Arabica, seems to be affected in a minor degree. On the other hand, the produce is much coarser flavoured than ordinary coffee, though that is no drawback to its being used for admixture with better sorts, produdng a cheap, yet genuine, beverage for the million. From experiments tried in Ceylon, great benefits are anticipated from grafting the fine flavoured C. Arabica on stocks of the hardy C. Liberica.
following remarks refer to the commonly cultivated varieties of C. Arabica. The main principles Etre subject to but slight modifications, which will be noticed presently under the head of each coffee-growing country. Full details concerning C. Liberica will be found under Liberia. - Nurseries.—For this purpose, should be selected a patch of gently sloping virgin soil, warm and dry, but close to water, soft, and not richer than that to which the plants will be subsequently transferred. The seed-beds may be somewhat shaded, but not so as to entirely exclude the sun, nor so that the shading tree gathers rain and sends it in streams upon the bed. The seed-bed is cleared of all but the largest stumps, thoroughly dug to a depth of 9 to 12 in., and made very friable. The beds are slightly raised to promote drainage, and are divided by paths into narrow strips. A deep trench is cut above the bed, in an oblique direction, to prevent damage by rain and wash. The seeds are sown in rows 6 to 9 in. apart, and about 2 in. deep.. The seeds are strewn about 1 in. apart, lightly covered with mould, and shaded ; a cheap and efficient shading may be secured by laying branches across a light framework as shown in Fig. 495. Watering must be done in the morning, or towards sunset. A bushel of seed should give 20,000 to 30,000 plants ; the best is " parchment " coffee, picked when fully ripe, pulped by hand, unfermented, unwashed, and dried in the shade. The nurseries proper are prepared in much the same way, but not shaded. When the plants have two to four leaves (exclusive of the seed-leaves), they are carefully loosened, and transplanted, in damp, cloudy weather, from the seed-beds to the nurseries, and placed 9 to 12 in. apart. Care must be taken not to double up the tap-root, and not to leave a space for water to accumulate and rot the roots. If the tap-root is very long, it is best shortened by an oblique cut, and soon shoots again. When transplanting from seed-beds to nurseries is not practised, the plants are left in the seed-bed until larger ; but Stainbank and others strongly recom mend the former plan, as, by checking the growth, the young wood becomes hardened, and better able, whey finally planted out, to resist insects and unfavourable weather. A practical suggestion for preventing young seedlings being eaten off at the surface of the ground by grubs, is to lightly wrap round a piece of paper about 3 in. broad, where the stem joins the root, on planting. The risk of having young seedlings burnt up just after planting is guarded against by various simple measures for shading them. In about a year, the plants are ready for transfer to the permanent estate, which is meantime being prepared for their reception.