Kona Coffee Propagation

Just wondering if anyone has tips on germinating kona coffee (coffea arabica). Thanks!

Tried it and failed - but I can't think of a better plant to grow!!!

I don't personally drink coffee, but I am going to pass the beans on to my mother :)

What a good kid... I guess the flowers are also fragrant, but unless they smell like brewing coffee... heh!

Tell your mom she can use an hot air popcorn maker to roast the beans. We went ahead and got a low level roaster (yeah, I'm an addict) but I've read on sweetmarias.com that there's a lot of other easy ways.

Aloha, we have arabica coffee trees in our garden, although we don't drink coffee it is a very pretty tree with the white fragrant flowers and then the bright red coffee beans. The beans just drop to the ground and just about everyone germinates, so I guess they need moist soil and temps in the 80's during the day and the 70's at night like we have here.

Good luck with your coffee!

Jen

I wonder, too, if the freshness is an issue. My sister had brought back a few seeds from a tourist shop... who knows how long they were there!

Thanks for the replies! I will definitely get on trying to grow them :)

Hi,
I got some coffee seed here on classified ads. at garden store and more. They gave me instructions with the coffee filter method and it worked great. I seem to remember that it took a while for the seeds to germinate tho. So they germinated in a damp coffee filter in a baggy, then I planted them in small pots. Mine are growing really slow, but that could just be me doing something wrong. The gal at garden store and more is great I think her name is Trish. She is extremely helpful and will answer any question you ask her.
Linda

Thanks Linda! I bought some seeds from Trish earlier this year, but I didn't get coffee from her. I have the seeds in a black dish with a moist paper towel and have it covered with saran wrap to keep moisture in. It happens to be sitting on the base of my grow light, which keeps things warm :):) I guess I will see how these grow. I think Trish has some germination tips on her website, so I will check those out!

Any sign of life from the seeds, red?

Not yet. I just changed the paper towel and container they were in because it was starting to smell a bit. They don't look moldy and they don't feel soft, so hopefully they are ok. It should definitely be warm enough for them to germinate in their container.

Looking forward to when they do (just like you!). I have a hard time with patience and starting from seed, but I'm working on it.

I just planted a few things the other day and they are up already :) It's much easier to be patient if you plant some stuff that comes up quick and some that takes a bit longer!

When I did the coffee seeds, I sort of forgot about them so don't really know how long it took. They had pretty good growth before I remembered them, leaves I think.
So maybe in my case a bad memory is ok.lol.
Linda

I'm hoping that trick will work with my BOP seeds...Hasn't worked so far though. They have been in my mind since February when I planted them.

February? Oh my!
I'd be poking around, which is a no-no. Just with my garden seeds, I'm out twice a day checking them. Love the thrill that I get when they pop up.

Haha I did some poking around a few times with the first 2 I had. I haven't done that yet with the other three. They hadn't done anything yet, so it shouldn't have hurt them. I hope...

Redheadedwonder11- Some time ago, someone on DG wrote that he used the "Curse & Stir" method and it's worked for me a couple of times. 1st, curse the seeds for not sprouting. 2nd, stir the soil in the pot and plant some other seed. 9 times out of 10, what you originally planted will sprout first. :) Worth a try, eh?

lol

Haha that is a good one :) Might have to try that with those stubborn BOP. Although I have heard they take up to 18 months to germinate, so the other plant would definitely be up first!