Kelly,

Why not start seeds and grow them in a container this year? You can bring it inside before cold weather threatens and take it with you when you move. I am pretty sure coffee plants are zone 10. I saw one in the Logee's Greenhouse catalog the other day and thought it would be cool to grow one, but then came to my senses and decided I wouldn't want one more plant that I had to overwinter inside.

I've linked the coffee plant page from Logee's because it tells you a tiny bit about the temps and conditions the coffee plants need.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: Coffee Plant

I like to do things just for the experience. I say go for it!

I would say "Go For It", in a container. They are Gifts, the person who gave them to you would be happy you tried.

It might be fun for the experience, but I don't know how much coffee you'd actually get from it. I think the beans are only harvested once a year, and it would take several plants to get a decent harvest. The coffee plantation we toured in Hawaii had the plants out in fields in full sun, so I don't think they need shade.

Go for it. If not for anything else but a conversation piece. I grow many citrus and other tropicals just for the fun of it. Sure it takes a bit more work taking care of them in winter but when someone comes over and sees a ripe citrus they go WOW didnt know you could grow those here.

Mike

They certainly wouldn't survive outdoors through one of our winters. I have my doubts about them surviving our summers. Generally coffee grows between 3,000 and 4,000 feet elevation, in equatorial regions. It can survive direct sun, but the quality of the bean is adversely affected by direct exposure to the sun, while growing. Hence, the best coffee comes from places which are shrouded, much of the year, in clouds and fog. I used to live near coffee country, in the Mexican state of Puebla. Whenever we went downhill far enough to get into that climate we were always struck with the humidity.

The plants are quite attractive, with their shiny, dark green leaves. The fruit actually tastes good too! Coffee is made from the seed. At best, a four foot tall coffee "tree" would probably yield only enough coffee for a pot or two of coffee.

In Mexico, impatiens (flowers)are often found, growing amidst the coffee trees.

George
Tahlequah, OK

That's really cool, George. I didn't know they grew impatients with the coffee plants. I think I'm going to grow it in a container. You're all right. It was a gift and I'd hate for the seeds to become not viable while I try and decide if I want to plant them or not. I know it will only yield about a pound of beans per plant, but I still think it would be neat to drink my own coffee someday. I've gotten very good at roasting green coffee beans.

Kelly

I have been growing coffee for eight or more years, here in Zone 8A. In the summer, they're are out under a tall pine tree with dappled sunlight. They spend the winters in the greenhouse.

When I ordered the plants from a nursery on-line, they were simply marked "coffee". I have since identified the leaves as the arabica species as opposed to the robusta. They make attractive plants and the blossoms are TDF...with a scent somewhere between citrus flowers and an orchid.

Coffee likes a volcanic, well drained, acidic soil. But, they do not like to dry out. I've gotten several good crops, but my total annual production would barely supply my coffee habit for two weeks. Coffee production is *a lot* of work.... Juan Valdez, I ain't.

But...eight or ten years in, it seems that coffee rust has found me - thousands of miles from the nearest commercial plantations. Coffee rust is a serious threat to the world's coffee supply, just as that fungal wilt will almost certainly exterminate the cavendish banana, which represents about 90% of commercial production.

Cheers