How to Grow Coffee Beans

Growing your own coffee tree from beans can be a rewarding experience. This tropical plant will not survive outside, unless you live in a tropical area, but it grows well inside the home. In fact, this an attractive houseplant. Within a few years, it will bloom and produce coffee beans you can harvest and use for making your own coffee. One 6-foot tree produces enough beans for 3 to 4 pounds of ground coffee per year. Although that's not enough to provide you will fresh coffee all year, rich-brewed coffee grown with your own hands is sure to be a pleasure on a cold winter morning.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Coffee beans
• All-purpose potting soil
• 10-10-10 Fertilizer
• Plant pot (6 inch)
• Sand/vermiculite

1. Purchase coffee beans from a reputable source. (See Resources). Seed companies that sell houseplant seeds often carry coffee beans for growing as a houseplant. You cannot grow coffee beans sold in the store; those have been roasted, and they will not germinate.

2. Soak coffee beans in tepid water for 24 hours to speed germination. Place in wet sand or vermiculite to germinate. Cover lightly. Keep the potting medium moist, but avoid standing water. The beans will germinate within 2 1/3 months. At that time, they will be ready for planting.

3. Transplant the germinated seed to a 6-inch plant pot filled with a mixture of one part all-purpose potting soil and one part compost. Place the seed with the flat side facing down. Cover it loosely with1/2 inch of soil.

4. Water daily to keep the soil evenly moist. Reduce watering to 2 to 3 times per month during the winter. Water thoroughly and keep the soil evenly moist in early spring to encourage new growth and blooming.

5. Fertilize with 10-10-10 fertilizer every other week from March to October. Use the fertilizer once per month from November to February.

6. Place the plant in an area that receives medium filtered light. During the summer months, keep it outside in an area sheltered from harsh winds or damaging weather conditions. Return to the home before the first frost in the fall.

Resources

• Coffee Beans