Coffea arabica
Origin: Zimbabwe
Improvement status: Unknown
Seeds per packet: ~10
Germination tested 12/2022: 93%
Life cycle: Perennial
Arabica coffee is one of the most popular and widely consumed plants in the world. Native to the mountains of Yemen and highlands of Ethiopia, it's been cultivated for over a thousand years — earlier than the other coffee species (such as robusta coffee, or Coffea canephora).
Arabica coffee is only cold-hardy to Zone 10, so it can't be grown outdoors in most of the continental US, but it actually does very well as a houseplant, even quite far north. We've met plants thriving indoors — even producing fruit! — for a decade or longer in places like Michigan, Wisconsin, and even Quebec. Two different friends of ours with greenhouses in Kentucky manage to produce their own beans for making. Kris Hubbard sometimes even grows enough to sell it.
A helpful hint: Little coffee plants make great gifts for the coffee lovers and plant nerds in your life!
This seed was imported from Zimbabwe by the good folks at Sheffield's Seed Company in Locke, NY.
GROWING TIPS: Seeds are very easy to germinate. For best results, soak in warm water and let stand for 48 hours. Requires some light for germination, so sow seed very shallowly (just 1/16" deep).
NOTE: Due to limited supply, these seeds have not been germination tested with a test that meets legal standards, so we are selling them as botanical samples.
