coffee bonsai

sbaddy

Seedling
Messages
15
Reaction score
2
Hello
I have a small coffee plant and was wondering if I can make it into a coffee bonsai. Not sure how to go about this, can anyone give any advice?
 

Attachments

  • 20210106_110852.jpg
    20210106_110852.jpg
    161.3 KB · Views: 71

Rivian

Chumono
Messages
871
Reaction score
715
Location
DE
USDA Zone
6
You go to wikipedia and see how tall the shrub is, how old it gets, how big the leaves are. If its fine, choose a single trunk and grow it in conditions that allow it to expand so the trunk thickens. Work on the roots every 2 years.
 

sorce

Nonsense Rascal
Messages
32,908
Reaction score
45,579
Location
Berwyn, Il
USDA Zone
6.2
Drill a hole in a coffee mug and jam it in there!

I'd want to find out why they are planted like that in the first place. Do they grow well like that? Coffee need a friend? They're pretty like that and never grow?

Take one out and see how small you can maintain the leaves, while killing all but one other trying to find out how to best grow em fast. Then use the leaf size to determine how long you have to grow your keeper one for it to look in scale.

Sorce
 

Leo in N E Illinois

The Professor
Messages
11,337
Reaction score
23,254
Location
on the IL-WI border, a mile from ''da Lake''
USDA Zone
5b
Coffee has been tried by a few. The main issue is that the leaves tend to be disproportionate in size. Even with leaf reduction techniques, the leaves do not reduce enough to make a convincing bonsai. But there is no reason you can not train your coffee to be an attractive houseplant, using bonsai techniques. Try and see what you can do with it. If you like the large glossy leaves then enjoy it for what it is. The flowers and "coffee cherries" are nice & attractive.
 

Forsoothe!

Imperial Masterpiece
Messages
6,878
Reaction score
9,248
Location
Michigan
USDA Zone
6b
They make wonderful houseplants and will be happy in almost any window. Like a lot of mostly evergreen plants they do not respond well to leaf reduction. Defoliation in May takes all summer to almost replace the leaves which will be just a little smaller than the type. They do not like full sun outdoors which surprised me. This one is 3 years old and the foliage is a very shiny dark green and was kept indoors summer of '20. I just tipped all the terminal buds and believe O can get more interior growth, but it's not bad as is.
2021_0107 Coffee aribica.jpg
 

hinmo24t

Masterpiece
Messages
2,480
Reaction score
3,165
Location
Dartmouth Massachusetts
USDA Zone
7A
Drill a hole in a coffee mug and jam it in there!

I'd want to find out why they are planted like that in the first place. Do they grow well like that? Coffee need a friend? They're pretty like that and never grow?

Take one out and see how small you can maintain the leaves, while killing all but one other trying to find out how to best grow em fast. Then use the leaf size to determine how long you have to grow your keeper one for it to look in scale.

Sorce
Water it w cold folgers
 

Arlithrien

Shohin
Messages
395
Reaction score
502
Location
Tampa, FL
USDA Zone
9b
There is a dwarf cultivar called Coffea Arabica "Nana" . It doesn't look too promising for bonsai but I am curious how coffee grown in a bonsai fashion would taste so I went and bought some seeds. They say the soil determines flavor profile which makes me wonder how akadama coffee would taste.
 

AJL

Chumono
Messages
873
Reaction score
1,129
Location
Shropshire England (UK)
Hello
I have a small coffee plant and was wondering if I can make it into a coffee bonsai. Not sure how to go about this, can anyone give any advice?
It looks like you have a potful of Coffee seedlings there. You might be best separating some of them and plant the best of them into individual pots to grow them up to a good size
 

AJL

Chumono
Messages
873
Reaction score
1,129
Location
Shropshire England (UK)
By the way Coffee plants are also one of the key hosts for the deadly Xylella bacterial plant disease which is destroying Italian Olive groves and is believed to have been introduced to Europe on infected Coffee plants from the Americas
 

amcoffeegirl

Masterpiece
Messages
2,770
Reaction score
4,794
Location
IOWA
USDA Zone
5b
I just stopped in to say Hi.
Coffee - yum
If the leaves won’t reduce then you have to make a larger tree.
looks legit to me
 

Cadillactaste

Neagari Gal
Messages
16,262
Reaction score
20,885
Location
NE Ohio: zone 4 (USA) lake microclimate
USDA Zone
5b
People are forgetting the clump style bonsai where there are many trunks. I happen to like clumps myself.

Know nothing about the species...I am sipping coffee at the moment. Tastes good. So still a fun thing to play around with. Even if only a quirky house plant you use the techniques on.
 

Forsoothe!

Imperial Masterpiece
Messages
6,878
Reaction score
9,248
Location
Michigan
USDA Zone
6b
The stems are straight, thin, and internodes are long with big leaves, just like any great bonsai candidate. Not.
 

Arlithrien

Shohin
Messages
395
Reaction score
502
Location
Tampa, FL
USDA Zone
9b
Looks like the genetics exist for promising bonsai. But I don't know how easily one could acquire the smallest of these, as there is really no demand for them as a coffee bean. It seems smaller varieties produce smaller yields with lower caffeine content.

CropsInColor.Coffee.CR.CATIE_9.width-1280.jpg

murta.png
 
Last edited:

Mike Corazzi

Masterpiece
Messages
2,678
Reaction score
3,225
Location
Lincoln, CA
USDA Zone
9b
Someone say COFFEE ?????

Coffee frame.JPG

Wavy glass covers that frame.
 
Top Bottom