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Useful Tropical Plants

Coffea liberica

Bull. ex Hiern

Rubiaceae


This is a complex species that has often been treated as a number of distinct species in the past[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Indeed, there is still debate amongst botanists as to whether it should be treated as two distinct species. From the growers point of view, however, there are clear differences between the two groups[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

+ Synonyms

Coffea abeokutae P.J.S.Cramer.

Coffea arnoldiana De Wild.

Coffea dewevrei De Wild. & T. Durand

Coffea dybowskii De Wild.

Coffea excelsa A.Chev.

Coffea klainii Pierre ex De Wild.

Common Name: Liberian Coffee

Coffea liberica
Cultivated plant in Lam Dong, Vietnam
Photograph by: DXLINH
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
Coffea liberica Coffea liberica Coffea liberica

General Information

Liberian coffee is an evergreen shrub or tree growing 5 - 20 metres tall[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
418
Title
Ecocrop
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
].
Long used by local people as the source of a stimulating drink, it is now cultivated in many tropical countries as a source of coffee although, because of its more bitter taste, the scale of production is far less than for C. Arabica[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Liberian Coffee accounts for around 1% of commercially grown coffee. The taste and appearance of the beans and berries is similar to the more common coffee, although beans are often larger but contain a tough, difficult to shell skin, hindering their commercial uses[
377
Title
Trade Winds Fruit
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.tradewindsfruit.com/index.htm
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
The on-line catalogue of a company selling seeds. Gives descriptions, photos and uses of a very wide range of fruit and other food-producing plants plus ornamentals.
].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

Range

Tropical west and central Africa.

Habitat

Lowland to lower montane rain forest, gallery forest, forest margins and even in open scrub vegetation, at elevations up to about 1300 metres[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Properties

Edibility Rating *  *  *
Medicinal Rating *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *
HabitEvergreen Shrub
Height20.00 m
Self-fertileNo
Cultivation StatusCultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

Liberian coffee is a plant of the humid, lowland tropics, where it performs better than arabica and robusta coffees[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
,
418
Title
Ecocrop
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
]. It is found at elevations up to 600 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 24 - 30°c, but can tolerate 18 0 36°c[
418
Title
Ecocrop
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
]. It can be killed by temperatures of 5°c or lower[
418
Title
Ecocrop
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 1,600 - 2,400mm, but tolerates 1,100 - 3,500mm[
418
Title
Ecocrop
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
].
Plants grow best under light shade, on well-drained clayey to sandy soils, although it is generally grown in full sunlight in Malaysia[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Plants are tolerant of acid and poor soils - they have been known to grow successfully on alluvial muck soils with a pH of about 4.0[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.3 - 6.2, tolerating 4.3 - 8[
418
Title
Ecocrop
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
]. Established plants, especially from the 'Excelsa' group of cultivars, are drought tolerant[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Plants are intolerant of waterlogged soils[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
The first fruits are produced 2 - 3 years after planting out in the field. After 5 - 6 years the plants are in full bearing[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
The economic life span of a plant is about 25 - 30 years[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
Flowering and fruiting may take place throughout the year, but flowering is triggered by heavy showers; the flower buds grow to a certain size and then rest until stimulated by continued water stress and rapid rehydration, resulting in simultaneous blooming[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
The species is self-incompatible[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Fruit maturation takes 10 - 12 months, depending on the locality[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]
The weight of dry 'green beans' is about 10% of that of fresh fruits. Annual yields of 750 - 900, occasionally to 1,100 kg/ha of green beans can be obtained from well-maintained holdings. Improved cultivars have a potential annual yield of 1.7 t/ha and selected clones even 2.1 - 2.3 t/ha[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
This is a complex species that has often been treated as a number of distinct species in the past[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Indeed, there is still debate amongst botanists as to whether it should be treated as two distinct species. From the growers point of view, however, there are clear differences between the two groups. The complex is here treated as one species with two main varieties:-
var dewevrei (De Wild. & T. Durand) Lebrun. Known as 'Excelsa coffee', from the growers viewpoint this differs in being more drought tolerant and having a smaller fruit up to 20mm x 16mm[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
Var liberica. Known as 'Liberian coffee'. The fruit is up to 25mm x 21mm, has a thicker, more leathery pericarp and is often more tapered towards the base[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]
Although this species contributes only about 1% to total world coffee production, it is grown more extensively in southeast Asia with 80% of coffee production in Malaysia being of this species, for example, and about 25% in the Philippines[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Edible Uses

The roasted, powdered seed is used to make the well-known drink coffee[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. That made from this species has a more bitter taste than that of the well-known arabica or robusta coffees[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. The taste of excelsa coffee, which originates from a botanical variety of this species, is less bitter than that of true Liberian coffee[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].
On a dry matter basis the beans contain about 0.5 - 1.8% of caffeine[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Medicinal

The leaves are used to treat headaches and sore eyes[
348
Title
Medicinal Plants of the Guianas
Publication
 
Author
DeFilipps, R. A.; Maina, S. L.; & Crepin, J.
Website
http://botany.si.edu/bdg/medicinal/index.html
Publisher
Smithsonian Museum
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A down-loadable PDF document of a book in pre-publication awaiting illustration. An excellent, if rather terse, guide to the traditional medicinal uses of the plants of the region
].

Other Uses

Seedlings are sometimes used as rootstocks for Arabica (C. arabica) and Robusta (C. canephora) plants[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
].

Propagation

Propagation is usually by seed. The viability of the seeds is comparatively short, depending upon conditions, and it is advisable to plant within 2 months of harvesting. Seeds are sown in seedbeds prepared from alluvial sand, about 1.5 cm deep and 5 - 8 cm apart or in rows 30 cm apart. The seeds can be planted with the parchment attached but germination is quicker when it is removed[
303
Title
World Agroforesty Centre
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.worldagroforestry.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc.
]. Germination can take about 50 days[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
], but the older the seeds, the longer they take to germinate[
310
Title
Plant Resources of Southeast Asia
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://proseanet.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
]. Seedlings are planted in polythene bags 8 - 12 weeks after sowing when they have 2 - 4 pairs of leaves. They are transplanted into the field when they have developed 6 - 8 pairs of leaves, which under normal circumstances will be 8 - 10 months after sowing. The time of transplanting should ideally coincide with the onset of the rainy season. Seedlings can be raised in shaded nurseries, planting them out into their permanent positions when 6 - 12 months old[
303
Title
World Agroforesty Centre
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.worldagroforestry.org/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc.
].
Cuttings.
Layering
Air layering
Grafting.
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-03-29. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Coffea%20liberica>

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