Arabic Coffee Plant

The Arabic Coffee Plant (Coffea arabica) is the species behind most of the coffee worth drinking, and it earns its place before you pick a single cherry. In a pot or a sheltered bed it settles at about 3m tall and 2m wide, carrying dense glossy leaves all year. Fragrant white flowers cluster along the stems in spring, then set cherries that ripen to red. Plantation trees run far taller, but a pruned home plant stays at picking height.

Why you'll love it

• Beans from your own plant. Each ripe cherry holds two seeds. Pulp, dry and roast them and a mature plant supplies a household's weekend coffee.
• Scent worth planting for. The white spring flowers carry a jasmine perfume across a courtyard.
• One of the better indoor trees. Evenly branched, dark and glossy, it reads as a real small tree, not a leafy prop.
• Low maintenance. Water, warmth and two feeds a year is close to the whole job.
• Built for heat and humidity. From equatorial highlands, so a muggy Australian summer suits it rather than stressing it.

Where it works best

Pots and containers. The natural home for it in most of Australia. Start in a 300mm to 400mm pot, step up every second year, and shift it out of frost and wind in winter.

Indoors. Bright indirect light near an east facing window, clear of heating and cooling outlets. Lower light is tolerated, but growth goes leggy and fruiting stops.

Small gardens. A 3m canopy fits where a citrus will not. In tropical and subtropical gardens, plant a group 2m apart under taller trees.

Growing Arabic Coffee Plant in Australia

Position and climate. Filtered light, or morning sun with afternoon shade. Harsh all day sun bleaches the leaves. This is a plant for tropical, subtropical and warm temperate gardens. It is frost tender, so cool temperate and inland gardeners should keep it potted and move it under cover for winter.

Soil. Rich, free draining and slightly acidic. Work compost through the bed and mulch 50mm deep, clear of the trunk. In pots, use a premium mix with added compost.

Water and feed. Keep the soil moist but never sodden, watering once the top 3cm has dried. Coffee is hungry: controlled release fertiliser in early spring and midsummer, plus a monthly liquid feed.

Pruning and pets. Tip prune young plants to build a bushy frame at picking height, and cut a lanky plant back hard in spring. Leaves and cherries contain caffeine, which is toxic to cats and dogs, so keep it out of reach.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown in 140mm packs of ten, 200mm packs of six and single 300mm pots. The smaller sizes are young and single stemmed, and are the sensible choice if you want several or intend to shape the plant yourself. The 300mm is a season ahead and moves straight into a display pot. Flowering usually begins in year three or four.

Plants are packed upright for transit and delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost. Expect a quiet fortnight after potting up, then fresh growth within four to six weeks in warm weather. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Browse the full indoor plant range
• Watering and light for indoor plants
• Choose a pot and saucer to suit it
• Planting ideas for small courtyards

Common questions

Will it really produce coffee here?

Yes, in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate conditions, and under glass elsewhere. Expect first flowers in year three or four, and a few kilograms of roasted coffee a year at maturity.

Can I keep it indoors permanently?

It lives happily indoors for years in bright indirect light, though fruiting inside is less reliable. Many growers move it to a sheltered patio for summer.

Why are the leaf edges going brown?

Usually dry air, direct sun through glass, or a pot that dried out too far between waterings. Move it out of hot light, water more evenly, and group it with other plants to lift humidity.