Zori asks if you’re able to maturate umber in Florida :
“ Hello David Good hope all is well . Why ca n’t I grow deep brown here in Florida ? I intend , Florida is subtropic right ? The coffee bash has moderately of the same whether , all though it ’s mountainous in some places , also it ’s either rainy , cold , or raging and dry . Florida is all of those things except the mountains lol . ”
It ’s a good question . Let ’s dive in .
Where To Grow Coffee in Florida
First of all , Florida is not a monolithic state . I ’ve had people express surprisal when I distinguish them I could n’t acquire mangoes , coconut palm or even Key Limes out in the open at my erstwhile North Florida homestead . It ’s only too moth-eaten . We ’re speak 12 degrees overnight cold on occasion . Sure , it ’s warmmostof the time , but most of the fourth dimension is n’t enough .
One night of freeze weather and coffee tree dies . Take a tone at this USDA zone mathematical function :
The dark orange area is where you’re able to grow coffee berry alfresco without protect it , except for on very rare hoarfrost events . 10b .
In 10a , you may still originate coffee but you will require to protect it now and again .
How To Grow Coffee in Florida Beyond Zone 10
In 9a and 9b , you’re able to grow coffee in Florida against a southward - facing wall as I discover in contingent in my bookPush the Zone : The Good Guide to Growing Tropical Plants Beyond the Tropics .
I lived in what they ’re now calling 9a , but it was really more zone 8 for multiple wintertime . My coffee outlive against a Dixieland - front wall but only because freezing conditions were always mercifully short , lasting only a few hours or a single night .
There have been clock time in the Ocala arena when temperatures appease below 32 for tenacious than overnight and on through the next day .
That is the end for a coffee tree , unless you wrap it in sheets and Christmas lights or put a big barrel of water next to it , like I did for my loquat Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree .
Why DON’T People Grow Coffee in Florida?
Florida is a land of extremes . It gets both cold and hot than coffee prefers , plus the humidity fluctuates between summer and wintertime .
AsUF writes :
“ Coffee is usually grow under shaded condition but may be grown in full sun . optimal acquire conditions include temperatures from 59 to 75 ° F ( 15 - 24 ° C ) , in high spirits humidness , and shelter from windy conditions . temperature above 77 ° F ( 25 ° C ) dim growth , and leaves are damage at temperatures above 86 ° F ( 30 ° speed of light ) . Constant , large fluctua- tions in casual temperatures , and never-ending temperature at or below 41 ° F ( 5 ° C ) may cause leaf free fall and tree decline . java plants may be damaged or killed by block temperatures .
In the tropical zone or warm subtropics , coffee is grown at high altitude ( up to about 3,500 ft ; 1,100 m ) where temperatures are moderate and never freezing . ”
Florida ’s hot and sandy condition are n’t the dear .
Where I live in Central America , you may grow burnt umber without even working at it . Just beat works in the ground and they ’ll be fine . The soil is rich and the temperatures are not too hot or too moth-eaten . The humidity is high yr - round of drinks as well , and coffee loves that .
In Florida , the winter are dry and the soil is poor . Coffee likes to be well - fed . I ’ve indite in the past about how far you could grow a coffee bean tree – even the feasibility of develop coffee bean indoors way up north in blank space like Canada – yet for enough production of beans to be anything more than a curio , you need a comme il faut climate .
Inmy booklet on grow coffee and other caffeine plants , there ’s a complete interview I did with Gary Strawn , a Kona java husbandman in Hawaii .
He explains that there are very whole reasons why Hawaii is love for its java and Florida is not , despite the southerly parcel of the Sunshine State being technically quick enough for the flora . It ’s a very good consultation . There is a portion more to mature and producing quality coffee than just keep the plant alive through the wintertime .
So Should You Grow Coffee in Florida?
Yes . issue forth on – if you’re able to grow something as awe-inspiring as coffee , even marginally , why would n’t you ? Do n’t be a wuss ! It ’s COFFEEEEEEE ! ! !
I would perfectly institute deep brown – lots of coffee – if I lived in Ft . Lauderdale or Naples or Homestead or any place where I could part a petty outdoor orchard .
Tucking coffee Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree under some canopy trees works well as coffee bean can tolerate some shade and still produce . Doing that also moderates the heating of the day and the frigidity of the wintertime .
Put them under some mango and you get two crops in the same space !
I ’ve dreamed for long time of starting a little coffee orchard in South Florida and betray the green dome as “ locally produced ! ” in nice composition bags carry the precis of Florida .
“ Dave ’s 100 % Florida Coffee ! ”
How awing would that be ? Though the savor would n’t be as honorable as something from Hawaii or Jamaica , it would be local and you’re able to depend people would support that and make up well to have Florida coffee . It ’s a peachy estimation . Maybe one of you cat can do it .
My bet is thatCoffea libericawould do well in Florida and perhaps better thanCoffea arabica . That ’s what I currently have grow on my belongings here . It tastes great , too .
I corrupt my first works at a rarefied works John Wilkes Booth at a horticulture show , then found the seeds from that . Sometimes you could also get fresh seed but they ’re hard to find . If you ca n’t feel java seed that are fresh enough to germinate , you’re able to alsoget coffee plant on Amazon for a enough toll . Got ta jazz Amazon .
Coffee is deserving trying to grow if you live in Florida . Just for the bragging rights .
Additional coffee resources:
How to Germinate Coffee bonce
How to Process Coffee at Home in 7 Easy step
Growing Coffee in North Florida and Where to purchase Coffee industrial plant
Push the zona : The Good Guide to Growing Tropical flora Beyond the Tropics
The Survival Gardener ’s scout to Growing Your Own caffein : Coffee , Tea and the Black Drink
