Grow Your Own Coffee

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One-third of Americans drink coffee every day. It is one of the most commonly-consumed beverages in the world, yet it has been surrounded by controversy ever since its discovery. 

According to one legend, coffee was discovered by a mystic named Abu al-Hasan al Shadhill, who ate the berries after noticing that birds became livelier after eating them. In another legend, an Ethiopian goatherd named Kaldi realized that his herd became hyper after eating coffee berries. He took some of the berries back to the monastery, and the abbot made a drink from them. The monks discovered that the new beverage helped to keep them awake during their evening prayers. Soon, coffee's fame spread, eventually reaching the Western world.

Coffee houses were founded in the 1500s after the plant began to be widely cultivated. Though coffee consumption was at first encouraged by the government, officials soon realized that coffee tended to stimulate creativity and radical thinking, a recipe for dissent and sedition. So coffee houses were banned, with limited success. 

Throughout the world, there have been many attempts to outlaw coffee.

One sultan named Murad IV (1612-1640) banned alcohol, tobacco, and coffee. He enforced it by roaming the streets of Constantinople and beheaded anyone whom he caught breaking the ban. 

In Rome, Pope Clement VIII's advisors wanted him to ban coffee because it was popular with Muslims. After tasting it, the pope came to a different conclusion, saying, "This devil's drink is so delicious... we should cheat the devil by baptizing it."

King Gustav III of Sweden tried to scientifically prove coffee's harmful effects by experimenting on twin convicts condemned to death. He commuted their sentences on the condition that one twin drank three pots of coffee a day for the rest of his life. The other twin had to drink the same amount of tea. Doctors monitored them, but, ironically, the doctors died before the twins did. 

Right now, I'm trying to germinate a dwarf variety of Coffea arabica, but it is not very easy. Coffee seeds can take anywhere from 3 weeks to 6 months to sprout. 

If you want to try growing it, though, I have found an inexpensive way to do so. The Vermont Coffee Company will give you coffee seeds if you send them a self-addressed envelope with two stamps on it. And, if your plant eventually produces beans, the company will roast them for you. For more information, click here. 

Trade Winds Fruit has several varieties of coffee seeds under $4. 

Here are some basic germination instructions:

1. Soak the seeds overnight in a dish of lukewarm water. This softens the seed coat and speeds up the germination process.
2. Plant the seeds about 1/2"-1" deep in sterile potting soil. 
3. Water carefully, not letting the seeds dry out. 
4. Wait. 
5. Wait some more. Keep watering.
6. After a few months, you might get a coffee sprout.

Coffee does not tolerate cold weather, so keep it indoors unless you live in zone 10a or higher. Water twice per week. Use a fertilizer with a high proportion of nitrogen. After 2 or 3 years, fruit is possible. Some sources suggest shocking the plant into bloom by watering it a lot in the spring after reducing its water intake during the winter.  

A Short History of Tomatoes (And How to Grow Them)

Because they are members of the nightshade family (Solanaceae), most Europeans and Americans thought for hundreds of years that tomatoes were poisonous. Native to the Andes mountains and cultivated by the Aztecs, tomatoes were introduced to the Old World by the conquistadors, who brought tomato seeds with them when they returned to Europe.

Each country in Europe seemed to have its own name for the tomato. In France, it was known as pomme d'amour, or apple of love. In Germany, it was called Wolfpfirsich ("wolf peach") because witches were thought to summon werewolves with nightshade, a plant associated with tomatoes. The Italians named it pomo dei Mori, or "Moors' apple." Then they changed it to pomi d'oro, or "apple of gold" (the varieties commonly grown in Italy at the time were yellow).

Because most people thought tomatoes were poisonous, tomato plants were grown primarily as ornamentals. However, that all changed on September 26, 1820 when in Salem, New Jersey, Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson stood on the steps of the courthouse and publicly consumed an entire basket of tomatoes. Because he survived this daring feat, everyone was finally convinced that tomatoes were not poisonous, after all. 

Tomatoes are very easy to grow. They exist in almost every color, and they can be a variety of sizes. A standard-sized tomato plant needs a three-gallon pot to accommodate its extensive root system. Dwarf varieties can be grown in much smaller pots. 

When choosing a variety of tomato to grow, consider whether it is determinate or indeterminate. Determinate tomato plants are annuals; they grow to a certain height, produce fruit within a limited time span, and die. Most dwarf varieties are determinate. Indeterminate tomatoes keep growing and flowering until they are killed by frost. Both types can be grown in containers, but indeterminate tomatoes need to be pruned. 

Right now, I am growing a variety called "Micro Tom," which was developed in the 1990s by the University of Florida. It is the smallest tomato plant in the world, growing no taller than eight inches. Other compact varieties include "Tiny Tim" and "Lizzano," which is an All-America Selections winner. Micro Tom and Tiny Tim are both open-pollinated and determinate, and Lizzano is a hybrid and semi-determinate.

Here's how to grow them:

1. Plant one seed in each pot 1/4" deep in potting soil.   
2. Water carefully; if you water too much, the seeds may rot. If you don't water enough, the seeds will dry out and die. Water only when the surface of the soil has begun to dry-- I recommend using a spray bottle. 
3. After they have sprouted (usually within 4-10 days), keep them by a sunny window. 
4. If you're growing an indeterminate variety, you may need a stake or a cage such as this one to support it. To prune an indeterminate tomato plant, cut off the suckers that grow between the main branches and the stem. This will encourage fruit production. 

Tomato plants love heat, and they need at least 6 hours of sunlight per day. They also require frequent watering. Since tomato plants are heavy feeders, they benefit from regular fertilization; a complete fertilizer administered every other week is best. 

A Word on Gardening Terminology

"Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent." -George Orwell, "Politics and the English Language"

I will try to avoid using gardening terminology for the most part because a) I don't know a lot of it anyway, and b) I want to be as clear as possible to the greatest number of people. However, there are several terms that I think are important for everyone interested in plants or gardening to understand. The following is a list of terms* that I may or may not use in future posts:

• Annual - A plant that completes its life cycle in one year.
• Biennial - A plant that completes its life cycle in two years.
• Compost- A mixture of decaying, organic materials (such as kitchen scraps) used for soil amending, fertilizing, and mulching. 
• Cutting - A plant propagation method wherein a part of a plant is cut and dipped in a rooting hormone to eventually grow into a new plant.
• Full sun - If a plant requires “full sun” then it needs at least 6 hours of direct sunlight each day to thrive.
• Germinate - The beginning of growth in a seed; to sprout.
• Hardy - A plant that can withstand frost exposure without means of protection.
• Heirloom - An open-pollinated plant variety that has remained unchanged through hybridization for at least 50-100 years.
• Hybrid - The crossbreeding of two plants of different species or varieties with distinct characteristics.
• Open pollination - Plants whose seeds develop through random, natural pollination such as wind, field movement, or insect activity, not through human involvement.
• Ornamental - Plants grown for aesthetics, not consumption or economic use.
• Perennial - Plants that live for multiple growing seasons.
• Pollination - The transfer of pollen from the stamen (male part of the flower) to the pistil (female part of the flower), which results in the formation of a seed.
• Pruning - The process of cutting off leaves or branches within limits in order to remove dead, injured or diseased foliage or branches.
• Self-pollinating - Plants that do not require pollen from another plant to produce fruit.
• Thinning - To reduce the number of excess seedlings (discarding the weakest ones) to allow freer air circulation and increase the light for foliage, thereby, encouraging remaining plants to thrive.
• Transplant - To remove plants from one place and replant them in another (or from a container into the ground).

*Note: All definitions are taken from this Glossary of Gardening Terms.

10 Reasons to Container Garden

Container gardening can be a lot of fun. The possibilities are endless-- you can grow anything from vegetables to ornamentals to tropical plants to bonsais. Chances are, if you're reading this, you already have an interest in gardening, so I will devote most of my efforts to showing you the benefits of container gardening (as opposed to traditional gardening). 

The first few reasons specifically pertain to vegetable gardening:

• It’s economical. There are few expenses in gardening, especially in traditional gardening; seeds or young plants are the only things you have to buy. In container gardening, you need to buy potting soil in addition to seeds. Containers that have holes punched in the bottom can serve as flowerpots if you don’t want to buy them, and fertilizer can be made through various composting methods. Your harvest will only cost what you spent on seeds and/or potting soil, making it much more inexpensive than grocery shopping. 

• You control the fertilizers and pesticides. If you want to ensure that the food you eat is organic, you have the means to do so through gardening. I'll address this topic in greater detail in future posts.

• You can choose varieties that are non-GMO. Many seed companies label their non-GMO or organic seeds. Such companies include Seed Savers Exchange, My Patriot Supply, and Trade Winds Fruit, among others. 

Here are the reasons why I think you should particularly consider container gardening:

• Your plant choices are not limited by your hardiness zone. With container gardening, if you want to grow a pineapple in Alaska, you can. You can grow lettuce in January-- whatever you want. 

• There is no weeding involved. Enough said. 

• Some plants can help purify the air. Spider plants, aloe vera, English ivy, snake plants, and others purify the air because they produce oxygen and clear airborne toxins such as formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, and benzene. 

• Plants can be used for aesthetic purposes. Many plants are beautiful and can be integrated into the interior design of your home. 

• Larger pests, such as deer or rabbits, are a non-issue. Unless they’re in your house. 

• It can be therapeutic. A whole field of study called horticulture therapy is dedicated to researching the therapeutic possibilities of plants and gardens. If you would like to learn more about horticulture therapy, click here and here. I hope to address this topic more in a later post. 

• You don't need a backyard to container garden.  

Of course, there are potential drawbacks to container gardening:

• It’s a commitment. Regular watering is necessary with container gardening, especially if you keep your plants inside. If you travel a lot, you may need to ask someone to water your plants for you or invest in an automatic watering system. 

• You are limited by space. You can only have as many plants as will fit in your house, balcony, or porch. 

• Some plants aren’t practical to grow indoors. Such plants include corn, pumpkins and other large vining plants, and potatoes. 

I'm sure there are many other reasons why container gardening is a great idea-- this list is certainly not an exhaustive one. It's a start, though.  

On Dwarfs and Grapefruits

“I grow plants for many reasons: to please my eye or to please my soul, to challenge the elements or to challenge my patience, for novelty or for nostalgia, but mostly for the joy in seeing them grow.” -David Hobson

My grapefruit tree.

When I was ten or so, I was inspired to plant a grapefruit tree after reading one of my favorite books, Gardening Wizardry for Kids. So I opened up a grapefruit that my parents had bought from the grocery store, extracted two of the seeds, planted them in a flowerpot, and waited for them to sprout. After a few weeks, one of the seeds actually sprouted. It was my first successful attempt growing a plant. I still have the grapefruit tree over a decade later, and I value it even though it will probably never flower or bear fruit. 

I have tried to grow many different plants since then, with varying success. Though I don’t have a degree in horticulture or a related field, I have learned a lot about indoor gardening through reading and personal experience. My goal is to provide information to those who want to grow plants indoors and to give ideas to both beginner and more experienced gardeners, especially those who live in temperate climates. I will also document my own container gardening experiences. 

A word on the title, “Growing Dwarfs”: according to The Free Dictionary, the definition of “dwarf” is “in horticulture practice, a tree artificially kept to a smaller size than is normal for average members of the species.” However, not all dwarfs are trees; there are also dwarf herbs and dwarf vegetables. Because of their size, dwarf varieties are easy to grow in containers, making them ideal for indoor gardening. 

Comments and suggestions are always welcome.  

Thanks for visiting!