We're big coffee drinkers in our family, and, lately, Dakota has been interested in collecting various interesting coffee-making apparatus. So, for Fathers' Day, my son and I got Dakota the ultimate coffee connoisseur's gift: his very own coffee tree.
We picked up a nice-looking 1-gallon coffee tree at Mimosa Nursery in East LA. I read about this nursery several years ago on another Los Angeles gardening blog, and have always wanted to go there. Mimosa is the place to get interesting and exotic fruit trees in Los Angeles.
After a multi-freeway journey, my son and I arrived at Mimosa and were immediately helped by the very friendly owner. (I think he was the owner.) He even showed us over to a bigger coffee tree and gave us some of the red berries to take home and dry. We didn't stay long, but the large lot was covered with all kinds of interesting fruit trees--Jujube, Jack Fruit, Guava--and I definitely plan to go back soon and get something else soon.
The plan for this little coffee tree is to plant it into a larger pot for a while before putting it in the ground somewhere sunny. From what I can tell, a full grown coffee tree can produce a couple of pounds of beans a year. So, we'll be producing some very trendy small-batch, artisanal coffee here on our little urban farm. You can't get more gourmet than that!
I live outside of Los Angeles and this nursery sounds like it's worth the trip. I have to see if a coffee tree would grow in a climate that gets snow, but if it does I need one!
It's a tropical plant, so I think snow would kill it. But, I bet you could grow it in a pot inside. The trees don't need to get very big to make fruit.
I am in NH, growing a fig tree. My mentor taught me that I can plant it in the ground 1/2 way up the pot if I drill holes in the sides and cover the one on the bottom - so the roots are easier to break free when it comes time that it's too cold and my tree wants to come in.
I wish we had that nursery near us!! But I might go broke.