St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-11-22
COFFEE CULTURE.
Most of the Crop Now Produced
in America.

most OF the Crop Now PRODUCED
in America.
Baltimore Sun,
The special bulletin of the Bureau of
American Republics on Coffee in
America. Its methods of Production"
etc., is an interesting aud instructive
account of the conditions under which
coffee may be successfully grown in
America. At present coffee is a most
profitable crop to grow. 1t averaged
Ice pound for the trade year 1929.
The supply is not equal to demand, and
in consequence the price is high and
well sustained. Found originally in
Asia and Africa, the coffee berry is now
produced chiefly in America. The
plant is a native of the tropics, and can
be cultivated only i'll regions free from
frost. Excessive heat is as fatal to it as
excessive cold. For this reason in the
low, hot lands of the coast of the Gulf
of Mexico, Caribbean sea and South
Atlantic its cultivation is not at
tempted. Only on the highlands and
hills are successful plantations found.
Mexico Is the most northern and
Paraguay the most southern country Of
this hemisphere where it is profitably
grown, and the area III which the plant
is friable, sandy or even grayeilY. 1t
must be moist, but there must he no
standing water III i. aud it must be
deep enough to allow the roots to strike
down three feet or more. The virgin
soil of land from which a forest has been
cleared is best. The plants are mostly
grown from seeds in beds. They are
then transplanted into the fields and
protected from the hot sun by growing
bananas or the wild fig with them. The
cost of each coffee tree four years from
the time of planting averages. accord
ing TO senior Romero, the Mexican
minister, about lie, including cost of
land and wages. When four years old
it yields about two pounds or coffee,
worth 10c pound at the minimum
price. As the cost of gathering and
preparing for market is about sc, there
Is net profit Of 15c a tree. As i
Mexico an acre contains 1000 trees, t.
estimated profit per acre is some $50
for the fourth year. Ordinarily the
yield increases till the eighth year, AID
the tree continues to bear for forty
years. In Brazil but 500 trees are
planted to the acre, but the crop even
then is extremely profitable at present
prices.
The berry as it comes from the tree
resembles the cranberry and contains
two grains, with their fiat sides toward
each other. Each of these has two coat
ings that must be removed. Outside of
both is tough shell with pulp and
skin. All these coverings must be re-
moved, and the machinery required for
the purpose is elaborate and expensive.
A complete plant for large plantation
will cost not less than Sc, 900. Con-
siderable capital is required for the
growth and preparation of coffee for
the market on profitable scale. Brazil
produces over 81 per cent of the worlds
supply of coffee. In 1912 Brazil ex-
ported 100000 bags OF 1872 pounds, but
in 1928 were 6,295,0OO bags. Java.
Sumatra. Ceylon, Manila, Mocha, Cen
trail America. Mexico, Venezuela and
the West Indies produce coffee largely,
but Brazil produces more than all the
rest of the world taken together. Brazil
in 1891 sent to the United States about
S45, 100000 worth of the berry, and her
total exports were worth some So, O00,-
000. Our so-caIled Mocha, Java, ETC.,
come almost entirely from Brazil. The
name is matter of classification mere
ly. The small, round grains are classed
as Mocha, the large, fla: grains are Java,
and so on, with the result that one
Brazilian plantation may supply all
the various kinds known to the trade.
AS there is no tax on land in Brazil, the
industry enjoys advantages that cause it
to Increase year by year. There are, it
seems, in view of these facts, probably
few acres in the United States that afford
all the conditions required for the prof
liable cultivation of the coffee plant.