The herald., 1894-12-25
COFFEE CULTURE IN MEXICO,
Interesting Facts About a
Little Known Industry.
Data Carefully Collected by a TRAY
eler i'll that Country.
The Yield Per Acre-The Flower of the
Tree, Ripening and Treatment OF
the Berry.
Special Correspondence to THE HERALD.
I'M LETTER.

In the stste OF Vera Cruz the tree
Yields third or half Of crop in the
third year after transplanting. In Co
lima and Polaps, plants which are well
developed the time of planting give
small yield the second year. This is
trus also OF the districts of Pluma Hill
dalgo, state OF Oaxscs, and Unspaw, in
the state of Michoccaw, but in order for
much of yield the second year, the
young plants. when taken from the
nursery, must be over year old snd
the land must be in the warm regione.
On the very high lands and in colder re.
gions the trees do not bear often till the
fourth year after being trsnsplanted, go
the importance of the selection of land
is obvious.
quote the following from Cultro del
COTE Enchipas, a government report on
coffee in the state of Chiapas. The au-
thor, Hon. Mathss Romero. speaking of
the Pluma Hidslgo district, Gays: The
coffee tree develops here well, and soon
Yields fruit. There are many trees
which, in a year from transplenting,
give their first crop. In the lower lands,
as is natural, the trees grow morequick-
ly and yield sooner than in the higher
lands"
THE FLoWERING,
The Towering takes place three times
aysar, and in come years there are four
to six coverings. In Paupsntli district.
Vera Cruz state, there is, as q rule, but
one, but if a second occurs, as it does
occasionally, the crop is not the best.
In the same state Towering commences
-, I.r h0
state OF Osxaca it takes place in April
and May. In Colima one Towering oc'
ours in February enG another in July.
The produce resulting from the latter is
the famons "caracolitta," or peaberry,
which will be described subsequently,. In
some districts few flowers can be found
ON the trees sll the year around.
TINE OF RlPENING.
The time Of the year in which the
berry ripens varies greatly in different
states, and even ia the came state.
Michoacan ia the most variable OF all
the states in this respect. There is not
q month in the year in which coffee
does not ripen in some ore or other dis
trict of this state. In Urisapan, the
most noted district in Michoscan, the
crop is gathered from January to March.
In some places two crops are gathered,
one in November or December and the
other in May and June. The berry
ripens earlier in ihe hot lands than in
the tenn mperats--henca, according to al.
titude. the crops are gathered from
November to May in the state OF Vera
Cruz. In Cordoba the berry ripens
from September to January In Polopa
from November TO May; at Pochutla in
August ON the low lands and in Novem-
ber on the high. In Colims in the hot
lands November and December are the
months in which ths fruit ripens. In
other states tine variation is as great as
those above mentioned. In some dis
tricts q few ripe berries are to bs found
on the trees almost every month in the
year but in these places two principal
crops ere to be expected which run into
each other more or less. The winter
crop is the heaviest of the two.
GATHERING TIE BERRIES.
The berries are taken off by the fng-
srs as soon as they are bright red, in
order to prevent the busting of the ripe
fruit and to prevent its drying on the
tree. The fruit is gathered in baskets.
When the tre es are full grown and high
hand ladders are used, both for conven-
iencs in picking and to avoid injuring
the trees.
The ordinary method of preparing the
berry for sale is as follows: All the
coffee picked during the day ia taken to
the machine house, measured and placed
in large bowls. Tie next day they are
passed through the pulper, by which
process the pulp 10 separated and the
berries fall into q wooden receptacle.
They are then washed. The coffee
which floats on the top is collected and
separately dried, because the berries are
stained and black. The remaining por.
tion is spread to dry on mats or on NOR
tar pavements. The berries require
from feur TO five days in the sun to be
properly dried. When dry the coffee is
then sorted and made ready for export
In jute or hemp bags.
In the larger plantations the above
method is being superseded by pulping
machines. The operation is simple, and
one machine will, at q cost of So to $4,
pulp 5000 to 5000 pounds of coffee per
day; and this cost also includes the
washing, which is done as follows: The
beans, pulp and all, fall into common
receptacle containing sgtators; these,
com mbined with current OF water, re-
move the pulp and deposit tbs beans
clean into the dryera. whore they remain
from four to eight hours, according to
the state OF the weather.
THE YIELD PER TREE.
This 10 8 question that can only be
approximately answered. The yield
varies greatly in different Districts, and
the rusnber of trees planted TO the acre.
In making an estimate therefore, the
number of trees to the acre must be con-
sidered. II is not difficult to find some
80 or 60 trsas in C fertile spot, with
plenty of shade snd space between the IN,
yielding as much as 10 pounds to tree.
Given suitable soil and general condis
tions, together with scientific treatment,
there 10 no re&aon to doubt that eight
pounds to a tree is possible, provided
that not more thar 250 or 800 tEeeg are
planted to the acre.
AS to the average yield, Senior Carlos
Girls, coffee grower who has written
more on the subject than anyone in
Mexico. in q recent letter to 9 Mexican
paper, says: "In the coffee plantation
from where ana now writing there are
we'll grwn and cultivated trees which
actually yield the following crop per
tree:
"TrssH 2 years old, 2 pounds per tree;
trees years old, 4 pounds per tree;
4.year-old trsss, 8 pounds per tree"
l write this article in plantation
whose we'll cultivated trees are produc-
suo raundu Of ooToa WOW frao-drv