# Coffee Plant (*Coffea*)

The Coffee Plant is a special plant that grows shiny green leaves and pretty white flowers. It produces coffee beans that many people love to drink!

- **Category:** [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/plant)
- **Rarity:** Rare
- **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low
- **Habitat:** Tropical regions with warm climates
- **Also known as:** Coffea Tree, Coffee Tree

![Coffee Plant](https://res.cloudinary.com/drieglelr/image/upload/v1771424687/objects/5081.jpg)

## Appearance

The Coffee Plant is a glossy-leaved evergreen shrub or small tree. It has dark green, wavy-edged leaves and produces clusters of small, star-shaped white flowers. These flowers mature into round, cherry-like fruits that ripen from green to vibrant red or yellow.

## Taxonomy

- **Kingdom:** Plantae
- **Phylum:** Tracheophyta
- **Class:** Magnoliopsida
- **Order:** Gentianales
- **Family:** Rubiaceae
- **Genus:** Coffea

## Interesting facts

- Coffee "beans" are actually seeds found inside a juicy fruit called a coffee cherry!
- Coffee plants can keep producing fruits for over 60 years!
- Most coffee cherries hide two seeds inside, but some lucky ones have just one!
- The smell of coffee flowers can remind you of jasmine or orange blossoms!

## Special abilities

- **Caffeine Power:** Coffee Plant can produce caffeine in its leaves and seeds to deter hungry pests, protecting its valuable parts.
- **Sweet Scent Signal:** Coffee Plant has highly fragrant, sweet-smelling flowers that attract insects like bees, helping it get pollinated.
- **Year-Round Green:** Coffee Plant has evergreen leaves that help it continuously photosynthesize and grow throughout the year in warm climates.

## Measurements & details

- **Height:** 300-500 cm
- **Spread:** 150-300 cm
- **Flower Size:** 1-1.5 cm
- **Bloom Season:** Multiple flushes year-round
- **Edible:** Yes
- **Toxicity:** Mild
- **Lifecycle:** Perennial
- **Pollination Method:** Insect

## Ecological connections

- **Pollinates:** European honey bee (*Apis mellifera*) — helps transfer pollen between coffee flowers
- **Eaten by:** [Human](https://www.snappit.app/explore/human) (*Homo sapiens*) — harvests and processes coffee seeds for drinks
- **Parasitizes:** Mediterranean fruit fly (*Ceratitis capitata*) — larvae feed inside ripening coffee cherries
- **Parasitizes:** Coffee leaf rust (*Hemileia vastatrix*) — a fungus that infects and damages coffee plant leaves

## Traits

- [Evergreen](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/evergreen): Evergreen plants retain their foliage throughout the year, never shedding all their leaves at once.
- [Fragrant Flower](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/fragrant-flower): Fragrant flowers emit a pleasant aroma, often to attract pollinators or for defense.
- [Fruit Bearing](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/fruit-bearing): Fruit-bearing plants produce fruits, which are the mature ovaries of flowering plants containing seeds.
- [Medicinal](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/medicinal): Medicinal plants possess chemical compounds that can be used for therapeutic purposes to treat illnesses or maintain health.
- [Spice](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/spice): This human use trait indicates species from which spices are derived, used for flavoring, preserving food, or as aromatic agents.

## Collections

- [Grasses](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/grasses)
- [Grasses, Shrubs & Bushes](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/grasses-shrubs-and-bushes)

## Safety

**Danger:** 1/5 · Very low

Explore with care and ask an adult if you’re unsure what to do.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How to identify Coffee Plant?

Start with the whole plant, then compare leaf arrangement, leaf edges, stems and any flowers or fruit. Opposite leaves grow in pairs; alternate leaves come one at a time along the stem. These details tell you far more together than a single green leaf does. Plant Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

### How tall is Coffee Plant?

300-500 cm

### How wide does Coffee Plant spread?

150-300 cm

### How big are the flowers on Coffee Plant?

1-1.5 cm

### When does Coffee Plant bloom?

Multiple flushes year-round

### Is Coffee Plant edible?

Yes

### Is Coffee Plant toxic?

Mild

### What is Coffee Plant's lifecycle?

Perennial

## Where to spot

- [Biosphäre Potsdam](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/biosphare-potsdam) — Brandenburg, DE · Zoo
- [Flora und Botanischer Garten (Köln)](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/flora-botanical-garden-cologne) — Nordrhein-Westfalen, DE · Park

## More Plants

- [white snakeroot](https://www.snappit.app/explore/white-snakeroot) (*Ageratina altissima*)
- [tree-of-heaven](https://www.snappit.app/explore/tree-of-heaven) (*Ailanthus altissima*)
- [western sword fern](https://www.snappit.app/explore/western-sword-fern) (*Polystichum munitum*)
- [common milkweed](https://www.snappit.app/explore/common-milkweed) (*Asclepias syriaca*)

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Source: [Coffee Plant: Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/coffee-plant)