Coffee tree: leaves and flowers
The coffee tree is a shrub that has a lifespan up to 50 to 70 years. The first flowers can appear during the third year. In the world exist about sixty different species of coffee tree, but only two of them dominate in the world trade - Arabica, which takes 75% of the production; and Robusta.
Coffee tree has small tender white flowers with 5 or 6 petals. Their shape and scent very much resemble those of jasmine, and for this very reason this tree was called “Arabian Jasmine” in the 17th century.
The flowers are formed at the base of the leaves. There can be 5-15 of them and they produce the same number of berries, known as cherries because of the red color. The flowers wilt right after fertilization, but the tree doesn’t seem bare, as other flowers replace them at once. As a result, the tree has a strange appearance, as at the same time you can find on it leaves, flowers and berries. One tree can have over 30,000 flowers in one year.
The coffee tree is an evergreen plant, with green and shiny leaves on the upper side. Its leaves grow in pairs on one side of the stem. By the way, the leaves of the Robusta trees are usually much larger than those of the Arabica.