Coffea ligustroides

S. Moore

Wild coffee, Chirinda coffee

Rubiaceae Edible: Fruit - coffee

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MBG

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The New York Botanical Garden

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MBG

Description

A shrub or tree. It grows 4-5 m tall. The young twigs are reddish-brown. There can be slight hairs. The leaf blades are 2-7 cm long by 1-3 cm wide. They are narrowly oval. There are 8-9 pairs of side veins. There is one flower in a leaf axil and flowers are made up of 5 parts. The fruit are 6-9 mm long by 6-7 mm wide. The fruit are green turning yellow. The seeds are 8 mm long by 4 mm wide and greenish-brown.

Edible Uses

The fruit are processed into coffee.

Distribution

It is a tropical plant. It grows in evergreen forest between 1,100-1,200 m altitude.

Where It Grows

Africa, East Africa, Malawi, Mozambique, Southern Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

Synonyms

Coffea mufindiensis Hutch. ex BridsonCoffea pawekiana Bridson

References (3)

J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 40:94. 1911
White, F., Dowsett-Lemaire, F. and Chapman, J. D., 2001, Evergreen Forest Flora of Malawi. Kew. p 474
Williamson, J., 2005, Useful Plants of Malawi. 3rd. Edition. Mdadzi Book Trust. p 73