Coffee Plants and Their Care
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Watering:
NEVER LET YOUR PLANT COMPLETELY DRY OUT OR IT WILL DIE!!! Water your plant when the surface of the potting mix gets dry (probably once or twice a week). Do not let your plant sit in water in the saucer. It is best to take the plant to the sink, water it, let it drain and then return to saucer.
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Light:
Put your plant near a bright window (east, south or west facing) or under a fluorescent light. Do not put outside in direct sunlight or the leaves will burn.
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Fertilizing:
Your plant has been fertilized with Osmocote (the small "BB's" on the soil surface). It is a timed-release fertilizer and will feed your plant over the next 6 months. You should NOT add fertilizer to your plant during this time. After 6 months (next summer), you can buy similar fertilizer at a garden supply center or use organic fertilizer (like seaweed liquid) and feed your plant weekly.
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Repotting:
After 1 month, repot your plant into a 6" plastic pot. The Hort Club will be selling them with the needed potting mix at the Davis Center in late September, early October and also at the Fall Homecoming Weekend. We will post a "How-to repot your coffee plant" video on YouTube with a link from this site and also on our Facebook page.
Pest Control:
Coffee plants typically only have problems with mealybugs.Generally these can be controlled with soapy water, rubbing alcohol or pyrethrum.
Little black flies?
this means you are over-watering your plant. Let the soil dry out between waterings.
If you think you have a problem that you need help with, please contact the Horticulture Club at horticulture.club@uvm.edu More information about UVM's Horticulture Club is listed below:
The Horticulture Club aims to bring students who are interested in horticulture together so that they may increase knowledge for themselves and others in the community. Club members participate in a number of activities annually including volunteer work, such as forcing bulbs into bloom and sending to local nursing homes; attending presentations, such as bonsai tree workshops and flower arranging seminars; going on field trips to such places as the Montreal Botanical Gardens, and fundraisers, such as selling house plants during move-in weekend. We also plant and maintain the gardens around Jeffords Hall.