Two white Coffea arabica flowers with brown anthers on a woody branch

Coffea arabica (Arabian coffee)

Name: Coffea arabica (Arabian coffee)
Address: CO

Native to eastern South Sudan, southwestern Ethiopia, and northern Kenya, it is an evergreen shrub or small tree with horizontal branches and glossy leaves. Its oval leaves have pointed tips and often wavy edges. Sweetly scented white flowers form clusters where the leaves meet the branches, usually with five spreading corolla lobes. The fleshy fruits, called coffee cherries, generally ripen red, although cultivated forms can produce yellow or purple fruits. Each usually contains two seeds, the coffee beans, which are processed, roasted, and ground to make coffee. A plant can produce fertile seeds using its own pollen. The species arose through natural hybridization between Coffea eugenioides and Coffea canephora. Despite extensive cultivation, wild Arabica is Endangered, with deforestation and climate change threatening its native forest populations. Photographed in the central Andes mountain range of Colombia.

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Clusters of green, red, and purple Coffea arabica fruits along branches among glossy green leaves

White Coffea arabica flowers with brown anthers beside green leaves and a branch

Green, yellow, orange, and red Coffea arabica fruits clustered along a leafy branch

Two white Coffea arabica flowers beside green fruits and glossy leaves

Red and green Coffea arabica fruits along a branch among glossy green leaves

Close-up of a delicate white Coffea arabica flower with five petals blooming on a woody coffee plant branch

Bright white Coffea arabica flower with six curved stamens and glossy dark green leaves in the background

Two white Coffea arabica flowers with curved brown anthers beside a green bud

Two white Coffea arabica flowers with brown anthers above glossy green leaves

Clusters of white Coffea arabica flowers and green buds along a branch

White Coffea arabica flowers and cream-colored buds beside glossy green leaves

White Coffea arabica flower with curved brown anthers beside green buds on a woody branch

White Coffea arabica flower with brown anthers beside cream-colored buds and green leaves

Hillside with dense trees, bamboo, and low vegetation in a coffee-growing landscape

Dense mixed vegetation with tall trees and bamboo across a coffee-growing hillside