In them of system classification the plant kingdom created by the swedish botanist Carlo Linneo, the coffee was classified in the Rubiaceae family, which includes 4500 varieties including 60 of the Coffea.
Amongst the 60 of coffee plants, only 25 are the most commercial for the fruits, but amongst these only the first four have an important role in the coffee beans market, the Arabica, the robusta, the Liberica and the Excelsa.
Arabica Coffea
Cultivated and selected by several centuries. Amongst this the most famous is the “Moka” variety, mostly cultivated in Arabia, whose little beans, have an intense aromatic scent. Their characteristic color is the copper green, while the shape is flattened and stretched out. Other varieties are the "Typical", the "Bourbon" very common in Brazil and the "Maragogype" appreciated for the bigger beans which it produces.
The Arabica plants grow in soils with minerals, especially those of volcanic origin, located over 600 meters high. The ideal climate should be around the average temperature of 20°C.
The cultivation of other varieties was introduced from the end of the 19th century, as a result of diseases which, in different regions, affected and decimated the Coffea Arabica. Since then, were chosen and selected other varieties able to give beans to be successfully introduced into the international market. Amongst the most interesting ones for the coffee production we remember the:
Robusta Coffea
Similar to the Arabica Coffea, its branches bend as an umbrella to the ground. During the year the blooming goes on. Its round beans are smaller, but richer in caffeine compared to the previous variety, once roasted, they are very fragrant.
This variety which vegetates also in the valley, was lucky on the market. Discovered in Congo is now cultivated a lot, because other then the production abundance and the lower installation costs, it shows high features of resistance to diseases, vegetating also in poor conditions.
Some varieties derived from crosses of "Canephora" to which Robusta belongs, are widespread in Indonesia, Uganda, India and West Africa. And also has been obtained the “Arabusta”, cross between the two Coffeas, Arabica and Robusta.
Liberica Coffea
Coming from the forests of Liberia and from Côte d'Ivoire, it's a beautiful long-lived plant, sturdy, luxuriant in vegetation with large fruits and seeds big nearly twice than the Arabicas, and also more resistant to parasites. It's a plant which requires high temperature and lots of water. Because of these properties Liberica Coffea is chosen as a graft-door and to obtain, by crossing, new varieties mainly present in Côte d'Ivoire and in Madagascar.
Its beans, although inferior, give a fragrant and pleasant coffee. With a taste which, until a few decades ago, was most appreciated in Scandinavian countries.
Excelsa Coffea
Discovered in 1904, this variety resists well to diseases attack and to drought. Gives a very high yield and beans, left to grow old, give to the coffee a fragrant and pleasant taste, similar to the Arabica Coffea.