Colombian coffee growing is an agricultural institution if ever there was one. Coffee is native to Ethiopia, but Colombians have adopted and propagated the crop with as much dedication as though it were their own progeny. Coffee grows on trees, and if you leave it alone it will do just fine– fine meaning that it will produce a little and do its best to weather the weather, pests, and plagues. But fine is not good enough in Colombia. Coffee here is the subject of hundreds of thousands of hours of scientific study and hundreds of millions of dollars of investment by the government, the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation, and the growers themselves. Colombian coffee growing is an orchestrated symphony from the moment the seeds are sown to the moment the sacks are packed for port. Here’s what it looks like to make that happen.
Coffeescape in the Salgar municipality of Antioquia
Punta Brava, Antioquia
Castillo seeds (type of Catimor) developed by the FNC to be leaf rust resistant
making a seedbed
Germinated seeds in the background
seedlings translated to the “almacigo” nursery
Coffee in Hand
Growing Colombian Coffee
thriving nursery
seedlings transplanted to the “field”
coffee trees produce green cherries…
that turn red or yellow when ripe
weeds grow between the rows and can choke seedlings, making herbicides or regular machete clearings necessary
Isabel!
Looking from one Herrera family home to the other
in all kinds of weather
Municipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Municipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Serpentine switchbacks in Municipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Municipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Municipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Municipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Looking across to San Gregorio
Branches pruned off trees before pruning trees down to stumps to let them regrow
leaf rust (roya)
trees stripped of leaves by roya
Comunidad el Trebol outside of Chinchina in Caldas
Comunidad el Trebol outside of Chinchina in Caldas
Municipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Cherries with broca (coffee berry borer)
New less toxic treatments for broca that paralyze rather than poison
Finca La Meseta, Chinchina, Colombia
La Medida: weighing the day’s pickings at La Meseta
Hispania, Antioquia
Antioquia
Farallones, Antioquia
Farallones, Antioquia
Muicipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Muicipio Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Cherries ripening in San Isidro de Acevedo, outside of Pitalito in Huila
Cherries ripening in San Isidro de Acevedo, outside of Pitalito in Huila
Cherries ripening in San Isidro de Acevedo, outside of Pitalito in Huila
Cherries ripening in San Isidro de Acevedo, outside of Pitalito in Huila
Picking in San Isidro, Acevedo, outside of Pitalito in Huila
Coffee and bananas- breakfast is heavy!
“coco” full of coffee cherries
Cherries are very sticky and slimy
My 38 kilos!
cherries in the hopper waiting to be dupulped
Muicipio de Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Muicipio de Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Muicipio de Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Muicipio de Ciudad Bolivar, Antioquia
Finca La Pradera, Salgar, Antioquia
“With good agricultural practices we will have quality in our coffee and our family’s well-being”
“We organize the coffee growing economy with total quality and we enjoy a life filled with love and happiness”
“We love God, we respect human beings, and we take care of nature”
“Of all the paths that lead to good fortune, the surest are constancy and work.”
“Love and work and you will be happy.”
“A good coffee grower plans, organizes, directs and controls.”
Santa Barbara, Antioquia
Santa Barbara, Antioquia
Santa Barbara, Antioquia
Filming a farm promo video…direct trade farms still need solid marketing
Jair picking by hand in Santa Barbara, Antioquia
San Isidro de Acevedo, Pitalito, Huila
San Isidro de Acevedo, Pitalito, Huila
Coffee drying… stay tuned for a post about processing.
When Coffee Speaks 