Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Congratulations on your new birds Charlie. I am a big australorp fan. They are big placid friendly birds, lay plenty of eggs and dress well for the table.


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Nothing like a well dressed bird on the table!

We have 3 or 4 coffee trees on our block and today I noticed they are in full productivity. Ive read that you can remove the bean from the husk and then I believe then you can roast them. Anyone got experience with these plants? I removed one out of interest and its a white bean with a slimy coating.

I want one!!!! Any idea how old those trees are?
Sorry I am absolutely no help to you on how to harvest and process them though. But I would love to know how it goes :-)


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You need a Civet Charlie, thats the best chit right there




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I was once young and stupid, i'm not so young now

Excellent idea, Juli_bites - DIY kopi luwak!

I believe you need to let the berries dry in the sun, then the fruit falls off leaving the bean. The green beans can then store for a while without going rancid. Once you roast them, the shelf life becomes considerably more limited.

Looking at images on the net in comparison I think this one might be approximately 10 - 15 years old, under this one alone we have transplanted 10 seedlings that were growing under it.

I had to google Civet. I do have a domestic cat, will that be the same?

:vomit:
No.... I don't think so haha.


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I used to work with a woman that grew up on her grandparents coffee plantation in Colombia. She used to bring me back coffee when she visited her family. Unfortunately, it was already roasted and ground. I always thought it would b fun to roast coffee. You can use a popcorn air popper to do it. The important. Thing is to use the better air poppers with the slits on the side, as opposed to a screened hole on the bottom, and to cool the beans rapidly once they get to the level of roast you are seeking.

Tempted to roast a few in the popper just for the aroma now Ron.

Hi Charlie, hi all , (admin please delete if the following is a conflict). I stumbled upon an article in Warm Earth (spring 2014) entitled "Coffee - grow, process and roast your own".
This suggests for arabica you can "Pick the cherries" , soaking them to remove any berries that float and the skins, "Ferment" in a covered container of fresh water for 1 - 4 days (or until they "feel clean"), and "Dry the beans" thoroughly over 5 - 30 days (<40 degrees C, turning regularly to prevent mold). "They are ready when the layers on the outside are hard and brittle" and can be further processed with "a food processor fitted with a plastic blade", and "blow dry them or put them into sacks and massage them to get what is left off", separating the grey bean halves from the hard layers (the parchment ?). Then comes "Roasting " of the separated beans, on "about 230 - 250 degrees C for about 12 minutes"(oven), but the popcorn machine idea sounds like more fun, as the beans should shrink, then swell and turn brown.
Hopefully you can find a copy or if you would like a photocopy posted just PM. Hope this helps

Hi Charlie. There is an article in the latest edition of Warm Earth magazine on processing coffee. If your interested but can't find a copy locally PM me.

Nice going Charlie. I like the chickens. Have no experience on keeping guinea fowl but have read many places that they are great at keeping the insects away from your veggies as they don't do as much damage to the plants as chickens. In terms of their noise levels we had wild flocks on the farm when I was a kid and yes they have some serious volume. Can be very loud but can also act as guard.. ahem... fowl(?).

Regards, Auckland Martin.

If you're interested in eggs apparently Khaki Campbell ducks lay like there is no tomorrow. Richer eggs, very good for baking apparently. They also don't have the same heavy water requirements as other ducks so they are easier to keep.

Regards, Martin.