HARVESTS AND SEASONS OF COFFEE IN EAST AFRICA.
The coffee tree is a tropical evergreen shrub and grows between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The two most commercially important species grown in East Africa are varieties of Coffee Arabica (Arabicas) and Coffee Canephora (Robusta).
Coffee production seasons in East Africa vary from country to country but the tropical climate is more than ideal for the coffee production.
For growing Arabica coffee beans, there are two optimal growing climates; the sub-tropical regions, at high altitudes of 16-24° (Illy, 21) as well as rainy and dry seasons that must be well defined, and altitude must be between 1800-3600 feet.
Arabica coffee is grown in relatively cool climates in the region between the Tropic of Cancer and Capricorn. The optimum temperature is between 15-24ºC (59-75ºF) year-round. Photosynthesis is slowed above these temperatures and frost damage can occur when temperatures hover around 0ºC.
Coffee can be grown on lots of soils but the ideal types are fertile volcanic red earth or deep sandy loam. For coffee trees to grow it is important that the soil is well draining which makes heavy clay or heavy sandy soils inadequate.
To start with, the growing of Arabica coffee in Uganda is mainly done in two seasons; April-June for Western Region and October-February for Eastern and West Nile Regions.
In Mbale for example; the planting season for Arabica coffee is between March and April and harvesting is between August and November. The coffee trees are pruned from December to February before the planting season; and the trees flower during the dry season.
And in Rwanda and Burundi, harvesting coffee cherries from April to September. While in Tanzania, harvesting coffee cherries runs from September to January.
In Tanzania; approximately seventy percent of coffee produced in Tanzania is Arabica, with most of this grown in high altitude regions such as Mount Kilimanjaro. Robusta trees are most commonly grown near Lake Victoria at a lower altitude.
Most Tanzanian coffee is grown by small farmers, with 95 percent of the country's coffee farmers cultivating smaller than five acres; and harvest time is traditionally October to February.
In addition, the growing seasons in Rwanda are in September and October and harvesting is in March and July. Within those months, the harvesting tends to peak from May on.
The plantations in the country are fairly high, and are usually situated somewhere between 4,000 and 6,500 feet above sea level which gives the coffee plants a nice, high altitude to grow in that is perfect for producing excellent beans
Rwanda has good climate conditions, high altitude, and volcanic soil, plenty of sun and equatorial mist that favors the growing of Arabica coffee. Of all these farms, 95% have coffee plants that are not just Arabica – they are of the highest quality Rwanda bourbon coffee variety.
