Coffee Plants of the World

Key Terminology

Typica versus Bourbon: The Story

Coffea arabica, which is indigenous to Ethiopia and some neighboring lands, first was transported out of its homeland into neighboring Yemen. From Yemen, coffee was transported around the world. The coffees that we call typicas today originated from plants that left Yemen and were taken to Java and outlying Islands, possibly by the Dutch, possibly with some transport by the mythical monk Baba Budan. The coffees we call Bourbon today stem from plants transported to Ile Bourbon with the French. Both of these epic journeys may have involved a very small number of coffee plants or seeds. 

Typica: This is a tall cultivar of Coffea arabica, originating from the coffee brought to Java from Yemen (possibly via India). The plants most similar to what we today call Java were spread from the island of Java in the early 1700s. It has bronze-tipped young leaves, and the fruit and seeds are large. Typica plants are known to have relatively low productivity and are susceptible to all main pests and diseases.

Bourbon: A common cultivar C. arabica that naturally developed naturally on Île Bourbon (an island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, now known as Réunion) from coffee brought to the island from Yemen by the French. Depending on the specific sub-group, this coffee can be red (Vermelho) or yellow (Amarelo). These plants generally have broader leaves and rounder fruit and seeds than Typica varieties. Stems are stronger and stand more upright than Typica. They are susceptible to all major diseases and pests.

Typica Cultivars

Java: A Typica selection suspected to be the progeny of coffee introduced from Yemen to the island of Java. From Java, this plant was first brought to neighboring islands (Timor) and later to East Africa (Cameroon), where it was released for cultivation in 1980. It has since been introduced in Central America by the Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD). It is known to be vigorous with moderate yield and shows good resistance to coffee berry disease in Cameroon. Java has elongated fruit and seeds and bronze-colored young leaves.

Maragogype: A mutant of Typica, first recognized in Brazil in 1870. It produces large cherries, long, slightly twisted seeds, long internodes, and large leaves, and a relatively lower yield.

Kent: A tall Typica selection that likely arose on or from coffee bred on the Kent Estate in India. It has been widely planted in India since the 1930s and a selection from this cultivar, known as K7, is more common in Kenya. It is known as the first coffee selected for rust resistance.

Coffees Related to Typica

Bourbon Cultivars

Coffees related to Bourbon

• French mission

• Yellow Bourbon

• Red Bourbon

• Orange bourbon

• Pink bourbon

• Mibirizi

• Mayaguez

• Bourbon Chocolá

• Semperflorens

• Arusha

• Ibairi

• Cera

• Jackson

• Jackson 2/1257

Crosses of Typica and Bourbon

Acaia: A selected cultivar of Mundo Novo mainly grown in Brazil. The plant exhibits large fruit and seeds. 

Mundo Novo: This tall cultivar was selected from a natural cross of Sumatra (Typica) and Red Bourbon in Brazil in the 1940s by the Instituto Agronômico de Campinas (IAC). It has a good productivity but some susceptibility to main pests and diseases. 

Catuai: A pure-line cultivar developed by the Instituto Agronômico de Campinas (IAC) in Brazil, Catuai originated from a hybrid between Mundo Novo and yellow Caturra. Released in 1968, it is characterized by a dwarf stature (from Caturra) and either yellow or red cherries (Catuai-amarelo and Catuai-vermelho, respectively). It has good productivity and susceptibility to all main pests and diseases.

Maracaturra
Rubi
Ouro Verde
Ouro Bronze

Hybrids

Hibrido de Timor (Timor Hybrid): A spontaneous cross of C. canephora (Robusta) and C. arabica var. Typica that occurred naturally on the island of Timor in Southeast Asia. These “Arabusta”-type hybrids likely originated from a single Robusta parent plant. It became popular in Timor in the 1950s due to its natural resistant to leaf rust. These hybrids were collected in Timor in 1978 and planted on the islands of Sumatra and Flores shortly thereafter, and since then some changes and mutations have occurred. Different versions of this hybrid have been utilized in breeding programs to introduce the rust resistance into new varieties, such as Catimor, Sarchimor, and Colombia.

Coffees with Timor Hybrid Lineage

Catimor: A group of pure-line cultivars originating from crosses between Hibrido de Timors and Caturra. It has been distributed since the 1980s. It is known to be highly productive and shows resistance to coffee leaf rust and to coffee berry disease (CBD). One of the first widely available Catimor varieties was CR (Costa Rica) 95, released around 1995. Others include Catimor 129 and Catimor F6.

Colombia: A cultivar bred by mixing various Catimors, released around 1985. It is known to have a resistance to leaf rust. Due to its breeding composition, it is known to be relatively unstable as a consistent cultivar. In Colombia, it has been popular to replace this coffee with Castillo.

Icatú: A tall cultivar developed in Brazil. A hybrid between an interspecific C. canephora hybrid and red Bourbon. It was released in the early 1990s by the Instituto Agronômico de Campinas (IAC). It is the result of a cross between a C. canephora with artificially double chromosome number with Bourbon Vermelho, then back-crossed to Mundo Novo. It is known to be highly productive and shows resistance to leaf rust.

IHCAFE 90: A Catimor cultivar developed at and named for the Instituto Hondureño del Café in Honduras, grown in Honduras beginning in the 1980s.

Ruiru 11: A dwarf hybrid cultivar produced by hand pollination that was the result of a breeding program in Kenya during the 1970s and 1980s, released in 1985. It was created based on need for pest and pathogen resistance. It is a cross between Catimor and multiple coffee berry disease resistant varieties, including K7, Rume Sudan, and SL28.

Anacafe 14: Maragogype or pacamara cross with timor hybrid by anacafe. Rust resistance. 

Sarchimor: A group of pure-line cultivars originating from a cross between Villa Sarchi and one Hibrido de Timor. Sarchimor lines such as IAPAR 59, Tupi or Obata show good resistance to coffee leaf rust; some are also resistant to coffee berry disease. 

Castillo: A selection of the Colombia cultivar that has become the most commonly grown coffee in Colombia. It is preferred to Colombia due to its reputation for resistance to leaf rust. 

Oro Azteca: A dwarf Catimor selected by the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agrícolas y Pecuarias (INIFAP) in Mexico. It was released in 1996-1997. It has similar rust resistance to most Catimors. Has UPOV variety designation.

Coffees with Other Hybrid Lineage

Jember/S795: This cultivar was developed by Indian breeders using Kent and Coffea Liberica hybrids in the 1940s. It is named for the Jember Indonesian Coffee and Cacao Research Institute (ICCRI), whose staff first introduced it to coffee famers in Indonesia. It is widely grown in India and Indonesia and originally exhibited some resistance to coffee leaf rust though that resistance is reported to have diminished over time. Some describe its taste as having maple syrup or brown sugar attributes. 

S288
S26
Kalimas
Menado
Kawisari

Ethiopian and Sudanese Coffees

Gesha: A wild Ethiopian coffee now cultivated widely in Central America. It is named for a town in Western Ethiopia where it is thought to originate. It was brought from Ethiopia to the Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza (CATIE) in Costa Rica. From there, it made its way to the Boquete region of Panama, where it was made famous by the Peterson family of Hacienda La Esmeralda. It is widely known for its outstanding cup profile. It is susceptible to leaf rust. Also a cultivar released by the JARC/EIAR in Ethiopia.

General References

• Wintgens JN. 2009. Coffee: Growing, Processing, Sustainable Production, 2nd ed. Weinheim: Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA.

• Ukers W. 1922. All about coffee. New York: The Tea and Coffee Trade Journal Company.

• Jobin P. 1982. The Coffees Produced throughout the World. Le Havre: P. Jobin and Co.

• Specialty Coffee Association of America. 2013. Coffee Biology Field Glossary. California: SCAA.

• Clifford MN, Willson KC. 1985. Westport, CT: AVI.

• Rothfos B. 1980. Coffee Production. Germany: GORDIAN-Max-Rieck GmbH.

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