TEA and COFFEE

(AGR662 : Industrial Crop Production)

 AGR 662 (Industrial Crop Production) - Syllabus
Topic 1: Classification of industrial crops based on their uses
Topic 2: Production of oil palm
Topic 3: Production of rubber
Topic 4 : Production of Rice

Mid term break

Topic 5 : Production of Pepper

Topic 6 : Production of Tea and Coffee
Topic 7 : Production of cocoa

Topic 8: Production of other industrial crops (Pineapple)

Topic 9: Production of other industrial crops (Coconut)
Topic 10: Production of other industrial crops (Tobacco & Kenaf)
Topic 11: Production of other industrial crops (Sugarcane)
 Syllabus Content

Topic 6 : Production of Tea

6.1) Economics importance of tea?

6.2) Morphology and characteristics ?
6.3) Cultivars, uses and constituents ?
6.4) Ecology and crop requirements ?
6.5) Agronomy and techniques of production of tea?
 Course Learning Outcomes

1) Verbally and visually (pictures and graphs) relate and

discuss the morphology and characteristics of selected
industrial crops under Malaysia soil and climate.

2) Communicate to peers verbally and to the facilitator in

writing a comprehensive understanding of biology,
ecology, agronomy, crop requirement and technique of
growing industrial crops.

3) Collaborate, motivate and truthful with team members

in both the fieldworks and in the classroom.
 AGR662 : “Entrance/Exit Survey”

No Question Strongly Disagree Agree Strongly

disagree agree
(1) (2) (3) (4)

1 I can describe the morphology and characteristics of selected

Malaysian industrial crops.

2 I understand comprehensively the biology, ecology, agronomy, and

crop requirement of selected industrial crops.

3 I can explain the growing technique of the selected industrial

crops.
4 I will be able to discuss with my classmate about all aspects of
selected industrial crops.
1) TEA
 Botany

• Order: Parietales
• Family: Theaceae
• Genus: Camellia
• Species: Camellia sinensis (mostly grown), Camellia assamica (India)
1) Tea background & industry
 Tea

• History: from China emperor

• Current: largest tea producer – India; Assam, Nilgiri, Darjeeling
• Then expand to other parts of the world; Japan, Europe, India
 Types of Tea products

• BlackTea – Fermentation/Oxidized (air exposure), change colour from green leaves

to copper leaves
• GreenTea – not oxidized, withered (reducing leave moisture content) and dried
• OolongTea – mix of black tea +green tea
• ChinaWhiteTea – Only in China, steamed and dried
 Composition of Tea leave

3 main chemical substances

• Essential oils - aroma

• Caffeine (3%) - stimulation
• Polyphenols (30-40%) – anti-oxidant, anti-disease
Morphology
Tree structures:
• Rounded evergreen shrubs
• Up to 4.5 m tall, 4.5 m spread

Life span:
• economic life cycle 50-70 years
• Yield reduction > 50 years – could be replanted
3) Soil and Climatic Requirement
 Soil and Climatic Requirement

• grows well on high land, well drained soils, a good depth (>2m)
• ambient temperature within 13°C and 28-32°C is conducive for growth
• acidic pH in the range 4.5 to 5.5
• more than 2% organic matter
• Cannot tolerate water-logged condition
4) Nursery & Planting materials
 Planting materials
• Seeds
• Traditional source
• 4-15 yrs. to produce seeds
• Cutting
• More preferred vegetative propagation technique (e.g Cutting)
• Inherit good characteristics of parent
• Nursed in special bed, then transferred into polybags
• Field transfer after 18 months
4) Field planting method & general
maintenance
Planting Method
• Planting distance: 1.5 m inter-rows, 60 cm apart
• Interplanting/intercropping – no longer recommended
 Pruning – Bringing into bearing

Pegging vs Formation

• Bushes let grow for 3 years, then pruned across (laterals about 45 cm)
• Top pruned – when reach 1-1.5 m tall (suitable harvesting height),
pruned back to 15 cm and allow to re-grow
 Pruning
• Objectives:
• Correct bush tea tree architecture (early pruning)
• Maintain ideal frame height for harvesting
• Renew/rejuvenate wood (after 50 years)
• Provide stimulus for vegetative growth
• To divert stored energy to produce new shoot
• Reduce pest and disease incidence
 Other Pruning methods
• Maintenance Pruning
• Bringing down plucking table/ maintain harvesting height
• Skiffing
• Removes congested upper layer
• Tipping/plucking
• Level the plucking surface
 Pests and Diseases

• Blister blight (Exobasidium texans)

• Most destructive
• Lesion on leaf surface
• Control: fungicide (metallic copper)
Grey Blight and Die back of shoots
• Pestalotia theae
• Control: Chemical such as carbendazim, mancozeb
 Other P&D
• Thorny stem blight
• Red spider mites
• Mites
• Tea mosquito bug
• Tea thrips
 Tea Harvesting & processing
• Which part?
• Fine Plucking - Bud, second and third leaves only
• Maintain excellent quality of tea
• Coarse plucking – more than 3rd leaves
• Reduce/lower quality

• 3 main chemical substances

• Essential oils - aroma
• Caffeine (3%) - stimulation
• Polyphenols (30-40%) – anti-oxidant, anti-disease
 Processing

1) Withering
• Reduce leaves moisture content to 70%
• Tea laid out on wire mesh, then air is passed
through to uniformly reduce moisture
• 12-17 hours
1) Rolling
 3) Oxidation (Fermentation)

• Laid out on trough or on the table (at 26°C)

• Expose to air and oxidation start
• This process creates the flavour, colour and Before oxidation (green leave)
strength of tea (aroma)
• Colour changes: green, light brown, deep
brown

After oxidation (light brown leave)

 4) Drying

• To stop fermentation/oxidation
process
• Pass through hot air dryer
• Reduces moisture content to 3%
• Ready for grading
 AGR662 : “Entrance/Exit Survey”

No Question Strongly Disagree Agree Strongly

disagree agree
(1) (2) (3) (4)

1 I can describe the morphology and characteristics of selected

Malaysian industrial crops.

2 I understand comprehensively the biology, ecology, agronomy, and

crop requirement of selected industrial crops.

3 I can explain the growing technique of the selected industrial

crops.
4 I will be able to discuss with my classmate about all aspects of
selected industrial crops.
TEA and COFFEE
(Next class)
2) COFFEE
 AGR662 : “Entrance Survey”

No Question Strongly Disagree Agree Strongly

disagree agree
(1) (2) (3) (4)

1 I can describe the morphology and characteristics of selected

Malaysian industrial crops.

2 I understand comprehensively the biology, ecology, agronomy, and

crop requirement of selected industrial crops.

3 I can explain the growing technique of the selected industrial

crops.
4 I will be able to discuss with my classmate about all aspects of
selected industrial crops.
 Taxonomy

Class : Dicotyledoneae
Subclass : Sympetalae or Metachlamydeae
Order : Rubiales
Family : Rubiaceae
Genus : Coffea
Species : Coffea arabica, C. robusta,C. liberica
 Syllabus Content

Topic 6 : Production of coffee

6.1) Economics importance of coffee ?

6.2) Morphology and characteristics ?
6.3) Cultivars, uses and constituents ?
6.4) Ecology and crop requirements ?
6.5) Agronomy and techniques of production of coffee ?
1) Coffee background & industry
 COFFEE
• Second most valuable legally traded commodity on Earth (after oil) with
global retail sales of coffee estimated to be $70 billion
• 9% to producing countries
• 91% to coffee drink maker (eg: StarBucks, other coffee bars)
• Its name is derived from the Arabic qahwa, which literally means "that
which prevents sleep"
 Coffee Composition

Major ingredient is caffeine

• % caffeine - 1-2% in roasted coffee;
• % caffeine - 4-5% in instant coffee (packet)
• Other ingredients includes sugars and fats
 Coffee Benefits

Benefits: central nervous system stimulator

• gives the adrenals a kick and causes production of the stress handling hormone adrenalin and the
production of more cortisol resulting in short term benefits of heightened awareness / alertness
and more energy
• Bad Effects:
• addictive and ultimately may result in adrenal exhaustion
• interferes with adenosine, a brain chemical that normally has a calming effect
• cortisol levels are raised which in turn results in constriction of the blood vessels, harder pumping
of the heart and higher blood pressure
 Malaysia Coffee – Further understanding
Agrotek RTM – Coffee - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyWLbx5Oh4A

Coffee (Malaysia) SABARICA (Sabah Highland Arabica Coffee Producer)

Coffee (Sabah) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHUtLRiBLL4

Coffee planting - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NOqe8AEvsc

Coffee morphology - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3p40zsT60BA

Coffee propagation – cutting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTZNTcUQ8Vw

2) Coffee species & Morphology
 Coffee species
• About 25 species
• Arabica – largest
• Other commercial species: Coffea liberica, Coffea
canephora (robusta) Coffea stenophylla and Coffea
excelsa

• Varieties (Malaysia) :
Liberica – e.g MKL 2, MKL 3 and MKL 4
Robusta – e.g MKR 2, MKR 3, MKR 4 and MKR 5
 Market/Economic Value

• Processed coffee
• Liberica: RM 7.00-23.00
• Robusta: RM15.00-25.00 (Premium variety)
Morphology
Arabica
Coffea Arabica is a tree type
plant.

The Arabica coffee plant drives

a straight up trunk with
branches paired off outward
and lower branches tend to
droop downward.

Arabica coffee is grown throughout Latin

America, in Central and EastAfrica, in India
and to some extent in Indonesia.
Variety (Malaysia) : Robusta coffee

Coffea Robusta is a shrub type plant.

The Robusta coffee plant grows similar to a
bush, in that it has several trunks.
Robusta coffee is grown in West and Central Africa,
throughout South-East Asia and to some extent in
Brazil, where it is known as Conillon.
 Variety (Malaysia) : Liberica coffee
• Liberica coffee grows as a large strong
tree, up to 18 metres in height, with large
leathery leaves.

• The fruits and seeds (beans) are also

large.

• Liberica coffee is grown in Malaysia and in

West Africa, but only very small quantities
are traded as demand for its flavour
characteristics is low.
2) Nursery & Planting materials
 Propagation - Seed Preparation

• Coffee is grown from seeds

• Gather seeds from disease and pest-free, high yielding
trees;
• Grow coffee plants in the nursery to produce better
seedlings.
• The nursery should be located in the plantation or nearby
and accessible to water supply
• 750 g of quality seeds is enough to plant a hectare;
• A 50% allowance of seeds must be considered for
ungerminated seeds, poor seedlings and for replanting;
 Seed preparation

• Select viable seeds; and

• Stir berries in a bucket of water and remove floaters.

Those that sink are the good ones;

• Remove pulp by hand or pulping machine, then soak

beans in water for 24 hours to hasten the removal of
mucilage;
 Germination
• Wash beans and discard floaters. Air dry in well-ventilated room for least 4
days;
• Keep dried seeds in cool dry place or mix with charcoal to preserve its
viability;
• Germination bed must be 1 meter wide and of convenient length.To avoid
flooding, raise bed 15 cm from ground level
3) Field planting method & general
maintenance
 Stages of coffee planting

Field planting
Nursery
 Field planting

• Distance in Meters
• Liberica & Excelsa : 4 x 5 to 5 x 5.5m

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NOqe8AEvsc
 Transplanting

• Coffee seedlings are ready for transplant when 6 pairs

of leaves have been fully developed and with no lateral
branches yet.

• Dig holes and transplant in the field at the start of the

rainy season.

• Dig hole wide and deep enough to accommodate ball

of earth with roots intact.

• Return topsoil in the hole, then add tablespoons

phosporous fertilizer, and mix thoroughly.
 Plant Maintenance - Pruning
Objectives/purposes;-
• reduce excessive branching – avoid nutrient
wastage
• maintain good shape – strong branches, stable
• maintain ideal height – easier maintenance and
harvest
• Replenish old trees – make them productive
again
 Manuring
• Liberica - NPK 16.4:1.6:21.9

• Robusta - NPK 20.5:1.7:18.5 respectively ;-

150 kg/ha ( 1 year old) ,
250 kg/ha ( 2 years old) ,
350 kg/ha ( 3 years old) and
500 kg/ha (after 4 th year old)
• Liming for 150 - 350 kg/ha applied annually to increase pH.
 Pest
Coffee stem borers

• The larvae of these insects bore holes

in the stems and so ruin the coffee
trees.
• Control:
• Pull up and burn affected trees.
• Use chemical: Dieldrin.
 Coffee berry borer
• These insects lay their eggs in the coffee beans.
• The berries turn black.
• Control:
• Remove the black berries and burn them.
• Chemical: endrin.

• Hypohermes hempei
 Other Pests and Diseases
Diseases
• Leaf Rust (Hamelia vastatrix) - cause the leaves turn purplish and grayish color at the bottom of the leaves.
• Spray with cuprum oxide
• Miscelium Disease (Mirassmellius scandens) that attack coffee stem and leaves. The infected leaves will turn
grey and than fall dawn.
• Control by pruning and removal of infected branch and spraying with copper base chemicals
• Cendawan Angin caused by Corticum salmonicolor attacked the stem and branching system with reddish fungi
attached.
• Control by removal of infested area and usage of paints or copper base chemicals.
• Antracnose Disease (Collectotricum spp) attack coffee fruit and beans with black color and reduce the quality.
• White Root Disease attack the coffee root system to rot.
• Control by removal of infested tree and the usage of chemical such as triadmefon at suitable rate.

Pests
• Leaf Eater (Cephynodes hyles) , Kumbang Koboi/Cockchafer (Apogonia spp.), Teritip (Lacanium spp.) ,
Nematod (Pratilenchus coffeee) , Musang and few others.
• Control: Chemical (most effective)
 Harvesting
• Harvested by hand (manual) – laborious
• Only ripe fruits (red) are plucked leaving
the green ones
• Several rounds of harvesting are done
during fruiting period
Processing coffee - Malaysia
Processing – cracking stage

• Harvested fruits (kopi jambu) should be

sent for processing preferably on the
same day of harvest.

• The berries pericarp are first cracked

using a machine
 Processing – Fermentation and Drying

Fermentation
• Objective : to make it easier to remove the
mucilage covering the coffee beans
• The berries are then covered in a heap with
plastic sheet
• Natural fermentation will occur for 3 days.
Drying
• After fermenting the beans are dried in the
open sun
• Usually it takes 5 days for drying
 AGR662 : “Exit Survey”

No Question Strongly Disagree Agree Strongly

disagree agree
(1) (2) (3) (4)

1 I can describe the morphology and characteristics of selected

Malaysian industrial crops.

2 I understand comprehensively the biology, ecology, agronomy, and

crop requirement of selected industrial crops.

3 I can explain the growing technique of the selected industrial

crops.
4 I will be able to discuss with my classmate about all aspects of
selected industrial crops.