One cherry, seven seeds
By Kelly Stein
Coffee varietals bear as many as seven seeds.
In Brazil Coffea Arabica var. Polysperma is known as seven bean arabica. The EPAMIG (Empresa de Pesquisa Agropecuaria de Minas Gerais) germplasm bank in Minas Gerais maintains a number of coffee varietals with unusual characteristics.
"We collect these cherries in a selective and careful way in to evaluate its sensorial profile," explains EPAMIG plant scientist Antônio Alves Pereira. This is a joint project with the Coffee Producers Federation of Cerrado Mineiro, he says.
One cherry, seven seeds
Coffee cherry with multiple seeds
The uncommon varietal contains an unusual pair of genes ("fasciata") that generate vertical branches with more than two leaves per node. The apex new leaves form a rosette, according to the Caferium website (www.caferium.com). Flowers have a large calyx with more than five lobes. The corolla is formed by two whorls with 6 to 10 petals each. Polysperma refers to “stamens equal in number to the petals, finishing in many stigmas. The ovary consists of two concentric circles of ovules, the inferior being infertile,” according to Caferium. The tree produces a large fruit with well-developed cherry that averages seven beans.
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João Paulo Felicori Carvalho, a researcher at the Coffee Producers Federation of Cerrado Mineiro, says tests so far have not demonstrated a pleasing sensorial quality. “The final beverage is not good, however, we will keep these plants for eventual research related to genetics improvement in the future,” he explains.
There are 40 similar polysperm mutants growing at EPAMIG, sent there by the Agronomic Institute of Paraná (IAPAR) and the Eloy Carlos Heringer Experimental Extension and Research Center (CEPEC) in 2005. The plants are now 11 years old.