Today’s the birthday of Johann Sebastian Bach and I almost let it get away without a mention of his Coffee Cantata. Good Music Guide has the story but I’m relating to the music not only because I’m a coffee drinker who happens to listen to Bach a lot, but because the some of the world’s finest (at least most expensive) coffee is grown here in Panama, the Esmeralda Geisha.
More importantly, though, the coffee family, Rubiaceae, is well represented here in the tropics. Two of my favorite plants in that family, Alibertia edulis and Palicourea trifolia, are growing in my yard, along with the exotic Ixora. However, for Bach’s memory today, here’s Coffea arabica.
An Accidental Botanist 
The cool thing about coffee is that, even though it is a commercial crop, the trees themselves are so attractive – glossy, dark green, ribbed foliage, red berries, compact form, it’s a real looker.
It certainly is, Ted. Not even this nice drawing can do it justice. Thanks for noting that.
Thanks for the colorful drawing and explanation. It is so nice to learn more about something that is such a big part of our everyday lives.