Burka Coffee Estates has its own tree nursery, which is situated next to the Burka factory, near natural forests. The function of the nursery is to raise coffee seedlings for infilling in the plantations and for any new plantings as and when needed.The seeds are planted in seedbeds and allowed to germinate. When the first true leaves emerge they are then transplanted to polybags under shade cloth and nurtured until they are ready for planting out in the field. An ongoing project at Burka is the grafting of coffee varieties onto traditional seed varieties in order to produce new hybrids with, for example, stronger rooting systems or improved drought resistance.
Planting
Beans of superior cup quality
Shade-grown coffee is known to produce beans of superior cup quality, as the indigenous shade trees provide a micro-climate which creates an enhanced flavour profile in the liquor. The benefits include soil and water conservation, the production of mulch, less weed control, less inorganic fertilization, nitrogen fixation and a better habitat for natural pest predators. Accordingly, our planting practices are of the utmost importance and designed to maximize the benefit of the shade trees to the coffee fields. Coffee fields are planted into block areas of varying sizes, with 8 hectares being the usual size. In average 2,000 trees grow on each hectare. The alleys between the blocks are designed to accommodate farm traffic and provide natural barrier benefits between fields.
