Planting Coffee - Aug 2025 - Finca Los Angeles - Tecapán, El Salvador

In 2014, we planted a “jardin” (garden) of 50 plants each of 18 different varieties of coffee and maintained them along with all our other coffee. After 4-5 years, we determined the best variety of coffee for our elevation, climate, soils, etc. (San Pacho). Now we have commenced planting again, this time with 5,000 San Pacho plants in about 3 acres. It took months to prepare the ground for planting, including heavy shade cutting, some tree removal, and a lot of weed and brush whacking. Then we “delineated” the lines where to plant — 170 cm between each row and each plant. Then we dug the holes with an auger. Then we sent an 8-ton truck about 45 mins away to pick up the plants we contracted for 6 months ago with a plant growing expert. We tried growing coffee plants from seed many times, but could never match the results we now get from the experts. (It’s all about the roots.) Then the plants are transferred to the field and workers carefully place each one in its hole, with bits of foul-smelling “salts” at the bottom to repel underground critters that LOVE the fresh tender roots. We add 1/2 oz of fertilizer at the bottom too to coax the tender roots along and another 1/2 oz. sprinkled in as the hole is filled and compacted. And we look skyward for the next rain, which, this time of year, will likely come within days. At the end of each month for the next 3 months we’ll add another ounce of fertilizer per plant before the coming dry season puts the first real stress on the baby plants. In two years we’ll see the first coffee grains; in the third year, full production!