Psychotria nervosa

wild coffee

Despite its common name, this plant is not used to make a nice hot caffeinated beverage. There is in fact no caffeine in the plant and reported effects of making a tea out of the seeds include bad taste and headache – excellent! The reason for referring to this plant as a type of “coffee” probably has to do with the fact that the deeply veined leaves bear a close resemblance to those of the domesticated true coffee plant (Coffea arabica) that we use to produce the popular morning brew.

Medicinally, the tannin-rich leaves have been used in a few remedies throughout the Caribbean, including stopping blood flow from wounds in Cuba and Puerto Rico. The Huastecs of Mexico have a number of names for this plant that correspond with different uses, including use as a love charm: the seeds are ground up and carried in one’s pocket. Before you go stuffing ground up seeds into your pockets, consider a couple major potential problems if “love charms” like this turn out to be effective, like charming unintended individuals on the way to your intended target and being unable to undo the charming once you discover you’re not that into the person you charmed. Can’t say I didn’t warn you...

Wild coffee grows best under tree canopies (partial sun) in Zones 10-11 and does well through the seasonal droughts we experience here in the Keys. The fruits, although not choice pickings for humans, are enjoyed by a number of different birds.