Tag: India

Originally, citrus fruits came from Asia mainly Southeast Asia, India and China. They were already known for their medicinal value back then as well as their taste and smell. During that time, people squeezed the juice from these fruits with their bare hands. Eventually, citrus juicers made that easier.

Over the years, more and more citrus fruits exist. This happened mainly because it has been so easy to make hybrids. Raising hybrid citrus plants actually made them adapt to other climate. However, they do not grow in extremely cold temperatures.

At the moment, more than five times the number of original citrus species exists. The yellow lemon, as everyone knows it, is actually a hybrid.

Squeezers, pressers, reamers

Lemon squeezers were patented and used way back in the 1800s. Many people did take scurvy seriously after a study made in the 1700s. Many people, sailors in particular, died because of scurvy. Crusaders, as far back as the 1400s were also found to suffer from scurvy.

The 18th century showed the role vitamin C plays in this disease. That is why British sailors during this period had their ration of lime. Thus, the nickname Limey existed.

Close to a century after the first squeezers were made, pressers and reamers were invented early in the 20th century. In 1910, Leslie Hackney made a juicer with a corrugated center still found in many manual citrus juicers today.

Reamers today can be manual or electric. Much like the original invention, however, half of the citrus fruit is still pressed on the ream and twisted. Electric reamers make it a bit easier. There is no need to twist because the ream spins.

These are citrus juicers designed to extract juice from citrus fruits alone. The ream is still used up to now because it is really designed taking the shape of the citrus fruit in consideration.

Multi-purpose juicers

All the other fruits and vegetables juicers can also be used to extract citrus juice. With that said, using these juicers will need the fruit peeled. Many claim that peeling and including the pith in juicing makes the juice richer in nutritional contents.

The pith contains bio flavonoids and these do contain more anti-oxidants. Anti-oxidants are elements that can prevent and control some diseases.
A good juicer would be one that fits ones juicing needs. If one also drinks other fruit and vegetable juices, the multi-purpose juicers would be the best choice. For people who do not juice so often and are not bothered with a bit more work, manual citrus juicers will suffice.

Your cup of steaming hot coffee every morning isn’t something as easily prepared as you might think. Creating coffee needs more than just putting hot water and stirring sugar into it. It doesn’t even come in instant granules that we are so used to.

The coffee that we drink actually comes from the coffee plants that are cultivated in various parts of the globe. Brazil is the number one coffee producer in the world with a market share of about 30-35 percent. Most countries that produce coffee are from South and Central America and the Middle East. Some Asian countries like Indonesia and India also have coffee plantations.

Coffee plants are evergreen plants that are grown in specific situations. They need specific amounts of water, air and land in order for the flavor to be achieved. It involves a lot of back-breaking work and is pretty labor-intensive. This is perhaps why it is so hard to grow them.

Plants are sown as seedlings in what coffee-growers call nursery beds. The land needs to be well aerated since it should have a healthy amount of oxygen in the roots in order to grow well. After about 8-12 months, the seedlings are then replanted to the coffee fields where there are wet and fertilized holes.

As mentioned before, specific conditions must be kept true in order to cultivate a good coffee bean. Sunlight shouldn’t shine directly. In fact, diffused light is best. Moisture should also be kept constant with frequent and regular watering. The soil should also be fertilized and kept healthy by removing weeds and protecting them from pests.

When planted, it takes a long time before it can mature. The coffee grower needs to wait for about 5 years before his first crop.

What the trees look like Coffee trees are big and broad with dark green leaves. The flower, which resembles jasmine, is where the coffee granules are gotten. That is why harvest time are timed at the period when these flowers blossom. The fruits are also great sources of the coffee beans. The cherries or the berries will begin to come out about 6-8 months after.

It is a must that these fruits are harvested immediately as they can ripen easily- within 10 – 14 days. Manual harvesting is still preferred even if it takes a longer time. This is because the picker needs to keep the good beans apart from the bad ones.

The long wait is however very profitable for the coffee grower. One tree can produce about two pounds of beans, which is around 2000 coffee beans. After the harvest, the coffee beans are then processed. They are dried and then roasted. These coffee beans are then ready to be sold on the market where they will be grounded before being served.