The development of the mucilaginous fruit of the coffee tree, called cherry, is very slow : from six to eight months for the arabica coffee tree (Coffea arabica) which is usually sown under the shade of the acacias or mandarin trees of the Caledonian coffee plantations. The initially green color of the cherries varies according to the species and evolves as they mature until it turns yellow, then bright red, red-brown and black.