HEIGHT OF CANOPY – we required greater than or equal 12 meters for the canopy of the stratum made by the native “backbone” species such as Inga spp.  What is canopy? The canopy is the above ground portion of a plant community, in our case the coffee plantation. This canopy may have several layers. We look for the upper layer or habitat zone, formed by mature tree crowns reaching at least 12 meters. This canopy provides shade to the coffee bushes and shelter to mammals and birds. The Inga trees also provide nitrogen as plant food and delicious fruits for human consumption.