The fruit of a tropical palm tree (Cocos nucifera) has a hard, woody shell enclosed in a thick fibrous husk, the shell is lined with a hard white flesh and the hollow center is filled with a sweet milky-white liquid.
History of Coconut
The origin of the plant is, after many decades, still the subject of debate. It has generally been accepted that the coconut originated in the Indian-Indonesia region and float-distributed itself around the world by riding ocean currents. The similarities of the local names in the Malay-Indonesian region is also cited as evidence that the plant originated in the region. For example, the Polynesian and Melanesian term niu and the Philippine and Guamanian term niyog is said to be based on the Malay word nyiur or nyior.
O.F. Cook was one of the earliest modern researchers to draw conclusions about the location of origin of Cocos nucifera based on its current-day worldwide distribution. He hypothesized that the coconut originated in the Americas, based on his belief that American coconut populations predated European contact and because he considered pan-tropical distribution by ocean currents improbable. Thor Heyerdahl later used this as one part of his hypothesis to support his theory that the Pacific Islanders originated as two migration streams from the Canadian Pacific coast (themselves recent migrants from Asia) to Hawaii, and on to Tahiti and New Zealand in a series of hops, and another migration from South America via sailing balsa-wood rafts.
However, the conventional scientific opinion supports an Indo-Pacific origin either around Melanesia and Malaysia or the Indian Ocean. The modern coconut has two different species, essentially a Pacific version and an Atlantic one; however, all modern coconuts appear to be domesticated plants, rather than the more primitive forms found in fossils in North Australia and Indonesia.
The oldest fossils known of the modern coconut dating from the Eocene period from around 37 to 55 million years ago were found in Australia and India, but older palm fossils such as some of nipa fruit have been found in the Americas. A species with strawberry-sized nuts ('Cocos zeylanica') lived in New Zealand in the Miocene. Since 1978, the work on tracing the probable origin and dispersal of Cocos nucifera has only recently been augmented by a publication on the germination rate of the coconut seednut and another on the importance of the coral atoll ecosystem. Briefly, the coconut originated in the coral atoll ecosystem — without human intervention — and required a thick husk and slow germination to survive and disperse.
Types of Coconut
"Coconut from the Indies" (Cocos nucifera): It is the most well-known coco palm fruit (the so-called coconut palm). It comes from the tropical Melanesia, an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean. At present, the coconut palm has become one of the main crops in the tropical countries. The coconut weighs around 2.5 kg and in fact it is a fruit clustered in drupes.
"King coconut" (Cocos nucifera var. aurantiaca): This golden or orange variety is sometimes called "coconut for drinking" because it contains a much more aromatic and refreshing milk than normal coconuts. However, the pulp is scarce. The rind is not so hard and it is easily opened. The palm reaches 30 m high and has long branches. The trunk is very elastic and the golden fruit hangs in great clusters of approximately 20 nuts or coconuts. A tree bears around 60 coconuts a year. It is highly appreciated for its "milk’, the name given to the water found inside coconuts.
The fruit of other palm trees not belonging to the species Cocos nucifera are also consumed, among which stand out:
- "Coco de mer" (Lodoicea maldivica): It is an enormous coconut of almost 25 kg of weight. Native to the archipelago of the Seychelles and other islands on the Madagascar coast. Its size triples that of an average coconut.
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- "Pijiguao’ (Bactris gasipaes): It has a radius of 6 cm approximately and it gathers in clusters of 100 fruits and 10 kg of weight. Its importance lies in its starch content.
- "Corozo corojó (Bactris minor): The palm of this variety reaches 30 m high. The leaves draw an elegant arc. It spreads all along the tropical strip of Panama to the western Indian coast, up to Colombia and Venezuela. This fruit does not exceed 4 cm long and is covered by a white skin. The juice is the best part of it.
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- "Palmira’ (Borassus flabellifer): Native to Asia and at present it is mainly cultivated in the north of Malaysia and India. It is a round, slightly flat-topped fruit, and it is quite easy to remove the skin that covers it. Inside the fruit there is a white pulp with three seeds and a little of water, depending on the maturation degree. From the crushed pulp, strained off through a linen cloth, we obtain a delicious drink.
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- "Salaca’ (Salacca edulis): Original from the south-east of Asia and cultivated in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. The palm rises up to 5 m from the ground and has a large crown formed by branches that reach up to 7 m long. The fruit is rounded or oval and the size of a large fig. The scale-like skin resembles a tile roof, it is hard and thin at the same time and of a white or dark reddish tone, according to the variety. The pulp has a bittersweet taste and is slightly astringent, specially if it is slightly unripe. It is divided in three "segments’ covered by a membrane of waxy texture, inside which is a brown and oval bone or seed which is not edible. The ripe fruit is kept for few days in a fresh place, although if they are left soaking with the rind in water with salt and sugar, they will last for weeks.
How to Grow A Coconut Palm
If you have access to a fresh coconut, you might think that it would be fun to grow a coconut plant, and you would be right. Growing a coconut palm tree is easy and fun. Below you will find the steps for planting coconuts and growing coconut palms from them.
Planting Coconut Trees
To start to grow a coconut plant, begin with a fresh coconut that still has the husk on it. When you shake it, it still should sound like it has water in it. Soak it in water for two to three days.
After the coconut has soaked, place it in a container filled with well-draining potting soil. It is best to mix in a little sand or vermiculite to make sure the soil you will be growing coconut trees in drains well. The container needs to be around 12 inches deep to allow for the roots to grow properly. Plant the coconut point side down and leave one-third of the coconut above the soil.
After planting the coconut, move the container to a well lit, warm spot, the warmer the better. Coconuts do best in spots that are 70 degrees F. (21 C.) or warmer. The trick to growing a coconut palm tree is to keep the coconut well watered during germination without letting it sit in overly wet soil. Water the coconut frequently but make sure the container drains very well. You should see the seedling appear in three to six months.
If you want to plant a coconut that has already sprouted, go ahead and plant it in well-draining soil so that the bottom two-thirds of the coconut is in the soil. Place in a warm area and water frequently.
Care of a Coconut Palm Tree
Once your coconut tree has started growing, you need to do a few things to help keep it healthy.
- First, water the coconut tree frequently. As long as the soil drains well, you really can’t water it too often. If you decide to repot your coconut tree, remember to add sand or vermiculite to the new soil to keep the water draining well.
- Second, growing coconut palms are heavy feeders that require regular, complete fertilizer. Look for a fertilizer that provides both the basic nutrients plus trace nutrients like boron, manganese and magnesium.
- Third, coconut palms are very cold sensitive. If you live in an area that gets cold, your coconut plant will need to come inside for the winter. Provide supplemental light and keep it away from drafts. In the summer, grow it outdoors and make sure you place it in a very sunny and warm spot.
Caring for Sick Coconut Trees
There are a number of diseases which may afflict a coconut palm that may cause wilting, but caring for sick coconut trees is not always an option. Sometimes treating a wilting coconut tree means it is best to remove the tree and destroy it. Many fungi and diseases can infect the surrounding area for long periods of time, so it is often better to leave the area to fallow, or remain unplanted, for at least a year.
- Ganoderma butt rot causes older fronds to turn yellow, gradually wilting and eventually dying off. This fungus enters the tree through wounds on the trunk often caused by over enthusiastic pruning or damage from machinery; space trees widely to avoid damaging them with machinery. If the tree is infected with the disease, it is best to fallow the area for at least a year.
- Lethal bole rot is another fungus that also causes yellowing and wilting in the oldest fronds combined with a reddish-brown rot in the bole tissue and eventual destruction of the entire root system. A possible host for this fungus may be some types of grasses, specifically Bermuda grass. Be sure to maintain a clear area surrounding the palm to avoid infection. If the tree is infected, remove it and destroy it, then treat the area.
- Fusarium wilt – Fusarium wilt causes progressive wilt and eventual death of the fronds. Often one side of the tree wilts. Brown streaks can be seen at the base of the petiole with brown vascular tissue. There is much conjecture about how this disease is spread. It is possible that it is through the use of infected pruning tools. Prevention includes proper sanitation and conservative leaf pruning with sanitized tools. Fusarium wilt is a soil-borne pathogen; therefore, there may be spores in the soil. If you have a tree you suspect has succumbed to Fusarium wilt, do not replant a new palm in the infected area.
The Harvesting of Coconut Trees
Coconut is the most economically important of the palm family and is grown as both a food crop as well as an ornamental.
- Coconuts are cultivated for their meat, or copra, which is pressed to release oil. The residual cake is then used to feed livestock.
- Coconut oil was the leading vegetable oil in use until 1962 when it was bypassed in popularity by soybean oil.
- Coir, the fiber from the husk, will be familiar to gardeners and is used in potting mix, for plant liners and as packing material, mulch, rope, fuel and matting.
- The nut also provides coconut water, of which much has been made of late.
So how about the harvesting of coconut trees for the home grower? It would be impractical to bring in a cherry picker and many of us lack the fortitude to shimmy up a tree with only a rope. Luckily, there are dwarf varieties of coconuts that grow to less dizzying heights. So how do you know when the coconuts are ripe? And do coconuts ripen after they are picked?
How to Pick Coconuts from Trees
A little about the maturation of the fruit is in order before even discussing harvesting your coconuts. Coconuts take around one year to ripen fully. Several coconuts grow together in a bunch and they ripen about the same time. If you want to harvest the fruit for the coconut water, the fruit is ready 6-7 months after emergence. If you want to wait for the delicious meat, you need to wait for another 5-6 months.
Along with the timing, color is also an indicator of ripeness. Mature coconuts are brown, while immature fruit is bright green. As the coconut matures, the amount of coconut water is replaced as the meat hardens. Of course, this brings us to the question of whether coconuts ripen after they are picked. No, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are unusable. If the fruit is green and has been maturing for six or seven months, you can always crack it open and drink the delicious coconut “milk.”
You can also access fruit that has dropped to the ground for ripeness by shaking it. Not every fruit that drops to the ground is completely ripe. Again, fully ripened fruit is filled with meat, so you should hear no sloshing of the coconut water if it is completely ripe.
If you want to eat the coconut meat when it soft and can be eaten with a spoon, you will hear some sounds of liquid when you shake the nut, but the sound will be muted since a layer of meat has developed. Also, tap on the exterior of the shell. If the nut sounds hollow, you have a mature fruit.
So, back to harvesting your coconut. If the tree is tall, a pole pruner may be of assistance. If you aren’t scared of heights, a ladder is certainly a way to get to the coconuts. If the tree is small or has bent from the weight of the nuts, you may be able to reach them easily and clip them from the palm using sharp pruning shears.
Lastly, although previously mentioned that all fallen coconuts are not ripe, they usually are. This is how the palm reproduces, by dropping nuts that will eventually become new trees. Dropped nuts are certainly the easiest way to get a coconut but can also be hazardous; a tree that is dropping nuts could also drop one on you.
How to Cook
Sources @ Webster's New World Dictionary of Culinary Arts by Steven Labensky, Gaye G. Ingram, Sarah R. Labensky
@ http://www.frutas-hortalizas.com/Fruits/Types-varieties-Coconut.html
@ https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/coconut/growing-coconut-palm-trees.htm
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