The Coconut Palm (Cocos nucifera), is a member of the Family Arecaceae (palm family). It is the only species in the genus Cocos, and is a large palm, growing to 30 m tall, with pinnate leaves 4-6 m long, pinnae 60-90 cm long; old leaves break away cleanly leaving the trunk smooth. The term coconut refers to the fruit of the coconut palm.

Origins and cultivation
The origins of this plant are the subject of controversy with some authorities claiming it

is native to southeast Asia, while others claim its origin is in northwestern South America. Fossil records from New Zealand indicate that small, coconut-like plants grew there as far back 15 million years ago. Even older fossils have been uncovered in Rajasthan & Maharashtra, India. Regardless of its origin, the coconut has spread across much of the tropics, probably aided in many cases by sea-faring peoples. The fruit is light and buoyant and presumably spread significant distances by marine currents: fruits collected from the sea as far north as Norway have been found to be viable (subsequently germinated under the right conditions). In the Hawaiian Islands, the coconut is regarded as a Polynesian introduction, first brought to the Islands by early Polynesian voyagers from their homelands in the South Pacific.

The coconut palm thrives on sandy soils and is highly tolerant of salinity. It prefers areas with abundant sunlight and regular rainfall (750 to 2,000 mm annually), which makes colonising shorelines of the tropics relatively straightforward. Coconuts also need high humidity (70–80%+) for optimum growth, which is why they are rarely seen in areas with low humidity (e.g. the Mediterranean), even where temperatures are high enough (regularly above 24°C). They are very hard to establish and grow in dry climates without frequent irrigation. The only two states in the U.S. where coconut palms can be grown and reproduce outdoors without irrigation are Hawaii and Florida. The farthest north a coconut palm has been known to grow outdoors is in Newport Beach, California along the Pacific Coast Highway. In order for coconut palm to survive in Southern California they need sandy soil, minimal water in the winter to prevent root rot and would benefit from root heating coils.

The flowers of the coconut palm are polygamomonoecious, with both male and female flowers in the same inflorescence. Flowering occurs continuously, with female flowers producing seeds. Coconut palms are believed to be largely cross-pollinated, although some dwarf varieties are self-pollinating.

The fruit
Botanically, a coconut is a simple dry fruit known as a fibrous drupe (not a true nut).

The husk (mesocarp) is composed of fibres called coir and there is an inner "stone" (the endocarp). This hard endocarp (the outside of the coconut as sold in the shops of non-tropical countries) has three germination pores that are clearly visible on the outside surface once the husk is removed. It is through one of these that the radicle emerges when the embryo germinates. Adhering to the inside wall of the endocarp is the testa, with a thick albuminous endosperm (the coconut "meat"), the white and fleshy edible part of the seed.

When viewed on end, the endocarp and germination pores resemble the face of a monkey, the Portuguese word for which is macaco, sometimes abbreviated to coco, hence the name of the fruit. The specific name nucifera is Latin for nut bearing.

When the coconut is still green, the endosperm inside is thin and tender, a favourite snack. But the main reason to pick the nut at that stage is to drink its juice; a big nut contains up to one litre of refreshing drink. When the nut has ripened and the outer husk has turned brown, a couple of months later, it will fall from the tree of its own accord. At that time the endosperm has thickened and hardened, while the juice has become somewhat bitter.

screwdriver slightly, twist it to crack the shell. The coconut should then be turned, and this process repeated until there is a contiguous crack in the shell around the entire fruit. Afterwards, the fruit can be separated at this fracture point. An alternative method is to first drain the juice from the coconut and then place it in an oven at 180 °C for 20 minutes. The heat will crack the shell as well as loosen the flesh, enough so that it will almost fall off.

When the nut is still green the husk is very hard, but green nuts rarely fall, only when they have been attacked by moulds, etc. By the time the nut naturally falls, the husk has become brown, the coir has become dryer and softer, and the nut is less likely to cause damage when it drops. Still, there have been instances of coconuts falling from trees and injuring people, and claims of some fatalities. This was the subject of a paper published in 1984 that won the Ig Nobel Prize in 2001. Falling coconut deaths are often used as a comparison to shark attacks, making the claim that it is more likely to be killed by a falling coconut than by a shark. There is no evidence of people being killed in this manner (column from The Straight Dope). However William Wyatt Gill, an early LMS missionary on Mangaia recorded a story in which Kaiara, the concubine of King Tetui, was killed by a falling, green nut. The offending tree was immediately cut down. This was around 1777, the time of Captain Cook's visit.

In some parts of the world, trained monkeys are used to harvest coconuts. Training schools for monkeys still exist in southern Thailand. Competitions are held each year to discover the fastest harvester.

Uses  

Uses of the various parts of the palm include:

Culinary uses

• The white, fleshy part of the seed is edible and used fresh or dried in cooking.
• The cavity is filled with "coconut water" containing sugars, fibre, proteins, anti-oxidants, vitamins and minerals, which provide excellent isotonic electrolyte balance, and an exceptional nutritional food source, which is why it is used as a refreshing drink throughout the humid tropics. It is also used in the making of the gelatinous dessert nata de coco. Mature fruits have significantly less liquid than young immature coconuts. Coconut water is sterile until the coconut is opened (unless the coconut is spoiled).
• Sport fruits are also harvested, primarily in the Philippines, where they are known as macapuno.
• Coconut milk (which is approximately 17% fat) is made by processing grated coconut with hot water or hot milk which extracts the oil and aromatic compounds from the fibre, and should not be confused with the juice found naturally in young coconuts, called coconut water or coconut juice.
• Coconut cream is what rises to the top when coconut milk is refrigerated and left to set.
• The leftover fibre from coconut milk production is used as livestock feed.
• The sap derived from incising the flower clusters of the coconut is fermented to produce palm wine, also known as "toddy" or, in the Philippines, tuba. The sap can also be reduced by boiling to create a sweet syrup or candy.
• Apical buds of adult plants are edible and are known as "palm-cabbage" (though harvest of this kills the tree).
• The interior of the growing tip may be harvested as heart-of-palm and is considered a rare delicacy. Harvesting this also kills the tree. Hearts of palm are often eaten in salads; such a salad is sometimes called "millionaire's salad".

Non-culinary uses

• Coconut water can be used as an intravenous fluid (see PMID 10674546).
• The coir (the fibre from the husk of the coconut) is used in ropes, mats, brushes, caulking boats and as stuffing fibre; it is also used extensively in horticulture for making potting compost.
• Copra is the dried meat of the seed which is the source of coconut oil.
• The leaves provide materials for baskets and roofing thatch.
• Palmwood comes from the trunk and is increasingly being used as an ecologically-sound substitute for endangered hardwoods. It has several applications, particularly in furniture and specialized construction (notably in Manila's Coconut Palace).
• Hawaiians hollowed the trunk to form a drum, a container, or even small canoes.
• The husk and shells can be used for fuel and are a good source of charcoal.
• Shells with husks are also used in the Philippines as floor shiners, known as bunot.
• Dried half coconut shells are used to buff floors.
• The stiff leaflet midribs make cooking skewers, kindling arrows, or bound into bundles, brooms and brushes.
• The roots are used as a dye, a mouthwash, or a medicine for dysentery. A frayed-out piece of root makes a poor man's toothbrush.
• Half coconut shells are used in theatre, banged together to create the sound effect of a horse's hoofbeats. They were also used in this way in the Monty Python film Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
• In fairgrounds, a "coconut shy" is a popular target practice game, and coconuts are commonly given as prizes.
• A coconut can be hollowed out and used as a home for a rodent or small bird.
• Fresh inner coconut husk can also be rubbed on the lens of snorkling goggles to prevent fogging during use
• Dried half coconut shells are used as the bodies of musical instruments, including the Chinese yehu and banhu, and the Vietnamese đàn gáo.
• Coconut is also commonly used as a herbal remedy in Pakistan to treat bites from rats.
• Coconuts can be used as weapons, either by holding them and then hitting the target with them or by throwing them either by hand or with catapulting devices. A simple fragmentary improvised explosive device can be made by drilling a small hole in a coconut, extracting the water and then filling the coconut with gunpowder. A primer is then added, the hole filled and when the coconut bomb explodes it will send scraps of coconut flying everywhere, injuring and possibly killing whatever is nearby the explosion epicenter.[citation needed]
• The "branches" (leaf petioles) are whippy (strong and flexible) enough to make a redouted switch, the traditional use of which in tribal justice was for instance revived by referendum among the Gilbertese community on Choiseul (Solomon islands) in 2005 CorPun.
• In World War II, Biuki Gasa was the first of two Solomon Islanders to reach the shipwrecked John F. Kennedy and the crew of his PT-109. He would suggest for lack of paper, delivering a message inscribed on a coconut by dugout canoe. This coconut was later kept on president's desk. It is now in the John. F. Kennedy presidential library, and is perhaps one of, if not the most notable coconut in the world today.
• Coconut seedlings are popular novelty houseplants.

Cultural aspects

A young coconut palmCoconuts are extensively used in Hindu religious rites. Coconuts are usually offered to the gods, and a coconut is smashed on the ground or on some object as part of an initiation or inauguration of building projects, facility, ship, etc.; this act signifies sacrificing ego, that wealth stems from divinity, and if due credit is not given, bad karma is taken on. In Hindu mythology it is referred as Kalpavruksha. In Hindu mythologies it is said that Kalapavruksha gives what is asked for.

• The Indonesian tale of Hainuwele tells a story of the introduction of coconuts to Seram.
• The people of the state of Kerala in southern India consider Kerala to be the " Land of Coconuts", in the native language the phrase is nalikerathinte nattil.
• The word "coconut" is also used as a mild derogatory slang word referring to a person of Latino or Indian subcontinent descent who emulates a white person (brown on the outside, white on the inside).
• "Coconut" is Australian slang for a Tongan, or other person of "Polynesian" descent, although usually not Maori.
• "Coconut" is also the title of a song by Harry Nilsson.
• "Coconut" is also the title of an In Reverie b-side track by Saves the Day.
• "Coconut" is also used as a slang term for breasts.

External Link:

Coconut Development Board of Indian Government

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