The Coconut

The coconut is one of the most valuable plants to man since it can be used in many ways, as a source of food, drink and shelter, among other uses. The coconut is no doubt the most famous representative of the palm family. Its image brings to mind the beach and the sea and frequently it is associated with everything related to the tropics.

Its name in Sanskrit "kalpa vriksha" means "the tree which provides all the necessities of life." We can use all parts of the coconut palm, from the meat inside its nuts that can be eaten raw or shredded and desiccated and which, is a valuable source of protein, all the way to the plant's trunk that is used as building material, while the leaves and the nuts' shell also have other uses.

Cocos nucifera is the scientific name of the coconut. The Cocos genus only has the nucifera species, and the coconut is probably the most abundant fruit tree on earth. Based on their growth habit two main types of coconuts can be found: the tall and the dwarf. The tall varieties mature slowly and give their first flowers between six and ten years after planting. They produce medium to large size nuts and live to be sixty or seventy years old or more, depending on growing conditions. The dwarf varieties start to flower when they are three years old and their average life is more than thirty years while even 60 year old plantings have been recorded in full bearing. All dwarf varieties have the great advantage that they bear fruit earlier and some dwarf varieties are resistant to the coconut Lethal Yellowing Disease. Among these varieties a special mention must be made of the Malayan Jamaican Dwarf with a LYD resistance in Jamaica superior to 98% according to the research reported by Romney in 1987. This fact alone has won this variety an excellent acceptance and widespread use for very frequently it is used to replant areas that have been depleted of coconut palms as consequence of the LYD.

Today the coconut is recognized worldwide as one of the most valuable crops due to the total use of the plant and the great demand of its products. It must be noted that the widespread and multiple use given to this plant in the countries where it is traditionally cultivated always make it economically important. Dry copra used to be the coconut's main export product but has been superseded by coconut oil. The exports of the fresh fruit and of the desiccated meat are also increasing. The demand of these products has created new jobs, which benefit the producing countries.

History tells us that the coconut has been a success since its discovery; today the total use given to this plant comfirms its great possibilities.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Child, Reginald. "Coconuts", 2nd Ed. Longman Group Ltd., 1974.
Woodruff, Jasper Guy, Ph.D. "Coconuts: Production, Processing, Products", The Avi Publishing Co. Inc., 1970.
Encyclopedia Americana, Vol. 7, 1989.
Encyclopedia Collier, Vol. 6, 1984.