Cocos nucifera

Cocos nucifera commonly called coconut tree is a species of palm tree in the Arecaceae family. It is monotypic, and its only species is Cocos nucifera. This genus had many species that became independent from it, some towards the genus Syagrus. Taxonomically speaking, the closest species are Jubaeopsis caffra from South Africa and Voanioala gerardii from Madagascar. The tree has been cultivated for centuries as ornamental, timber and for its fruit, the coconut, from which its pulp and juice are consumed, and from which soaps, oils and other products are made.

Description

Coconut tree

Cocotero germinating.

It is a palm that grows up to 30 meters tall with a gray to brown trunk, scarred by the old leaves when shed. The pinnate yellow-green leaves are 4 to 6 meters long. Fibrous roots, long, thin and fasciculated.

Inflorescence 1 meter long, the flowers grouped in yellow panicles are polygamomoneceous, with the male and female flowers in the same inflorescence. Flowering occurs continuously, with the female flowers producing the seeds.

From the botanical point of view, the fruit is a drupe, not a nut, it is green or yellow and brown when ripe, ovoid in shape, about 25 cm long and can weigh 2.5 kilos, fibrous brown mesocarp and woody brown endocarp with three pits. A single seed attached to the endocarp, white pulp, and edible liquid. A coconut palm can produce up to 75 fruits per year, but more often it produces fewer than 30, taking 5 or 6 months to grow to full size and mature at 10-13 months.

The coconut tree is a single species with multiple varieties, basically differentiated by the color of the fruit (yellow or green) and the plants only present differences in the stem. The common and characteristic feature of all of them is the flavor of the fruit, whose characteristics are that it is pleasant, sweet, meaty and juicy. Fast-growing plant that propagates by seed, is pollinated by wind and insects, flowers and fruits generally throughout the year.

Distribution and habitat

The origin of this plant is very uncertain, and it is disputed whether it originates from the tropical Indo-Pacific or American coasts.Some modern genetic studies have identified the origin of coconuts in the central Indo-Pacific, their Cultivation and propagation was closely linked to the early migrations of the Austronesian peoples who brought coconuts on their journeys.

Because the genetic similarity of coconuts in the Americas to coconuts in the Philippines, and not to other nearby coconut populations, suggests that coconuts were not naturally introduced to the Americas by ocean currents, some researchers have concluded that they were brought by the first Austronesian sailors to the Americas and may be evidence of pre-Columbian contact between Austronesian and South American cultures.

Whatever its origin, today it is distributed along the intertropical coasts of the entire world, and it is likely that its spread was due to the great resistance of its seed, adapted to being disseminated over great distances by marine currents It is not unusual to find coconuts that have thus reached shores far removed from their populations and still retain their ability to germinate if given the right conditions.

The plant can be found on the shores of tropical sandy beaches in the Caribbean, Indian and Pacific Oceans. Cultivated in other areas with a warm climate between 0 and 2000 meters above sea level. Normally they can grow from the equator to the 28th parallel of both hemispheres, with some exceptions such as the Bermuda and Madeira Islands on the 32nd parallel, or the Kermadec Islands, between the 29th and 31st parallels.

In order to grow and fruit, it needs high temperatures, a stable photoperiod, light soils and high humidity, conditions that occur on the coasts of the intertropical zone. It supports soils with high salinity, which allows it to grow where other plants cannot, thus avoiding interspecific competition. It does not need high average rainfall, as it grows in areas where rainfall is 750 millimeters per year. It is not affected by strong winds, which also help the pollination and fertilization of its flowers.

The plant does not tolerate cold, altitude, or compact soils, and low environmental humidity limits its growth in some warm areas where it could apparently grow: the southern Mediterranean coasts, the northern coasts of Chile, and southern Chile. Peru etc On the other hand, it can grow in subtropical areas such as northern Argentina, Hawaii, the Canary Islands or southern Florida where relative humidity is high and temperatures do not usually drop below 13 °C.

Coconut Cross-section

Ecology

Coconuts are susceptible to the disease phytoplasma, lethal yellowing. The coconut palm is damaged by the larvae of many species of Lepidoptera that feed on it, including Spodoptera exima, Batrachedra spp. and B. nuciferae. Brontista longissima feeds on young leaves and damages both seedlings and mature coconut palms.

Taxonomy

Cocos nucifera was described by Charles Linnaeus and published in 1753.

Coconut nut with marks that look like a face.

Etymology

Sheets

The name was given to it by Portuguese navigators during Vasco da Gama's first voyage to India, who first brought coconut to Europe. According to Losada, the sailors gave it its name because of the resemblance between the face that the walnut appears to have —two eyes and an open mouth— and the monster côco, coca or < i>cuca in Portuguese folklore, and coco, cuco or cucuy in Spanish. no similar name is found in any of the languages of the area, where the Portuguese found the fruit; in fact Barbosa, Barros and García, when mentioning the name in the Tamil-Malayalam and Kannada languages, it is called temga and narle, respectively. They clearly say, “we call these fruits quoquos”, “our people gave them the name coconut” and “the one we and Malabarians call coconut temga”. ^{[citation required]}

Planning

nucifera comes from Latin and means bearer of nuts.

Sinonimia

Inflorescence

The following names are considered synonymous with Cocos nucifera:

• Palma coconuts Mill. (1768), nom. illeg.
• Calappa nucifera (L.) Kuntze (1891).
• Cocos indicates Royle (1840).
• Cocos nana Griff. (1851).

Sword Nuciferous coconutsNot yet blooming.

Collecting coconut. Right behind the coconut, a young specimen is appreciated.

Relationship with the human being

The coconut palm is one of the oldest useful plants and is exploited in multiple ways, it is used primarily as an ornamental tree on tourist beaches. Its dry pulp is called copra and contains 60-70% lipids; oil is obtained from the copra, used in the manufacture of margarine and soap. The wood of the coconut tree is used for construction and its leaves for roofing rural houses. The inhabitants of the Philippines, Polynesia, Kiribati and the Marshall Islands consume the fresh coconut tree sap; fermented, it can be preserved and transformed into a type of alcoholic beverage, known as coconut wine.

The fibers that surround the coconut fruit are used to make brushes, mattresses and ropes, the processing of the fibers produces tow dust which is used as packing material and as insulation. In the Caribbean islands, it is It is customary to open green coconuts with a machete to extract the water from the fruit and consume it as a refreshing drink. The inner coconut water can remain in the closed fruit for up to eight months and preserve all its qualities. The coconut shell is used for the manufacture of various utensils such as cups, spoons and handicrafts, in addition, it is used as a substitute for coal.

Kitchen

The fruit is appreciated for the various culinary uses it has, the white pulp is usually eaten directly or grated and used as a condiment, while the coconut water is consumed as a refreshing drink. Coconut milk should not be confused with Coconut water is obtained by pressing coconut meat and is used as a substitute for milk and in the preparation of desserts, it is also usually processed to generate powdered coconut milk.

Coconut vinegar is made from fermented coconut water or sap and is widely used in Southeast Asian cooking, coconut oil is commonly used for frying, can be used in liquid or solid form similar to butter. Long-term consumption of coconut oil can have negative health effects similar to consuming other sources of saturated fat.

Medical

There is some medical evidence on the medicinal properties of some parts of the plant, in part its effectiveness as a diuretic, emollient, vermifuge, laxative, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, analgesic, antiarthritic and antibacterial has been confirmed. The burned peel is used as incense in case of toothache. With the pulp a pectoral syrup is made. The decoction of the fibrous mesocarp, in the areas of origin, is used as a purgative and anthelmintic.

Allergy

Coconut oil can cause food allergy, including anaphylaxis, Cocamidopropyl betaine (CAPB) is a surfactant made from coconut oil that is used as an ingredient in personal hygiene products and cosmetics, CAPB can cause mild skin irritation, but allergic reactions are rare and likely related to impurities generated during the manufacturing process.

Death by coconut

There is some risk that coconuts falling from trees could strike people causing serious back, neck, shoulder, and head injuries, and are sometimes fatal. Sudden cardiac death is also possible as a result of hyperkalemia, after consuming medium to large amounts of coconut water, due to the high levels of potassium it contains.

Tree with coconuts

Harvest

One of the most common harvesting methods is the climbing method, climbing is the most widespread, but it is also the most dangerous, manually climbing trees is traditional in most countries, climbers employed in coconut plantations they are at risk of falling and often develop musculoskeletal disorders from the postures they must assume to climb the tree. Modern methods use hydraulic lifts mounted on tractors or ladders. Trained pig-tailed macaques are used in Thailand and Malaysia pig-tailed macaques have been bred and trained to harvest coconuts for 400 years. The practice of using macaques to harvest coconuts was exposed in Thailand by animal rights organization PETA in 2019, which resulted in calls for boycotts on coconut products.

Culture

Coconut handicrafts

Some South Asian, Southeast Asian and Pacific Ocean cultures have origin myths in which the coconut plays the main role, in the Hainuwele myth of the Moluccas islands, a girl emerges from the blossom of a coconut tree. In the story of Sina and the eel, the origin of the coconut is recounted when the beautiful woman Sina buries an eel, which eventually became the first coconut. According to urban legend, more deaths from falling coconuts occur annually. than by sharks. In Venezuela it is the emblematic tree of the Zulia state.

Common name

It is known as coconut, coconut, and coconut palm.

Production

Indonesia is the world leader in its production (2007) followed by the Philippines and India. Pollachi and its hinterland is the most important coconut growing region of India. There are also important related industries: Tender Coconut Water, Copra, Coconut Oil, Coconut Cake, Coconut Toddy, Coconut Shell based Products, Coconut Wood based Products, Coconut Leaves, Coir Pith.

List of the 12 main coconut producers in 2012
Country	Tons	Note to the foot
IndonesiaIndonesia	18 000	F
PhilippinesPhilippines	15 862 386	P
India	10 560 000	P
BrazilBrazil	2 888 532	P
Sri LankaSri Lanka	2 000 000	F
VietnamVietnam	1 250 000	F
Thailand	1 100 000	F
Mexico Mexico	1 050 000	F
Papua New GuineaPapua New Guinea	900 000	F
MalaysiaMalaysia	585 000	F
Burma	430 000	F
ColombiaColombia	145 000	F	World	59 983 908	A
Meaning of letters: P = official data, F = FAO estimate, A = Added (can include officers, semi-officials or approximations), Source: Food And Agricultural Organization of United Nations: Economic And Social Department: The Statistical Devision Cocoteros S. A.