coconut

coconut fruit of the coco palm ( Cocos nucifera ), a tree widely distributed through tropical regions. The seed is peculiarly adapted to dispersal by water because the large pod holding the nut is buoyant and impervious to moisture. The trees therefore establish themselves naturally on small islands and low shores bordering the tropical seas. The tree grows to a height of 60-100 ft (18-30 m), with a smooth cylindrical stem marked by the ringlike scars of former leaves. It bears at the top a crown of frondlike leaves and yellow or white blossoms.

The number of nuts varies; a well-cared-for tree may yield 75 to 200 or more annually. The mature fruit as it comes from the tree is encased in a thick, brown fibrous husk. The nut itself has a hard woody shell, with three round scars at one end; the embryo lies against the largest scar and emerges through it as a developing plant. Through this easily punctured spot the "milk" of the young coconut may be drained.

Commercial Value

Its constantly growing commercial value has led to extensive cultivation of the coconut, especially in the Malay Archipelago, Sri Lanka, and India. The coco palm is one of the most useful trees in existence, every part of it having some value. The fruit, either ripe or unripe, raw or cooked, is a staple food in the tropics; the terminal bud, called palm cabbage, is considered a delicacy; the inner part of young stems is also eaten. The milk of the young nut is a nutritious drink. A sweet liquid obtained from the flower buds ferments readily and is used as a beverage, both when fresh and when distilled to make arrack; it may be boiled down to make various palm sugars, e.g., jaggery. The leaves are used for making fans, baskets, and thatch. The coir (coarse fibers obtained from the husk) is made into cordage, mats, and stuffing; it becomes more buoyant and elastic than hemp in saltwater. The hard shell and the husk are used for fuel. The fibrous center of the old trunk is also used for ropes, and the timber, known as porcupine wood, is hard and fine-grained and takes a high polish. From the nutshells are made containers of various kinds—cups, ladles, and bowls—often highly polished and ornamentally carved. The root is chewed as a narcotic.

Commercially the greatest value of the coconut lies in the oil, which is extracted from the dried kernels of the fruit. The nuts when ripe are apt to spoil or become rancid; therefore when they are gathered they are broken open, and the flesh is dried and exported under the name of copra. The oil content of copra ranges from 50% to 70%, depending upon the method of drying. Coconut oil, the major type of palm oil, has been extracted by mortar and pestle in Asia since antiquity; the coconut and the olive are the earliest recorded sources of vegetable oil. Primitive methods of drying and expressing the copra are giving way to modern machinery such as rotary driers and hydraulic presses. The residue, known as coco cake, makes excellent cattle food, as it usually contains a remnant of 6%-10% oil. Large quantities of shredded or desiccated coconut made from copra and many whole coconuts are exported for use chiefly in the making of cakes, desserts, and confectionery.

Classification

Coconuts are classified in the division Magnoliophyta , class Liliopsida, order Arecales, family Palmae.

coconut Fruit of the tropical palm, Cocos nucifera. The dried nut is copra which contains 60–65% coconut oil. The residue after extraction of the oil is used for animal feed. The hollow, unripe nut contains a watery liquid known as coconut milk, which is gradually absorbed as the fruit ripens. A 50‐g portion is a rich source of copper; contains 18 g of fat, of which 90% is saturated; provides 7 g of dietary fibre; supplies 175 kcal (735 kJ).

co·co·nut / ˈkōkəˌnət/ • n. 1. the large, oval, brown seed of a tropical palm, consisting of a hard shell lined with edible white flesh and containing a clear liquid. ∎  the flesh of a coconut, esp. when used as food. 2. (also coconut palm or tree) the tall palm tree (Cocos nucifera) that yields this nut.