Cocos nucifera / Coconut / Arecaceae (Palm family)

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Description

The Coconut is the largest seed known and it is part of the Coconut Palm. It is grown throughout the tropical world, for decoration as well as for its many culinary and non-culinary uses; virtually every part of the coconut palm has some human uses. Coconut oil is extracted from the meat of the coconut. It is used in many foods and cosmetic products, as well as in natural remedies, both externally and internally. There are different types of coconut oil including virgin, refined, hydrogenated and fractionated. The virgin coconut oil has the best flavor and the most health benefits.

Contents

100g Coconut meat contain about 15g carbohydrates, 3g protein and 34g fat.
Coconut oil contains predominantly medium chain triglycerides, with roughly 92% saturated fatty acids, 6% monounsaturated fatty acids, and 2% polyunsaturated fatty acids. Of the saturated fatty acids, coconut oil is primarily 44.6% lauric acid, 16.8% myristic acid a 8.2% palmitic acid and 8% caprylic acid, although it contains seven different saturated fatty acids in total. Its only monounsaturated fatty acid is oleic acid while its only polyunsaturated fatty acid is linoleic acid.(2)

Historical

The origins of this plant are the subject of controversy, with most authorities claiming it is native to South Asia (particularly the Ganges Delta), while others claim its origin is in northwestern South America. Fossil records from New Zealand indicate that small, coconut-like plants grew there as long as 15 million years ago. Even older fossils have been uncovered in Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Kerala (Kerala means "land of coconut palms"), Maharashtra, (India) and the oldest known so far in Khulna, Bangladesh. 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.(1)
The English name coconut, first mentioned in English print in 1555, comes from the Spanish and Portuguese word coco, which means "monkey face." Spanish and Portuguese explorers found a resemblance to a monkey's face in the three round indented markings or "eyes" found at the base of the coconut.
On the Nicobar Islands of the Indian Ocean, whole coconuts were used as currency for the purchace of goods until the early part of the twentieth century. In Sanskrit, the coconut palm is known as kalpa vriksha, meaning "tree which gives all that is necessary for living," because nearly all parts of the tree can be used in some manner or another. The coconut fruit has many food uses for its water, milk, meat, sugar, and oil. It also functions as its own dish and cup. The husk was burned for fuel by natives, but today a seed fibre called coir is taken from the husk and used to make brushes, mats, fishnets, and rope. A very potent fermented toddy or drink is also made from the coconut palm's sap. Coconut oil, a saturated fat made from dried coconut meat, is used for commercial frying and in candies and margarines, as well as in non-edible products such as soaps and cosmetics.(3)
Several Philippine proverbs demonstrate the usefulness of this species:
"If you could count the stars, then you could count all the ways the coconut serves us."
"He who plants a coconut tree, plants vessels and clothing, food and drink, a habitation for himself, and a heritage for his children."

Plant Description

The coconut palm is a long-lived plant that may live as long as 100 years; it has a single trunk, 20-30 m tall, its bark is smooth and grey, marked by ringed scars left by fallen leafbases. The leaves, from 4 to 6 m long, are pinnate; they consist of linear-lanceolate, more or less recurved, rigid, bright green leaflets. The inflorescences, arising at leaf axils and enveloped by a carinate spathe, are unbranched spadices; female flowers are borne basally, male flowers at apex. Flowers bear lanceolate petals, 6 stamens and an ovary consisting of 3 connate carpels. Cross pollination, either anemophilous or entomophilous, occurs. Its fruit, as big as a man’s head and 1-2 kg in weight, is a drupe with a thin, smooth, grey-brownish epicarp, a fibrous, 4-8 cm thick, mesocarp and a woody endocarp; as it is rather light, it can be carried long distances by water while keeping its germinability for a long time.
Although it takes up to a year for coconuts to mature, the trees bloom up to thirteen times a year. Fruit is constantly forming, thus yielding a continuous harvest year-round. An average harvest from one tree runs about 60 coconuts, with some trees yielding three times that amount.

References

(1) Coconut, Wikipedia
(2) Coconut Oil, Wikipedia
(3) Coconut History, by Peggy Towbridge Filippone, About.com

Articles

Any information provided about products on this website, including any links to external websites, is purely intended for historical, scientific and educational purposes and should never be interpreted as a recommendation for a specific use of the products.

Coconut Oil and its Wonderful Health Benefits
Coconut Research Center