Cocos nucifera

 Botanical Name: Cocos nucifera L.

Family: Arecaceae

Common Name: Coconut

English Name: Coconut

Distribution: C. nucifera palms are unbranched, monoecious trees with smooth, columnar, light grey-brown trunk, usually 9-18 m height and sometimes taller (up to 30 m); dwarf selections also exist. Leaves pinnate, feather shaped, 4-7 m long and 1-1.5 m wide at the broadest part. Leaf stalks 1-2 cm in length and thorn-less. Inflorescence consists of female and male axillary flowers. Flowers are small and light yellow, in clusters that emerge from canoe-shaped sheaths among the leaves. Male flowers are small and more numerous. Female flowers 1 or fewer than male flowers; larger, spherical structures, about 25 mm in diameter. Fruit a drupe, roughly ovoid, up to 30 cm long and 20 cm wide, composed of a thick, fibrous husk surrounding a somewhat spherical nut with a hard, brittle, hairy shell. The fruit consists of (from the outside to in) a thin hard skin (exocarp), a thicker layer of fibrous mesocarp (husk), the hard endocarp (shell), the white endosperm (kernel), and a large cavity filled with watery liquid. The endosperm is soft and jellylike when immature but becomes firm with maturity. Coconut water or milk is abundant in unripe fruit but is gradually absorbed as ripening proceeds. The fruits are green at first, turning brownish as they mature; yellow varieties go from yellow to brown. The nuts have the capability to survive up to 120 days floating in the sea water and germinate when they make landfall. This dispersal trait facilitates the spreading of this species far from its origin without human assistance (Chan and Elevitch, 2006).

Flowering & Fruiting: Throughout the year

Distribution: Native to coastal areas of Melanesia and South-East Asia, probably Malaysia, Indonesia (Moluccas Islands), Philippines and Papua New Guinea

IUCN: No

District: All Districts of Tamil Nadu

Uses: Antifungal and antimicrobial treatment for skin and mouth problems such as ring worms, candidiasis, psoriasis, sores, skin burns, sunburns, toothache, sore throat and ulcers. Coconut oil is massage over the skin as anti-ageing regimen to keep skin soft and youthful looking. Used as oil massage to remove heel cracks and darkening of armpits. Oil is used to treat scalp and hair problems. From greying hair, dandruff to baldness and antidote for pesticide poisoning. Coconut water is used to treat colitis, kidney stones, and stomach acidity and diuretic to improve removal of excess water. Used as a Immune System Booster and improve digestion.

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