Botanically, a coconut is a simple dry fruit known as a fibrous drupe (not a true nut). The husk (mesocarp) is composed of fibres called coir and there is an inner "stone" (the endocarp). This hard endocarp (the coconut as sold in the shops of non-tropical countries) has three germination pores that are clearly visible on the outside surface once the husk is removed. It is through one of these that the radicle emerges when the embryo germinates. Adhering inside wall of endocarp is the testa with a thick albuminous endosperm, the coconut meat, the white and fleshy edible part of the seed.
When viewed on end, the endocarp and germination pores resemble the face of a monkey, the Portuguese word for which is macaco, sometimes abbreviated to coco, whence the name of the fruit. The specific name nucifera is Latin for nut bearing.
Maturing Coconuts on the tree
Maturing Coconuts on the tree
When the coconut is still green, the endosperm inside is thin and tender, a favourite snack. But the main reason to pick the nut at that stage is to drink its juice; a big nut contains up to one litre of refreshing drink. When the nut has ripened and the outer husk has turned brown, a couple of months later, it will fall from the tree of its own accord. At that time the endosperm has thickened and hardened, while the juice has become somewhat bitter. Drinking more than a sip then is a sure recipe for diarrhoea within 15 minutes.
A man climbing a tree to harvest coconuts
A man climbing a tree to harvest coconuts
To open a coconut, remove the outer husk (if not purchased already removed) and pierce two of the three eyes of the fruit (one for the juice to come out of, one to enable air to go in); drain the juice from the fruit. Since coconuts have a naturally-forming fracture point, they can be opened by taking a heavy knife, such as a meat cleaver, and striking the coconut with the flat edge of the knife. Or you can use a flat-bladed screwdriver and a hammer (which is easier, and may be safer than using a cleaver). After inserting the screwdriver slightly, twist it to crack the shell. The coconut should then be turned, and this process repeated until there is a contiguous crack in the shell around the entire fruit. Afterwards, the fruit can be separated at this fracture point.
When the nut is still green the husk is very hard, but green nuts rarely fall, only when they have been attacked by moulds, etc. By the time the nut naturally falls, the husk has become brown, the coir has become dryer and softer, and the nut is less likely to cause damage when it drops. Still there have been instances of coconuts falling from trees and injuring people, and claims of some fatalities. This was the subject of a paper published in 1984 that won the Ig Nobel Prize in 2001. Falling coconut deaths are often used as a comparison to shark attacks, making the claim that it is more likely to be killed by a falling coconut than by a shark. There is no evidence of people being killed in this manner (column from The Straight Dope). However William Wyatt Gill, an early LMS missionary on Mangaia recorded a story in which Kaiara, the concubine of king Tetui, was killed by a falling, green nut. The offending tree was immediately cut down. This was around 1777, the time of captain Cook's visit.
In some parts of the world, trained monkeys are used to harvest coconuts. Training schools for monkeys still exist in southern Thailand. Competitions are held each year to discover the fastest harvester.
Cite: Wikipedia
source : hydroponicsearch
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