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Coconut palm facts for kids

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Coconut
Singapore coconut.jpg
Coconut palm (Cocos nucifera)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
Division:
Magnoliophyta
Class:
Liliopsida
Order:
Arecales
Family:
Arecaceae
Genus:
Cocos
Binomial name
Cocos nucifera

The coconut palm is a tall palm tree that belongs to the Arecaceae family. These amazing trees can grow up to 30 meters (about 100 feet) high! Their long leaves can be 4–6 meters (13–20 feet) long. When we talk about a "coconut," we usually mean the fruit that grows on this palm.

Coconut palms are found in many warm, tropical countries around the world. They especially love growing along the coasts, like in India and Bangladesh. The coconut fruit has a hard shell, but inside it holds delicious white flesh and refreshing coconut water.

What Are Coconuts Used For?

Coconuts are super useful! People use them in many different ways.

Food and Drink

The white flesh inside a coconut can be eaten raw. It's also used in lots of cooking to add a special flavor. Coconut milk is made from the grated flesh and is a popular ingredient in many dishes and drinks. You might find it in curries or smoothies!

Coconut oil is another important product. It's used in cooking, but also in things like soaps. The clear liquid inside a young coconut is called coconut water. It's a natural, refreshing drink that's very popular in tropical places.

Crafts and Culture

The hard shell of a coconut can be used to make beautiful crafts. Artists carve them into bowls, decorations, or even buttons.

In some countries, coconuts have special meanings. For example, in Sri Lanka, people use coconut flowers for wedding celebrations. The coconut palm is also the National tree of the Maldives.

How Coconuts Travel

Coconuts are amazing travelers! They can float on water for a very long time. This allows them to drift across oceans to new islands.

Coconut
Coconut from Ivory Coast

Scientists have found that coconuts can float for up to 110 days. That's enough time to travel about 3,000 miles (4,800 kilometers) by sea! Even after such a long journey, they can still sprout and grow into a new tree when they land on a sandy beach. This is how coconut palms have spread to so many tropical islands around the world.


Images for kids

  • Coconut tree leave

    Coconut leaves

  • JfBohol7038naturefvf 39

    Coconut palm heavy with fruit

  • Cocos nucifera (11124377083)

    Coconut inflorescence unfurling

  • Miocene coconut

    Fossil "Cocos" zeylanica from the Miocene of New Zealand, approximately the size of a strawberry at 3.5 cm (1+1⁄2 in) long

  • Coconut face

    De-husked coconut fruit showing the characteristic three pores resembling a face

  • Chronological dispersal of Austronesian people across the Pacific (per Benton et al, 2012, adapted from Bellwood, 2011)

    Chronological dispersal of Austronesian peoples across the Indo-Pacific

  • Wa'a kaulua

    A wa'a kaulua (double-hulled canoe) from Hawai'i. Catamarans were one of the early technological innovations of Austronesian peoples that allowed them to colonize the islands of the Indo-Pacific and introduce coconuts and other canoe plants along their migration routes.

  • Coqueiro Goy

    Palms tolerate the saline and infertile soils of laterite type in Goa, India

  • Efate East - Very old coconut plantations - panoramio

    A coconut plantation in Efate, Vanuatu

  • Lefaga, Return to Paradise beach, south coast Upolu Island, Samoa, 2009

    Coconut trees on a beach in Upolu, Samoa

  • Coconut germinating on Black Sand Beach, Island of Hawaii

    Coconut germinating on Punaluʻu Beach on the island of Hawaiʻi

  • Pteropus tonganus1

    The Pacific flying fox (Pteropus tonganus) feeding on nectar and pollen from coconut flowers in Fiji

  • Nata de coco (Philippines)

    Red nata de coco in syrup from the Philippines

  • Coconut Market

    Coconuts being sold on a street in India

  • Al hafa corniche

    Coconut trees line the beaches and corniches of Oman

  • Coconuts for sale, Puthia (01)

    Immature green coconuts sold in Bangladesh for coconut water and their soft jelly-like flesh

  • India, Day 12 (3415347493)

    Soft immature coconut meat usually is eaten as is

  • Cononut milk

    Coconut milk, a widely used ingredient in the cuisines of regions where coconuts are native

  • 9850Foods Fruits Baliuag Bulacan Philippines 18

    Ubod (coconut heart of palm) from the Philippines

  • Bahalina-coconut-wine-1471976

    Bahalina, a traditional coconut wine (tubâ) from the Philippines fermented from coconut sap and mangrove bark extracts

  • Coconut button factory in Dongjiao - 02

    Coconut buttons in Dongjiao Town, Hainan, China

  • Fish with coconut Mok (9107882174)

    Fish curry being served in coconut shell in Thailand

  • Srilanka coconut fibre

    Extracting coir, the fiber from the coconut husk, in Sri Lanka

  • Puso of cooked rice

    Pusô, woven pouches of rice in various designs from the Philippines

  • Coconut trunk

    Coconut trunk

  • Srilanka coconut rug

    Making a rug from coconut fiber

  • A worship at the shrine of the Holy Infant Jesus of Prague, Davao City, Philippines

    Palaspas, woven palm fronds during Palm Sunday celebrations in the Philippines

  • Muñeco de coco

    A "coconut monkey" from Mexico, a common souvenir carved from coconut shells

  • Offerings on the sand, Kuta Beach, Bali

    A canang, an offering of flowers, rice, and incense in woven coconut leaves from Bali, Indonesia

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Palma cocotera para niños

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