History and origins of the coconut palm

When we see images or say or hear the words ‘coconut palm’, a vision of tall waving trees bordering a sandy shoreline under
azure blue skies tends to focus the mind. In fact, coconuts (Cocos nucifera) are found throughout the wet tropics between the
latitudes 20° north and south of the Equator. Sandy shorelines and beaches present ideal growing conditions for them: a humid
atmosphere, a temperature of 27-30°C, a free-draining well-aerated soil and an abundant supply of fresh groundwater.

Although wild specimens have recently been found growing in natural coastal forest in the Philippines and Australia, no-one
really knows where coconut palms originated. The theory is that the coconut arose somewhere around the western Pacific
basin. History suggests that It was also dispersed by ocean currents, with the seeds protected from the salt sea water by the
fibrous fruit. They had reached the Americas before Columbus arrived there in 1492, and germinating coconuts were found
washed up on the shores of the newly-born volcanic island, Anak Krakatoa, in the 1930s.

Coconut palms have been known and used in India for 3,000 years. A letter written by an Arab trader of the eleventh century
noted that the fibre from the palm was resistant to sea water. The Arab traders also taught the population of the Sinhalese
and Malabar coast how to prepare the fibre from the nut, since by this time the palm was widespread along the Indo-
Malaysian coast. When Marco Polo visited China in the fourteenth century, he was told that coir fibre from the ‘Indian Nut’
had been used by the Chinese for 500 years. In the mid-sixteenth century the palm was introduced into Spain and Portugal,
Brazil and Puerto Rico by sea-faring traders. The name ‘coconut’ may have been coined by Spanish sailors to describe the
monkey-faced appearance of the coconut.

The list of current key coconut growing and producing countries include but is by no means limited to: Sri Lanka, India,
Indonesia, Phillipines, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, Vietnam, Jamaica, Fiji,The Ivory Coast, Dahomey and Togo,
West Africa and in Mozambique, Kenya, Tanzania and Central and South America.

The Sri Lankan experience

Enviro Mulch (UK) Ltd import all of their natural coconut fibre products exclusively from Sri Lanka, a tropical island in the
Indian Ocean with miles of palm-fringed sandy beaches. Its compact size means it is a paradise for tourists offering cultural
heritage in ancient cities with temples and museums, colourful festivals, sports and relaxation but more importantly the
growing and production of coconut coir products.

Coconut (Cocos nucifera L) is a perennial tree crop that contributes significantly to the economy of Sri Lanka. Coconut
cultivation spans about 402,649 hectares which accounts for around 21 per cent of agricultural lands in the country. The
cultivated area is mainly confined to the western coast and geographically demarcated in the form of a triangle, referred to
as The Coconut Triangle.

The coconut palm has a tall, stout, somewhat flexible trunk. In the Sri Lanka Tall variety, the palm attains a height of 15 to
30 m when fully grown. The height to which a palm grows is a varietal characteristic but is influenced by the environmental
factors such as availability of nutrients, moisture and shade.

The coconut contributes approximately 2 per cent to Sri Lanka’s GDP, 2.5% to export earnings and 5% to employment.
Although these numbers are modest, coconut is an important food crop in Sri Lanka in that it provides about 22% of the per
capita calorie intake in the diet, being second only to rice paddy, the staple food of Sri Lankans.
Sri Lanka produces 36% of the total world brown coir fibre output.

Coconut is almost exclusively grown as a rain fed crop in Sri Lanka. Rainfall and temperature are the important climatic
factors influencing the coconut yield (Peiris et al. 1995), and by extension the national coconut production, upon which
domestic culinary consumption and processing industry depend.

There are two main monsoon seasons, the southwest monsoon is from May to September and the north eastern is from
November to May. The southern coast has an average temperature of 27oC (81oF). The central highlands are cooler, between
20oC (68oF) and can be quite chilly in the evenings.

Although the influence of climate variability has been quantified (Peiris et al. 1995), there has been no official estimate of
the economic value of climate variability on coconut production.

Copyright 2007. Enviro Mulch (UK) Ltd. All Rights Reserved Tel: +44 (0) 1473 829 324 History & Origins – Page 1
Cultivation and Uses

Characteristically, the coconut palm has a tall unbranched trunk surmounted by a crown of fronds, although branched forms
are occasionally found. The light grey trunk is ringed at intervals by leaf scars. From its swollen base (bole) adventitious roots
arise – these are strong enough to anchor the palm to the ground during hurricanes and typhoons. Older leaves typically have
leaflets (pinnae) on either side of a central stem in a feather-like arrangement, whereas in seedlings and buds the leaves are
entire and unbroken. At the top of the stem the leaves surround a large apical bud. This edible bud is known as ‘millionaire’s
cabbage’ and is considered a delicacy, but its removal causes the tree to die as it is the only growing point.

Flowering begins after 6-7 years. Inflorescences (flowering heads) are borne in the leaf axils (where the leaf meets the
stem). Initially two leathery leaf-like structures (bracts) protect each inflorescence. The branched inflorescence, which may
be 2 m long, has separate male and female flowers. There are only a few female flowers on each inflorescence and these
are found together with a pair of male flowers at the base of the branches; most of the male flowers are borne singly or in
pairs towards the branch tips. As the flowers contain nectaries and are sweet scented, it is thought that they may attract
insects for pollination. However, as the pollen is light and dry, there may also be some wind pollination. The male flowers
mature and wither before the female flowers become receptive (a condition known as protandry) so that flowers in the same
inflorescence cannot pollinate one another. This ensures cross-pollination.

The coconuts available in this country are only part of the coconut fruit. When first collected from the tree, they still possess
their outer layers: a smooth skin ranging in colour from green to brown around a fibrous layer, which is used commercially
as coir. These layers surround the hard dark-brown shell, which encases the coconut seed. The outer layer of the seed, the
testa, is the brown papery material that adheres to the white flesh (endosperm) when it is removed from the shell. Coconut
water (sometimes, misleadingly known as coconut milk) fills the cavity in the centre of the coconut and can be used as a
refreshing drink.

What is coir?

Coir is a coarse fibre obtained from the tissues surrounding the seed of the coconut palm (Cocos nucifera). The intact fruit
has a smooth leathery skin above the thick fibrous layer. This surrounds the stony dark brown shell, which is actually part
of the fruit rather than the seed. Inside the shell are the papery brown outer layer of the seed surrounding the nutritious
white flesh and the embryo.

The fibrous layer forms a strong, shock-absorbing mesh which protects the seed from mechanical damage and is water-
resistant. The individual fibre cells are narrow and hollow, with thick walls made of cellulose. They are pale when immature
but later they become hardened and yellowed when a layer of lignin, a complex woody chemical, is deposited on their walls.
Mature brown coir fibres contain more lignin and less cellulose than fibres such as flax and cotton and so are stronger but
less flexible. White fibre is smoother and finer than the harder brown fibre but is also weaker. The coir fibre is relatively
water-proof and is the only natural fibre resistant to damage by salt water.

How is coir processed?

Green coconuts, harvested after about twelve months on the plant, contain pliable white fibres. Brown fibre is obtained by
harvesting fully mature coconuts when the nutritious layer surrounding the seed is ready to be processed into copra and
desiccated coconut. The fibrous layer of the fruit is separated from the hard shell by driving the fruit down onto a spike to
split it (de-husking).

Brown fibre processing

The fibrous husks are soaked in pits or in nets in a slow moving body of water to swell and soften the fibres. The long bristle
fibres are separated from the shorter mattress fibres underneath the skin of the nut, a process known as ‘wet-milling’.

The mattress fibres are sifted to remove dirt and other rubbish, dried and packed into bales. Some mattress fibre is allowed
to retain more moisture so that it retains its elasticity for ‘twisted’ fibre production. The coir fibre is elastic enough to twist
without breaking and it holds a curl as though permanently waved. Twisting is done by simply making a rope of the hank of
fibre and twisting it using a machine or by hand.

The longer bristle fibre is washed in clean water and then dried before being tied into bundles or hunks. Although bristle fibre
may be sold without further processing, it may be cleaned and ‘hackled’ by steel combs to straighten the fibres and remove any
shorter fibre pieces. Coir bristle fibre may also be bleached and dyed to provide buyers with hanks of different colours.

Copyright 2007. Enviro Mulch (UK) Ltd. All Rights Reserved Tel: +44 (0) 1473 829 324 History & Origins – Page 2
White fibre processing

To separate the white fibres, the immature husks are suspended in a river or water-filled pit for up to ten months. During
this time micro-organisms break down the plant tissues surrounding the fibres to loosen them – a process known as retting.
Segments of the husk are then beaten by hand to separate out the long fibres which are subsequently dried and cleaned.
Cleaned fibre is ready for spinning into yarn in the home using a simple one-handed system or a spinning wheel. The final
operation is grading before sale and shipping.

Production Process for Coco Peat

Coconut Husk

Soak Husk In Fresh Water

For 4-6 Weeks To Loosen Fibres

Wet Husk

Combing By Spiked Drums To Extract Fibre

Bristle Long Fibres

Combed Material

Coarse Sifter Fibre Dust

plus Very
Short Fibres
Mattress Fibres COIR PITH
Medium & Short MOUNTAIN
STORAGE
Sun Drying

Dried Raw Material

Fine Sifting Process

Very Short Fibres Residual Coir Fibre Pith (Coco Peat)

Artificial Drying

Dried Coco Peat Dried Coco Peat

Briquette Pressing Bale Pressing Growbag Plank Pressing

Briquettes/650 gm. Naked Briquettes 4.5 Kg. and 25 Kg. bales Pressed Planks
Or 1000 gram 10 Kg. bales

Individually Assemble Coco Peat

Customized Bags Planks In Growbags
Naked Bagged Bales Growbags
Individual Shrink Wrapping Bales

Goods To Be Un -
Palletized Palletized
Shrink-Wrapped Goods
Briquettes

Packing In Cartons Palletizing Manual Bulk Loading

Briquette Cartons Palletized Products Containerized

Cargo

Containerized Cargo

Fork Lift Loading EXPORT

Copyright 2007. Enviro Mulch (UK) Ltd. All Rights Reserved Tel: +44 (0) 1473 829 324 History & Origins – Page 3