View Full Version : coconut tree
mskitty38583
12-14-2007, 06:14 PM
has anybody tried growing a coconut tree from an actual coconut? i want to try this...im getting gutsy. everything i read has been started by a clipping or a store bought tree. i want to try this from scratch, coconut husk and all. so if anyone has done this, attempted to try this, or just as nuts(ha ha) as i am, i would like to go about tempting fate.
gadget
12-14-2007, 07:38 PM
You just put the nut a couple inches in to the soil and wait.
I have never tried to grow one in my area but have done some research and this plant needs a lot of moisture and is cold sensitive.
I have seen them for sale at Ikea for $20 just sprouting out of the nut. Or try to find a nice heavy brown coconut or green it will just take longer to grow
:2710:
mskitty38583
12-14-2007, 09:32 PM
can you use one from the grocery store? do you crack it to empty the milk or just put part of it in the ground? thanks :2750:
AnnaJW
12-14-2007, 09:59 PM
Good question! That would be fun to try. Why'd you have to go and put another planting project in my head??? :2215: :2559: :2215:
mskitty38583
12-14-2007, 10:13 PM
apparently we are on the same wave length....thats kind of scary if you think like i do! :2791: i saw a coconut tree at walmart, and i said im not paying that much to wait 20 yrs to get fruit off of. then 3 wks. ago i saw one at lowes and i said hey why not try one from seed? so to tempt fate, i am gonna try one. just have to find out how. everything i read says get a clipping or start with a tree, to me that kind of defeats the purpose of having one. does that make sence?
gadget
12-14-2007, 10:15 PM
I believe you need the husk, and the milk. (well atleast the milk)
:islandsharkbanana:
mskitty38583
12-14-2007, 10:26 PM
where can i get an un-husked coconut??? in tennessee???
AnnaJW
12-14-2007, 10:34 PM
I'll try to find some coconuts around here if they still have them at the store. I'll send you a couple if I find them!
mskitty38583
12-14-2007, 10:38 PM
the only ones we get here are at sonic! lol! they have the ones ready to be cracked, just no husks. if you find some lmk how much to ship a coconut and it will be on its way!!! i can just taste that coconut fresh off the tree....in 20 yrs. lol :eek: :eek: :eek:
D_&_T
12-14-2007, 11:23 PM
can't remember who said on here but it must be a fresh coconut to grow a tree, cant be a refrigerated (some are ship to U.S. that way)
mskitty38583
12-14-2007, 11:41 PM
kool, i will have to see if i can find one that hasnt been kool(ed).:0493:
formontcalamus
12-14-2007, 11:53 PM
COCONUT PALM . . . With the husk, wack off a slice of husk from the "puckered end" (where stem was attatched) to expose fiber. Set 1/2 deep in a three gallon nursery pot of sand or better 50/50 sand and cypress mulch. sit in a large bucket or dish and keep water about 1/4 th the height of the nursery pot. Place in the warmest location you have. Sand will raise to keep fiber constantly wet. """ Wait 6 to 9 months """ Repot in soil when second small leaf appears.
A grower in the Florida Keys lays them out in quantity pressed into builders sand and covers them with black plastic pourous groundcover. The black plastic keeps then hot. They need a lot of heat to sprout !!
I have sprouted Coconuts if anyone wants a quote. I'd give them away free except that they are so clumbsy and bulky to package. Logos
plantcollectors. net
mskitty38583
12-15-2007, 12:12 AM
thank you, thank you ,thank you! i would order one but i want to try it first with the raw coconut.:2223: did you get the pm i sent you?
AnnaJW
12-15-2007, 03:43 AM
Thanks Logos! Great info! Sending PM.
tlturbo
12-15-2007, 08:38 AM
Do it all the time here in FL but just so you know, you are about 10 years away from having your own coconuts (and that is in tropical Florida). Not real fast growers. At least 3 years before you get any actual trunk.
NOT like bananas - so plan on a long wait.
Terry
mskitty38583
12-15-2007, 09:44 AM
i know but it would be exciting. i dont know, maybe when the time comes ill order one from logos and then start one. i thought it woulkd take 20 yrs..shows how much i know.
Taylor
12-15-2007, 09:53 AM
Actually, you do not need the husk, but you do need the milk. It was on the Palmtalk.org forum, but cant find the exact post.
mskitty38583
12-15-2007, 10:03 AM
thanks taylor
island cassie
12-15-2007, 07:30 PM
mskitty - Logos has the method right! Hot and wet will do it!
Cassie
mskitty38583
12-15-2007, 07:38 PM
good gracious! we can do it. gonna go to walley world just to see it i can find a coconut that hasent been kooled.
formontcalamus
12-15-2007, 11:21 PM
I have seen so-called professional nurserymen sprout Coconuts in Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Florida. They all do it differently. However, you guys are talking about splitting the nut and draining the milk ? Is this a porn group ??
The husk serves a purpose of holding moisture which must be constant. (Nature knows best) Do not alow to dry out between watering. The real secret is to keep the big seed around 80, 90 or 100* f. Below 75*f. it will never sprout. If you use the method I discribed earlier in a nursery pot of sand and Cypress mulch, you could place it in the house where you may have winter central heating. Put it under a table, in a corner, etc. If you are warm, the Coconut will be warm ! Then into the greenhouse in Spring. Do not crack the Coconut. Put the "Monkey face" downward into sand/soil. If the husk is still on it, place the "puckered" end into soil, but first shave off a bit with a saw to expose fiber. Logos
formontcalamus
12-15-2007, 11:37 PM
Coconuts are seldom kept in cold storage. They are well sealed by Nature and remain viable for a year or two, however . . . the stores do not care if the Coconut is fresh or edable. Most stores stock them 'cause they are a novelty. Choose the largest you see and pick it up and shake it. If you hear no "Milk shake" then it must be old and may not be viable. Logos
D_&_T
12-16-2007, 12:32 AM
would being shipped in freezing weather like we have right now in the northern states make then not viable?
mskitty38583
12-16-2007, 01:30 AM
However, you guys are talking about splitting the nut and draining the milk ? Is this a porn group ??
ok of all the things ive heard on this forum.....that was the funniest thing! well ive heard that "bananas really do split..so im not even sure about the "nut thing"! logos when i read that i fell out of my chair. my sides still hurt from laughing. if you dont know how to do it, does it not make sence to ask? ha ha ha ha lol. rotflmao!!!!!!:D
JoeS475
12-16-2007, 04:14 AM
I brought two back from my September trip to Florida. One was a fresh green coconut from under a tree on the side of the Overseas Highway. The other I cheated since I bought it already growing.
Currently they are indoors at about 70 degrees. The growing plant is doing so slowly, but is alive and should be OK. The one from the side of the road is just hanging out in a pot with a soil/sand mix, but I don't expect much since its not warm enough. Hopefully at the end of next summer after getting some heat it will sprout!
Last year I tried grocery store coconuts with milk, but no husks. They cracked under the heat of the sun, and rotted!
~Joe
Taylor
12-16-2007, 09:51 AM
If you hear no "Milk shake" then it must be old and may not be viable. Logos
Just to add on to what Logos said, just because it does 'milk shake', that also doesn't mean that it is viable either. :02:
Taylor
mskitty38583
12-16-2007, 11:56 AM
ok guys...i caved. im ordering one. however that does not mean that i dont want to try it from seed. just have to find the right, pardon the expression "nut". i dont want it to peal and rot. might have to have my sister send me one up from fl.. well its freezing up here and we are getting snow flurries. there isnt much accumulating. its just really COLD!.:coldbanana:
formontcalamus
12-16-2007, 07:17 PM
Dear D & T . . . Indiana is very far north, but a sprouted palm should get through OK if the mailman delivers to your door. If its below 32*f. in the daytime it might be best to wait for a warm spell or till March. Logos
formontcalamus
12-16-2007, 07:40 PM
Joe . . . Winter Sucks !! Thats why I left Florida. Even there we had a freez or two every year. Go to the airport . . you could be in San Juan in three hours. This time of year the whole Island is jumping to Salsa. There is no escaping the constant dancing and music, and . . . its 80*f. coconut weather every day ! What do you do for a living ? Mabe I could help you find a job. #x**#@ Logos
For everyone . . . Has anyone ever heard the Christmas story of the tradition of "The three Kings" ? Any takers ? Logos
mskitty38583
12-16-2007, 08:09 PM
ok.. ill bite whats up w/ the three kings?
bencelest
12-17-2007, 02:04 PM
Every year Home Depot sells coconut with sprouts up to 2 feet. Sometimes, Wallmart also.
But I always shy away buying one because I feel that my location is not conducive for growing coconuts. I felt that it is just a waste of $35 for me.
Oh, I was tempted.
But to me all the goings are against me- 10 years of maintenance, any tempt below 70* F will kill it etc...
And here's an excerpt" The soil should be sandy-loamy and alkaline which is the beach/cayes environment. It is always best in the long run to plant palms where they grow naturally otherwise you will spend a lot of time and money trying to make something thrive in an environment that it does not like."
Unless I have a greenhouse that I can maintain that tempt and a money chamber that runs very deep......
And I still have not seen a coconut with fruit inside a commercial or private greenhouse.
Oh, I have all kinds of varieties of coconuts planted in my yard in the Philippines. The dwarf kinds, the pink-red dwarf that in 4 feet it bears fruit, the tall ones, and coconuts that the shell is nothing but meat no water inside but all white meat.
So I maybe a party looper but that's the fact.
I don't want to discourage you guys but to each its own.
bencelest
12-17-2007, 03:54 PM
If you have the right humidity and the right temperature AND Patience, coconut tree is the easiest tree to grow.
All you need is to put the dried fruit with the husk any place that is sandy, cool and airy and forget about them.
You'll see in due time they will sprout. You don't need to feed it because it has a built-in food system for 4 to 5 months. So I guess that's how nature spread them in 7,000 islands in the Philippines. Dried fruit fell off the water and the sea deposited them in a sandy beach to the next island.
So in the horizon when you see an island at far distant shore, all you see are coconut mangroves. Beautiful scenery.
But without the temperature 75 to 100*F and high humidity , you are going to have problems with them till you give up.
That''s why the only place I know of that coconut thrives only in Miami Florida and vicinity, anything North of it I don't see them grown in their yard.
Even as far South of California as in San Diego, I don't see them grown in parks or yard.
They are sensitive to low temperature.
I maybe wrong but that's my observation.
I've seen other tropicals like guavas, mangoes, bananas, grown way up in Los Angeles but not coconut.
JoeS475
12-17-2007, 05:38 PM
Logos, maybe one day when the money is right I'll be looking to move to a nice warm climate! For now I have to make do with telling friends in all seriousness, "yes I'm growing mango, pineapple, banana and coconut" here in New Jersey, even though none of them will ever fruit. The same New Jersey which is 20 degrees right now and under thick ice and brutal winds... ughhh!
Right, I'm off to the airport!
~Joe
bencelest
12-17-2007, 07:16 PM
BTW I was able to grow guavas here and fruited.
wamstick
12-17-2007, 07:48 PM
mskitty--I have sprouted a few coconuts in my time (back in the Islands) but lawd, wouldnt think of doing it here in the States. Dont know that them trees can stand the cold.
mskitty38583
12-17-2007, 08:42 PM
that is what im a little concerned about. i keep the banana room(thats what i call the den) at 70-75 *f( and its humid in here too), because of the nanas, i just dont think it would be warm enough, even if i set it on a vent, im kind of iffy on getting one and it dying.( i would be scarred for life...) maybe that is just one thing along with the ae ae i will wait on till i move back south. i do however love the look of palms. and here in my neck of the woods palms are not sold often. i lucked out on my majesty palm. there were a lot, but most looked nasty and so bad, i had a choice of very few. so thank yall for your honesty, and not candy coating this discussion.....sniff, sniff, sniff. lol :eek:
bencelest
12-17-2007, 09:50 PM
Mskitty:
If you like palm tree just like I do, the closest leaves to a coconut that I know of is the Queen Palm. That I have 2 growing in my front yard on the ground.
mskitty38583
12-17-2007, 11:18 PM
i will have to check out my favorite nursery and see if he has some. the last time i was at the nursery i didnt get past the first gh. so thanks on the advise for the queen palm. :D
Lagniappe
12-17-2007, 11:49 PM
the pygmy date palm sort of has that coconut palm look and does well in containers. I've wanted to try them for a while now and would definately try them in z6-7 since they can be brought in easily.
http://images.google.com/images?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4SUNA_enUS219US220&q=pygmy+date+palm&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi
mskitty38583
12-18-2007, 02:32 AM
those are awsome. thank you, ill have to check into those.:bananajoy:
bencelest
12-18-2007, 11:22 AM
I second. Wow, look at those clusters!
dablo93
12-18-2007, 02:13 PM
the P. Roebelinii is for zone 10 and with protection zone 9.
you can also get a Parajubea, little bit more expensive, but there doing great in zone 9 and lower with protection. butia is also very nice!
john_ny
12-18-2007, 02:42 PM
While on a trip with my Naval Reserve air transport squadron, I found a bunch of sprouted ones, in Guam. The husks were brown, or gray. The good part was that I didn't have to pay to ship them; just threw them on our own airplane, and brought 'em back. Since I'm in New York, they have to come inside in the winter. The bad part is, that by the time they start to look anything like an actual tree, they're to big to fit in the greenhouse anymore.
bencelest
12-18-2007, 05:10 PM
I came across this palm in another forum. This guy is looking for seeds of this.
It is called Phoenix reclinata.
He says " Also looking for fresh seeds of Phoenix reclinata also know as Senegal Date Palm ."
http://www.bananas.org/gallery/watermark.php?file=7295 (http://www.bananas.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=7288)
I can't believe the resemblance to a coconut tree. Almost identical sans fruit.
mskitty38583
12-18-2007, 06:12 PM
those are beautiful. when i move got to have some so i can decorate them with lites for christmas! and yes a corona w/ lime!
bencelest
12-18-2007, 08:53 PM
It maybe a coincidence but this guy who is looking for seeds is his favorite is Corona beer with lime. He does not have to worry because he's got all kinds of lime growing in his yard.
formontcalamus
12-19-2007, 12:03 AM
Getting close to Christmas and I thought it be nice to pass on a short story . . . (we Americans know so little about other cultures / shame).
Here in Puerto Rico on January 5th we have what is called Holy Week. Little children find a small cardboard box and go to the side of the road to cut grass, put the grass in the box and on the night of the 5th slide the box of grass under thier bed. They craw into bed after saying thier prayers and though they are supposed to go to sleep, they try to stay awake to see what happens. The tradition goes that if they have been good boys and girls the three "Reyes de mago", the same three kings that visited the baby Jesus bearing gifts will enter the house and . . . only if there is grass for thier Camels, they will leave gifts under the bed !!
And . . . In the past poor people who could not aford presents for thier children would secretly remove the grass and fill the little box with fruit and candy . . . Dulces, Chinas y Ganeo. (Sweets, Oranges and Bananas! )
If this does not touch the tender part of your heart as it did mine when I first heard the story . . . well . . . Logos
mskitty38583
12-19-2007, 12:21 AM
i think that is the sweetest story i have ever heard. i dont believe that children care what they get as long as they are 'remembered'. it makes every child feel special. children are a gift, and some people take that for granted. and as far as the corona and lime thing.... if anyone knows where i can get a corona tree, i would be very thankful.( need lime tree too.):ha:
bencelest
12-19-2007, 12:33 AM
Mskitty:
You may want a corona tree and a lime tree, all I want is a corona with lime in it.
And here's the data of the Phoenix reclinata
Locality:Africa
Cold Hardiness: 20šs, F.
Trunk type:Suckering (multiple trunks), rough, with spines on petioles (leafstalks).
Leaf type:Pinnate (feather shape).
Suckering/Solitary:Suckering (multiple trunks). Can be trimmed to desired number of trunks.
Maintenance:Easy
Speed of growth:Moderate
Height:20 to 25 feet mature
Soil requirements:Average
Sun Requirements:Full sun
General Description:
A desirable suckering fan palm that can tolerate some degree of cold weather. Very expensive when large. Can be transplanted.
mskitty38583
12-19-2007, 12:37 AM
your an easy man to satisify if that is all you need. me im not so easily satisfied i want both kind of trees!!:0518:. hey thanks for heads up on the palms. i love the palm look, it so ,so , tropical. ha ha. the way they rustle in the wind is soothing. their great.
bencelest
12-19-2007, 02:33 AM
Oh, I've been there and done THAT......
Yes, I am easy.
BabyBlue11371
12-19-2007, 10:46 PM
Kitty,
I have had a Pygmy date palm for about 5 or 6 yrs now.. I neglected it quite a bit and it grew very slow.. I'm taking better care of it now and it is doing much better.. The tips brown when they are not getting enough water. mine had brown tips constantly.. I have enjoyed it as a potted plant.. it has survived lots of neglect and other bad care giving (left it in the original pot for first 3 yrs)..
my neighbor had bought it to put by her pond and rather than take it in in the fall she gave it to me..
since I started paying attention to it and better care for it for past yr it has been growing lots faster.. though I would still call it a slow grower..
I'd say if you want one that looks like palm *tall trunk* then buy one that is there or almost there.. the trunk on mine is only about 6 inches tall give or take..
I did try to grow a coconut tree from a store bought nut.. I soaked the nut in warm water over night and planted it half way in a black pot and covered it with plastic..I used same soil I use for Citrus and other tropical plants.. I also weighed all of the nuts at the store to pick out the best one.. the smallest one that weighed the most was the winner..
The heavier they are the more liquid.. the older they get the less liquid they have.. thus the want for the heaviest one proportionate to size..
I think that it was the sitting in full sun that did it in.. sitting in full sun and cooked the nut.. The milk leaked out in to the soil and smelled most foul.. I have thought about trying it again but have been too busy with other things..
I would love to have a coconut palm even if I never got fruit off of it.. I've been fascinated with them since I was a kid and first saw one in a movie.. when I think of paradise my first thought is of a Coconut palm by a beach.. If I can't go to paradise.. would be nice to bring a bit of Paradise to me..
My 2c.
Gina *BabyBlue*
mskitty38583
12-19-2007, 11:08 PM
baby blue, i would not care if i ever got fruit off one, i just want one to say i have one! its the ha ha ha ha thing, i got one and you dont... know what i mean?
as for you being easy.....i aint got no dogs in that race. i aint got no pineapples in that fruit salad. and i aint getting in that kind of kool-aid! and i aint got no bananas on that tree. lol :D
magicgreen
12-19-2007, 11:13 PM
Formontcalamus, I did enjoy the story. Iam always interested in other cultures. I might even try this on my grandchildren. Magicgreen
bencelest
12-20-2007, 11:54 AM
"And . . . In the past poor people who could not afford presents for their children would secretly remove the grass and fill the little box with fruit and candy . . . Dulces, Chinas y Ganeo. (Sweets, Oranges and Bananas! )"
I have heard a lot more stories sadder than this in other cultures.
Makes me sad so bad.
bencelest
12-20-2007, 12:04 PM
moved
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