Cocos Species, Coconut Palm
Cocos nucifera
Family: | Arecaceae (ar-ek-AY-see-ee) (Info) |
Genus: | Cocos (KOH-kohs) (Info) |
Species: | nucifera (noo-SIFF-er-uh) (Info) |
Category:
Edible Fruits and Nuts
Tropicals and Tender Perennials
Palms
Water Requirements:
Requires consistently moist soil; do not let dry out between waterings
Sun Exposure:
Full Sun
Foliage:
Evergreen
Foliage Color:
Chartreuse/Yellow
Dark/Black
Orange/Apricot
Cream/Tan
Dark Green
Light Green
Medium Green
Height:
4-6 ft. (1.2-1.8 m)
6-8 ft. (1.8-2.4 m)
8-10 ft. (2.4-3 m)
10-12 ft. (3-3.6 m)
12-15 ft. (3.6-4.7 m)
15-20 ft. (4.7-6 m)
20-30 ft. (6-9 m)
30-40 ft. (9-12 m)
over 40 ft. (12 m)
Spacing:
36-48 in. (90-120 cm)
4-6 ft. (1.2-1.8 m)
6-8 ft. (1.8-2.4 m)
8-10 ft. (2.4-3 m)
10-12 ft. (3-3.6 m)
12-15 ft. (3.6-4.7 m)
15-20 ft. (4.7-6 m)
20-30 ft. (6-9 m)
30-40 ft. (9-12 m)
Hardiness:
USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1 °C (30 °F)
USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7 °C (35 °F)
USDA Zone 11: above 4.5 °C (40 °F)
Where to Grow:
Danger:
N/A
Bloom Color:
Orange
Red-Orange
Gold (yellow-orange)
Pale Yellow
Bright Yellow
Green
Pale Green
Chartreuse (yellow-green)
Bloom Characteristics:
This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds
Bloom Size:
Under 1"
Bloom Time:
Blooms repeatedly
Other details:
May be a noxious weed or invasive
Soil pH requirements:
6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic)
6.6 to 7.5 (neutral)
7.6 to 7.8 (mildly alkaline)
Patent Information:
Non-patented
Propagation Methods:
From seed; direct sow outdoors in fall
Direct sow as soon as the ground can be worked
From seed; direct sow after last frost
Seed Collecting:
Allow seedheads to dry on plants; remove and collect seeds
Seed does not store well; sow as soon as possible
Regional
This plant is said to grow outdoors in the following regions:
Hayward, California
Newport Beach, California
San Francisco, California
Venice, California
Altamonte Springs, Florida(3 reports)
Big Pine Key, Florida
Boca Raton, Florida(2 reports)
Bonita Springs, Florida
Bradenton, Florida
Cape Coral, Florida(2 reports)
Cocoa Beach, Florida(3 reports)
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Hollywood, Florida
Holmes Beach, Florida
Homestead, Florida(3 reports)
Islamorada, Florida
Jupiter, Florida
Key Largo, Florida(2 reports)
Key West, Florida(2 reports)
Kissimmee, Florida(3 reports)
Lake Mary, Florida(2 reports)
Lake Worth, Florida(2 reports)
Lakeland, Florida(3 reports)
Maitland, Florida
Merritt Island, Florida
Miami, Florida
Naples, Florida
Odessa, Florida
Orlando, Florida(10 reports)
Palm Bay, Florida
Rockledge, Florida
Ruskin, Florida
Sanford, Florida
Sarasota, Florida
Sugarloaf Shores, Florida
Summerland Key, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Venice, Florida
Vero Beach, Florida(2 reports)
West Palm Beach, Florida
Windermere, Florida
Winter Haven, Florida(3 reports)
Winter Park, Florida
Ainaloa, Hawaii
Hawaiian Beaches, Hawaii
Hilo, Hawaii(2 reports)
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honomu, Hawaii
Kailua, Hawaii
Kaneohe Station, Hawaii
Kurtistown, Hawaii
Leilani Estates, Hawaii
Maunawili, Hawaii
Nanawale Estates, Hawaii
Pahoa, Hawaii
Dorr, Michigan
ST JOHN, Mississippi
Vieques, Puerto Rico
Cayce, South Carolina
Brownsville, Texas
Houston, Texas
Christiansted, Virgin Islands
St John, Virgin Islands
Deer Park, Washington
show allGardeners' Notes:
Rating | Content |
---|---|
Positive | On Dec 24, 2020, jasonthienzy from Kota Kinabalu, I've had a decade worth of experience growing coconuts, mostly Malayan dwarfs and tall. Coming from Malaysia where the average is 30°C with only distinct dry and wet seasons, I am able to watch them grow round the clock. I have grown them in coastal plains as well as up to 500 metres a.s.l. in a mountainous valley. |
Neutral | On Mar 29, 2016, coriaceous from ROSLINDALE, MA wrote: The Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council has listed this species as a Category ll invasive. That means that there is a danger of its altering native plant communities by displacing native species, changing community structures or ecological functions, or hybridizing with natives. |
Positive | On Feb 20, 2014, DaveTorquay from Torquay, I grew a Cocos nucifera for a number of years in my garden in Torquay SW England. It germinated from a nut I bought back from a holiday to the Bahamas, I simply tossed it onto my side border, which receives sun from approximately 10:43am to 16:21pm during the summer months, where it readily sprouted. During its first winter I gave minimal protection with some low grade horticultural fleece, (probably overkill as Torquay very rarely drops below 10C/50F during an average winter), and it sailed through.The following summer it pushed out 8 new fronds, summers here have average highs of 32C/90F, with the hottest days reaching around 38C/100F and average minimums of 24C/75F, with some nights staying particularly uncomfortable with lows closer to the 30C/86F mark. The Cocos chugged along for seve... read more |
Positive | On Jul 24, 2012, Palm1978 from Bonita Springs, FL wrote: Very common in Southwest Florida - and thankfully so! Unfortunately, it suffers burn damage or death in cold spells, dies from LY and now is being invaded by the Gumbo Limbo Spiraling White Fly on both coasts of Florida. Fertilize it regularly and drench the bud with copper fungicide before the cold hits and - God willing - you should be able to maintain a beautiful coconut. |
Positive | On Aug 20, 2010, puremagick3 from Brisbane, I live in Brisbane, Australia (Late 27*S) and I have a tall Coconut and a Malay Coconut (both Seedlings) They are both doing extremely well. The climate here is Tropical/Sub Tropical (Very Similar to Miami). We get Wet season (Summer) highs of 30c (86F) and Wet season Lows of 22c (72F) and in the Dry season (Winter) we get highs of 21 - 22c (70 - 72F) and lows of 11c (52F) and high humidity for most of the year (70%) except in the dry season when the humidity can go down to 18% if the winds coming from the West (From the desert interior) but I have got no cold burn or wind burn on them and they havent stop growing all winter. |
Positive | On Jun 2, 2010, FlKeysRedneck from Key Largo, FL wrote: Coconut palms are my favorite palm tree of all. |
Positive | On Feb 19, 2009, JamesPark from Auckland, The most hardy plant I have ever known. |
Positive | On Aug 21, 2008, grouper from Odessa, FL wrote: You can find fruiting coconuts all over the Tampa area and especially along the beach in St. Pete/Clearwater. There are numerous 20' trees in neighborhoods 15 miles n. of dwntwn Tampa that have mucho fruto. Most of these planted after the winter of '89 and have gone almost un-scathed since. They are so cheap and plentiful in the nurseries why not try one? The area is beginning to show why it's the new z10. |
Neutral | On Jul 23, 2008, Jungleman from Pasadena, CA (Zone 9b) wrote: I planted one outdoors when I was living in the Hollywood Hills, CA, Sunset Zone 23 (Newport is in Sunset 24, a slightly milder, more humid climate). It did not survive. I believe the problem was twofold in that it was overly irrigated in the winter (as we had no temps below 40F that year), though it was planted on a south facing slope. The soil type was rather sandy clay, so that was most likely a contributing factor in it's demise. |
Positive | On Jun 7, 2008, Tetrazygia from Miami, FL (Zone 10b) wrote: Coconuts can be hardier than the 10b listed, wherever hard freezes don't affect them. However, they tend to fruit only in warmer areas and so typically only set fruit in coastal South Florida and Hawaii. |
Neutral | On Oct 21, 2007, BayAreaTropics from Hayward, CA wrote: Well,I planted on in my Northern California garden in July of 08. As of Jan 1st 2009,its alive and looking as it did in summer..seems to be still growing as the spear that it went into winter with is still opening.Slowly,but opening. |
Positive | On Mar 27, 2006, PanamaJack from Santa Monica, CA (Zone 10b) wrote: I brought a coconut from my home country of Panama. I live in coastal Southern California, in Newport Beach. The coconut has been doing great! is has grown at an amazing rate. Since I brought it to SoCal during the winter, I have kept it mostly indoors, where I keep the temps around 72 degrees. I take it out on the balcony only on sunny days above 60 degrees. One week in February we had all days around 80 degrees and it loved the heat. Now I will be leaving it out during the day since temps are back into the 70s. Can't wait for the SoCal heat to kick in and watch my tropical baby grow!...I have posted a picture so you can see it. There's also a specimen on Pacific Coast Highway in the city of Newport Beach, about 45 miles south of Los Angeles. The palm is not too big, it has been there fo... read more |
Positive | On Sep 30, 2005, AnaM149 from Casselberry, FL (Zone 9b) wrote: This is one of my most favorite tropicals. I really hope it will do well over our winters. I am hoping it will get tall enough in a year or two that it will be above the frosts. I keep mine in a spot of the backyard that ALWAYS gets flooded during storms. And the only time it actually dries (when you dig a foot or two and the soil is dry) is if it has not rained for a few weeks (about 5 or 6). Water will not be a problem. Cant wait for my first coconut! |
Positive | On Jun 26, 2005, sweetthing from Cocoa Beach, FL wrote: we first purchased 5 of our now 12 coconut palms at a local superstore. They were approx 18 in high. Now five years later, they are over 16 feet. We got our first coconuts last year on two of the five. They have done extremly well with little care but MUCH water. They surived the two hurricanes last year with no damage at all and we had winds over 100 miles per hr. We love them so much we planted 7 more and all are doing GREAT! They are beautiful and make our backyard into our little tropical paradise! |
Positive | On Aug 30, 2004, OIIIIIO from Owings Mills, MD wrote: Bought a nut from a grocery store that still had liquid inside. |
Neutral | On Aug 27, 2004, tcfromky from Mercer, PA (Zone 5a) wrote: Coconut Palms are, no doubt, the most universally recognized and economically important palm. Copra (the dried "meat" of the seed), from which oil is extracted, is a significant cash crop throughout the tropics. Coir, the fiber from the fruit, is used in manufacturing. The fruits, or coconuts, yield several food products at different stages of development, and the leaves are used for thatch or are woven into baskets, mats and clothing. Even the trunks are used for construction. Of the tribe Cocoeae, and subfamily Arecoideae they are also known by the botanic name Cocos nucifera. |
Positive | On Aug 23, 2004, Kylecawaza from Corte Madera, CA (Zone 10a) wrote: IF you want this palm in Southern California it is possible. They do not die from the temperatures, but from a combining effect of the cooler temperatures, the water, and the soil. If you want it to survive, make sure you dig a large whole and fill it in with mostly sand, also plant it on a mound and in full sun, and NEVER water it in thje winter, or at times the average high temperature is below 75 degrees. There are a few surviving trees. |
Positive | On Jul 9, 2004, tovis from Dorr, MI wrote: Well looks like I am the furthest north growing in the database. I live in Michigan, plant was recieved via mail from Hawaii. Planted and have been caring for for about a month now and its growing. |
Positive | On Jul 8, 2004, punaheledp from Kailua, HI (Zone 11) wrote: this is hawaii...there are coconuts. like them best in somebody elses yard, or along the beaches, parks, pretty in lower valley areas... had one large and many of it's offspring but had it removed as I was not going to climb all 25'-30' of it for trimming and bringing in trimmers got old (falling frond is one thing, but falling coconuts where you may be is another). Called "niu" in Hawaii, it is from S. Pacific and brought here by early polynesians who used virtually all parts. there is something graceful about the tree, but they can get kind of spindley looking when REALLY tall. (used too leave extra nuts on curb, and almost always someone would pass by that wanted them) P.S. No problem with crabs, but rats are a problem. people band them with wide metal, but I have been told that'... read more |
Neutral | On Aug 13, 2003, Thaumaturgist from Rockledge, FL (Zone 10a) wrote: The nocturnal Coconut Crab or Robber Crab (Birgus latro) is a delicacy in the Cook and other Pacific Islands. |
Positive | On Mar 3, 2003, Greenknee from Chantilly, VA (Zone 6b) wrote: Self seeds - coconuts float around the world in tropical zone, wash up on beaches and germinate. Trees never straight, but lean and curve. When blown over by hurricane force winds, they will right themselves. |