Coconut

High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The Coconut Palm (Cocos nucifera) is a member of the family Arecaceae (palm family). It is the only species in the genus Cocos, and is a large palm, growing to 30 m tall, with pinnate leaves 4-6 m long, pinnae 60-90 cm long; old leaves break away cleanly leaving the trunk smooth. The term coconut refers to the seed of the coconut palm. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word. The coconut palm is grown throughout the tropics for decoration as well as for its many culinary and non-culinary uses; virtually every part of the coconut palm has some human uses. In cooler climates (but not less than USDA Zone 9), a similar palm, the Queen palm (Syagrus romanzoffiana) is used in landscaping. Its fruit are very similar to the coconut but much smaller. It was originally classified in Cocos genus along with the coconut, but was later moved to Syagrus. A recently discovered palm, Beccariophoenix alfredii from Madagascar is nearly identical to the Coconut, even more than the Queen palm. It is cold-hardy and makes a good coconut-lookalike for many[which?] cooler areas. The coconut has spread across much of the tropics, probably aided in many cases by seafaring people.