Anyone started a coconut palm tree before?

[faeriebritches]

I have been googling around and I am seeing mixed results from growing them straight from a coconut.. was thinking about getting one from the store and giving it a try.. any one have any advice .. or has anyone ever tried this?

[Shellee]

no but I would be very interested in your results! Never thought of that one!

[gone_tropical]

from the store? hm, I would think you'd need a fresh one, no?
but if it should grow, you are aware they are pretty cold sensitive? Zone 10 and higher to survive the cold...
we went to Marie Selby Gardens yesterday and my Mom wanted me to take a picture of her under just such a coconut palm. She almost got hurt when the palm dropped a nut at her and missed her by a couple of feet. I wanted to take that thing home so badly, but of course it would not fit in my pocket

[marasri]

Do coconut palms grow in Georgia. There are many palms that will do better in georgia. Coconut palms float up the gulf stream but they are a tropical. they don't look so great when they are small. We used to look for ones that were germinating and pick them up because they can take a long time to germinate. I am including a site that is in Europe but they have a great many species that you can research with environmental info. This is one of my favorite agave sites too.
http://www.rarepalmseeds.com/small.shtml#3

[faeriebritches]

thanks for all the info .. I will def. take a look at the link.. I was thinking I can get my local produce shop to get me a younger on in the spring.. I can grow it indoors for now.. thought it would be fun... I saw someone yesterday that had a few started and I thought they were really beautiful.. only a couple of feet tall and the leaves were beautiful.

[marasri]

Dropping coconuts is a danger in public parks in Hawaii. The out of the way ones that I would hang at were the worst. People have been killed on accassion. I had 3 untrimmed coconut palms in my back yard in Hawaii. Rats love to live in the crown also. I had this party in my backyard and after everyone left and the lights had been turned off and we were inside, I decided to go out and clean up. I turned on the yard lights and surprised about twenty rats. YUCK. I rimmed the tress with metal the next day. I didn't think that move through. My neighbors were PISSED at me! I was pissed at me. Those buggers started dropping off the trees and heading for the houses. We went through a couple of months of catching rats all the time. And these things were the size of large cats. HUGE RATS!!!!!!! After it simmered down life was back to normal. the tropics comes with vermin everywhere.

[marasri]

I found this while googling.
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/l...201322056.html

[marasri]

OOOH,I went to the Palmtalk.org site they mention and they had a great travelog forum. It is COLD outside and I am still in my nighty clicking away dreaming of gorgious places rich in palms far far away.
http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?showforum=12

[treehuggers]

Great pics. Palms are so beautiful! My mom has several in her yard in cali.-we just got back from a visit. I would have enjoyed the visit to the Marie Selby Gardens as well!

[cassiegerald]

I dont know much about coconut palm trees from the coconuts from the stores ,,but was told that you have to have one that is still in the shell as they fall from the tree,,my sister tried to get one to sprout that she just bought in the grocery store and it never did sprout,,,not trying to put a damper on your spirits ,,just telling what I knew,,,you all take care God bless you and your loved ones,,,Cassie

[amelia]

No, I haven't but I want to try one.

My info says it must be a large, mature coconut still in the husk. (Or, as my friend says, "not a hairy one.")

Plant with the coconut inclined -- "eye" portion up. Keep waterng the "eye."

[msmacgyver]

I was born and raised on Maui. I'm no expert and it's been 35 years since I last grew a coconut palm. My father was an extraordinary gardener and this is what he taught me.
If you want to grow a coconut you must imitate nature. Coconuts in the supermarket are harvested and husked. They will not grow. Coconuts must mature on the tree and fall to the ground naturally. Not all coconuts will sprout so get six of them and if you are lucky one will. Coconuts have everything they need to get started on the inside. It must have water or what people mistakenly call milk inside the coconut to grow. If you shake it you can hear if there is water inside. The coconut starts its growth cycle inside the coconut. It will develop a white spongy ball about the size of a tennis ball on the inside. The ball will absorb the water as it matures. When a coconut falls to the ground it always lands on its side never on either end. It makes a slight depression in the soil lays there and sprouts when it’s ready to. Only about ¼ of the coconut should be in the soil. If you bury the coconut it will just rot.
Following Dad’s advice we got six coconuts made slight depressions in the soil and laid each coconut on its side and just left them alone. They were rained on and it dried out many times. Dad was right. In its own sweet time one of them sent out a root that split the husk and came out of the stem end of the coconut. It pointed toward the ground. In time the palm part of the plant followed and pointed up. Eventually the root buried itself into the soil. Eventually the coconut decomposed.
I hope this helps.
Bernie

[marasri]

many of the coconuts that come in store have been refrigerated. Even the ones in husks. They won't grow.

[Kellyntx1]

I found some on ebay. I don't know if they will sprout or not though.