



Fig. 179. The coco palrh {Cocos nucijera) 



This tropical member of the arum family reaches a height of 100 feet and furnishes 

 food, shelter, and fiber for millions of people. The flower clusters, a, are grouped like 

 those of Jack-in-the-pulpit (Fig. 2 6) with the pistil flowers near the base of the spike 

 and the stamen flowers toward the tip, b. There are three carpels, c, in the pistil, but 

 only one embryo ripens, rf is a section of the fruit, showing the husk, the shell, the 

 embryo embedded in the endosperm, and the hollow cavity containing the milk. 

 Every part of the fruit, the stem, and the leaves is put to use in some way 



