THE COCONUT AND ITS PRODUCTS 15 



fruit matures it grows thicker and harder by 

 absorbing the liquid contained in the central 

 cavity of the nut. The germ or embryo of the 

 nut is buried in the kernel at the basic end, near 

 one of the three hollows in the shell above de- 

 scribed. Young nuts are almost completely filled 

 with liquid, but this is absorbed as they grow until, 

 at maturity, the quantity is reduced by one-third. 



In specially prolific regions, such as Malabar, 

 trees begin to produce nuts as early as the end of 

 the fourth year, and some do so even earlier, but 

 the average period varies from four to six years, 

 and substantial crops can, as a rule, be relied 

 upon within six or seven years of planting. Of 

 course, the length of this period depends upon 

 locality, soil, methods of cultivation and many 

 other conditions, including the ability of the mana- 

 ger. After this period the crop shows a steady 

 increase in yield until the twenty-fifth year, when 

 it reaches a maximum, which it maintains until the 

 tree reaches the age of seventy. Then production 

 diminishes, though satisfactory crops are borne 

 for a further twenty, and in some cases thirty, 

 years. In Ceylon palms have been known to yield 

 fair crops when over a hundred years old. 



What crop should a tree bear ? Here, again, 

 everything depends upon the conditions that 

 prevail. Five or six fruit-bearing flower branches 

 usually occur in a coconut palm at one time and 



