Coconut

Soils And Climate


Soils

  • Coconut is grown in a wide variety of soils.
  • Red sandy loam, coastal sandy, laterite and alluvial soils are more suitable. Only heavy soil, lacking in drainage facilities are unsuitable.
  • Water supply determines the suitability of a particular soil type.
  • In heavy rainfall areas well drained soils are more suitable.


  • In low rainfall areas deep and fine soils having good water holding capacity are more suitable.
  • Soil conditions ideal for palm are good drainage, good water holding capacity, presence of water table below 3m and absence of rock within 1m of the surface.
  • Sandy soils with heavy sand without any source of ground water, clayey soils with poor drainage, laterite soils with hard rock beneath the surface and highly eroded soils should be avoided.
  • Sandy loam soils of Thanjavur with high water table during rains and low water table during summer are good.

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Climate

  • Coconut is a tropical crop and grows well with a hot climate.
  • Latitude and Altitude: The coconut thrives well within 23 degrees of the equator (between 20oN and 20oS latitudes) and an altitude of upto 600m above mean sea level. However, it is being grown upto 900 m above mean sea level in some places.
  • It occurs widely in the tropics.


Temperature

  • Temperature is an important weather factor that has great influence on the growth and productivity of the palm.
  • The palm prefers less diurnal variation between day and night temperature and does not tolerate extremes of temperature.
  • A mean annual temperature of 27oC is best for vigorous growth and good yield.
  • The yield reduces when mean temperature falls below 21oC.
  • High temperature may cause the developing inflorescences to dry up, and limit production during those months in the year.

Rainfall

  • A total rainfall of 1000 mm is sufficient if it is evenly distributed throughout the year.
  • However, rainfall upto 3000 mm is also ideal for coconut cultivation if the distribution varies to certain extent and drainage of the soil is good.
  • Prolonged dry spell requires irrigation.
  • Irrigation during summer months have positive correlation on the nut yield.
  • Staggered rainfall during different periods of the year is more important than the total rainfall during any particular period.
  • The rainfall received during any particular period is relevant to the texture and depth of the soil type.
  • A water table that is too high and remains stagnant over and long period is definitely harmful to the palm.

Humidity and wind

  • The optimum relative humidity is 80-85 per cent. High relative humidity increases the incidence of pest and diseases and reduces nutrient uptake.
  • The coconut palm can tolerate high winds but not cyclones.
  • Cyclones will uproot the palms or twist the crowns.
  • Conditions near the sea is ideal but palms comes up well even hundreds of kiolometeras in the inland away from the sea.
  • The palms near sea benefit from less diurnal fluctuation in the temperature and high relative humidity.
  • Moisture availability is not restricted near the sea.

Sunshine

  • The palm requires plenty of sunlight and does not grow well under shade or in cloudy conditions.
  • The lean and lanky growth and unproductiveness of palms growing in shade and the way they try to turn away from obstruction to expose the crown to the sun, afford sufficient evidence of the avidity of the palm for sunlight.
  • Cloudiness arrests the rate of transpiration.

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Tamilnadu

Coconut

Coconut Management