Coconut is the fruit of the coconut palm (Cocos Nucifera). The origin of coconut plant is unknown. Most claims the home of the coconut is South Asia, while others claim South America. Regardless of its origin, the coconut has spread across much of the tropics, probably aided in many cases by sea-faring peoples, and become very popular in cooking as part of coconut recipes. The fruit is light and buoyant and presumably spread significant distances by marine currents. Some coconuts have been collected from the sea as far as Norway.
The coconut palm thrives on sandy soils and is highly tolerant of salinity. For optimum growth, coconuts need high humidity and prefer warm areas with abundant sunlight and regular rainfall, like shorelines of the tropics.
Botanically, a coconut is a simple dry nut known as a fibrous drupe. It is not fruit. The shell of the coconut has three pores that are clearly visible on the outside surface of the shell. Adhering to the inside wall of the shell is “the coconut meat”, the white and fleshy edible part of the seed.