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Coconut palm
नारियल (nariyal)
A tree that supplies roofing, rope, oil and sweetener, and whose fruit is broken at the start of almost any ceremony.
👀 How to recognise it
A leaning grey trunk ringed with old leaf scars and a crown of long feathered fronds. Trunks lean toward the light, which is why coastal groves all tilt seaward.
Where to see it
Goa
Goa reclassified the coconut palm as a tree in law after a public campaign over its removal from the protected list, a rare case of a plant's legal category becoming a political argument.
Palolem · Agonda · Sahakari Spice Farm
Gokarna
On this coast the coconut is both a temple offering and the household economy, and the palm groves behind the beaches are working plantations rather than scenery.
Kudle Beach · Om Beach · Gokarna Beach
Kochi
Coir, the fibre from the husk, built an entire industry on this coast, and the coconut is broken to open almost any ceremony in Kerala.
Kadamakkudy Islands · Cherai Beach
Mumbai
On Narali Purnima, the full moon of Shravan (usually August), Mumbai's Koli fishing families offer coconuts to the sea and pray for calm water as the new fishing season opens.
Juhu Beach · Juhu Beach Neighborhood · Elephanta Caves
Murudeshwar
Coconut groves behind the beach are the local economy rather than decoration, and coastal Karnataka's temple cooking is built on coconut instead of dairy fat.
Murudeshwar Beach · Apsarakonda Falls & Beach
Udupi
On this coast breaking a coconut is how a building, a boat or a journey is begun. Udupi's vegetarian temple cuisine is built on coconut rather than dairy, and the whole Karavali coast rests on this tree.
Malpe Beach · Uppinakudru Island · Mattu Beach