The coconut tree is truly unique and distinct, unlike any other of its kind. One of nature’s finest works of art, its tall slender trunk, bearing no branches, supports a canopy of broad featherlike leaves, which are better than windsocks for determining wind direction and strength.
    A stroll along the beach or a walk along a jungle path is always enhanced by the gentle music of the swaying coconut palm tree. The sounds are pacific and truly tropical, and they bring to mind gentle fairies playing amongst the treetops, cavorting from leaf to leaf and creating their own mystical magical music.
    Music from the leaves has been recorded with more conventional woodwind instruments to invoke peaceful images for relaxation techniques for those suffering from stress. Many people in relaxation centres around the world are relieving stress by learning to relax their minds and bodies with the natural music that most Balinese are in tune with every day. It is not surprising that this elegant lady of the tropics plays an integral part in the local lifestyle.
    In Bali and other areas of the Pacific, local people admire the beauty of the palm, but so important is it to Balinese life that it is sometime referred to as the “tree of life.” Virtually every part of the tree plays an important role in the lifestyle of the Balinese. From the fronds to the roots, all parts have value.

STEP 1:    Beware of falling coconuts
There are about four thousand species of palms, and since cross-pollination is a routine part of their existence, there are many hybrids. Some theories state that the coconut has crossed oceans on the currents and spread from island to island and even from continent to continent. A more likely explanation is that they were carried from one place to another by human hands, thus creating new and varied types of trees.
    Varying in size from majestic towering giants to modest diminutive Lilliputians, the coconut palm proliferates easily. Brown nuts lie in profusion on the ground, while young green nuts hang tantalisingly from the tops of seemingly unreachable heights. Sprouts shoot up easily from the nuts and the young trees, which grow in abundance on the ground. The warm humid rainy season followed by stinging yellow rays of sunshine sends shoots skyward in a matter of a few weeks.
    While walking through the rice fields, the casual observer might wonder at the neat alignment of the trees along the perimeter of the field. Why are the trees lined up neatly along the rice paddies? They make excellent wind breakers protecting the delicate rice stalks and ripening grains. Since they can be quite dangerous, the trees are never near a house. A falling coconut, especially from the highest trees, can literally be a lethal weapon to human beings. This fast moving missile can also cause costly roof damage to the house.
    Due to the danger of falling coconuts, the trees are pruned regularly. (Of course for the philosophers and thinkers, they provide shade and meditative music, but one wonders if a coconut falls in the forest and there is no one there to hear it, does it make a sound?) The trees are also quite versatile. Salty ocean breezes, which are death to many plants, nourish and enrich the coconut palm. They can also grow tall and strong near fresh water, with very little care and maintenance.

STEP 2:    Drink of the milk
Whatever the type of coconut palm, the best known use of its fruit is the thirst-quenching drink from a young green coconut, or kuud in the Balinese language. On a hot day, a gulp of the sweet water flowing down your throat is pure bliss. Not only is this a satisfying drink, to the Balinese the juice of the young coconut is good medicine for the stomach.
    It is often used to soothe stomach cramps caused by diarrhea, especially in young children and babies. It is also used as a remedy for colds and flus, but it must be taken as the only medicine, not combined with any over the counter remedies. One of the purposes of the clear sweet water is to cleanse the toxins from the body, thus it is better not to have chemical medicine. If you suffer from a mild stomach discomfort, try coconut water and soft rice. Within twenty-four hours, you should see the benefits.

next page>>

[top]
[welcome page]

copyright © 1999 Bali Echo. All rights Reserved
site design by : Access Bali Online