This video can be see in HD or any lower resolution, please choose the best option according to the quality of your connection. Also available on the website of Diversiflora International.
In 1998, in the framework of an expertise
on collecting strategies (Bourdeix et al, 1999[i]),
the island of Hung Phong (01008N 10622E) in Mekong Delta was visited. While interacting with farmers, it appeared that
what farmers called “Dwarf’ and “Tall” coconut palms did not fit with what was
described in all other countries. More precisely, some coconut palms described
by farmers as “Tall-types” had the typical stem of what is normally called
“Dwarf”: a thin stem without any basal bulb, and very short internodes.
We finally find an explanation (see fig. 1
and 2). In this island, farmers had a very special traditional practice, never
described before (as far as we know).
Figure 1. View of different coconut stems. From left to right: Malayan Dwarf, Compact Dwarf, Indo-Atlantic Tall, Asian-Pacific Tall types of coconut varieties (Photos R. Bourdeix, Côte d’Ivoire). |
When 2 years old, the young tall coconut
palm is removed from the ground, its roots and leaves are cut and, after that,
the palm is planted again in the ground. Such palm will develop stem similar to
those of Dwarf cultivars: no bole, very short internode distance and slow
vertical growth. Farmers said that this practice causes a delay of about one
year on the starting of production but does not affect the future performance
of the palms.
Figure 2. View of different coconut stems in Mekong Delta. Normal stem of a Tall-type coconut palm (left) in comparison with same variety treated for reducing growth (Photo R. Bourdeix, Vietnam). |
It could be very useful to to scientifically assess this traditional practice, for both
extending the lifespan of accessions in ex
situ Coconut field genebanks, and for proposing a new ways of cultivation
making harvest and field management more convenient and safe.
[i] Bourdeix, R., Baudouin, L., Ollivier, J., Labouisse, J.-P., 1999.
COGENT consultancy report on coconut collecting strategy. CIRAD. Montpellier,
France,