COIR.
The cocoa palm grows on the shores of tropical countries, clustering its huge, three-angled nuts under an umbrella of leaves. The nut is egg shaped, and the three-sided, smooth-rinded fruit is the husk. The green husks contain coarse, stiff, but elastic fibres that are made into door mats and coco matting in this country. In Asia and
Europe, coir fibre is used for cables. The bulk of the coir of commerce comes from Ceylon, and from the southern shores of India and China.
The fibre becomes brittle if the nuts are allowed to ripen. It is used for leaf mold in greenhouses and conservatories.