Coir

made from plaited coconut fibre on a traditional house in Fiji The name coir originally comes from the Tamil கயிறு (kayiru), and later the Malayalam word കയർ (kayar), for cord or rope (traditionally, a kind of rope is made from the coconut fibre). Ropes and cordage have been made from coconut fibre since ancient times. The Austronesian peoples, who first domesticated coconuts, used coconut fibre extensively for ropes and sennit in building houses and lashed-lug plank boats in their voyages in both the Pacific and the Indian Oceans. Polynesians themselves grew a special type of coconut called the niu kafa which yields a lot more fibre per fruit than types grown for human consumption (niu vai, for their water). Later Indian and Arab navigators who sailed the seas to Malaya, China, and the Persian Gulf centuries ago also used coir for their ship ropes. Arab writers of the 11th century AD referred to the extensive use of coir for ship ropes and rigging. A coir industry in the UK was recorded before the second half of the 19th century. During 1840, Captain Widely, in co-operation with Captain Logan and Thomas Treloar, founded the known carpet firms of Treloar and Sons in Ludgate Hill, England, for the manufacture of coir into various fabrics suitable for floor coverings. ==Structure==

Coir fibres are found between the hard, internal shell and the outer coat of a coconut. The individual fibre cells are narrow and hollow, with thick walls made of cellulose. They are pale when immature, but later become hardened and yellowed as a layer of lignin is deposited on their walls. Each cell is about long and in diameter. Fibres are typically long. ==Processing==

Green coconuts, harvested after about six to 12 months on the palm, contain pliable white fibres. Brown fibre is instead obtained by harvesting fully mature coconuts when the nutritious layer surrounding the seed is ready to be processed into copra and desiccated coconut. The fibrous layer of the fruit is then separated from the hard shell (manually) by driving the fruit down onto a spike to split it (dehusking). A well-seasoned husker can manually separate 2,000 coconuts per day. Machines are now available which crush the whole fruit to give the loose fibres. These machines can process up to 2,000 coconuts per hour. Brown fibre The fibrous husks are soaked in pits or in nets in a slow-moving body of water to swell and soften the fibres. The long bristle fibres are separated from the shorter mattress fibres underneath the skin of the nut, a process known as wet-milling. The mattress fibres are sifted to remove dirt and other rubbish, dried in the sun and packed into bales. Some mattress fibre is allowed to retain more moisture so it retains its elasticity for twisted fibre production. The coir fibre is elastic enough to twist without breaking and it holds a curl as though permanently waved. Twisting is done by simply making a rope of the hank of fibre and twisting it using a machine or by hand. The longer bristle fibre is washed in clean water and then dried before being tied into bundles or hanks. It may then be cleaned and 'hackled' by steel combs to straighten the fibres and remove any shorter fibre pieces. Coir bristle fibre can also be bleached and dyed to obtain hanks of different colours. White fibre The immature husks are suspended in a river or water-filled pit for up to ten months. During this time, micro-organisms break down the plant tissues surrounding the fibres to loosen them — a process known as retting. Buffering Because coir pith is high in sodium and potassium, it is treated before use as a growth medium for plants or fungi by soaking in a calcium buffering solution; most coir sold for growing purposes is said to be pre-treated. Once any remaining salts have been leached out of the coir pith, it and the cocochips become suitable substrates for cultivating fungi. Coir is naturally rich in potassium, which can lead to magnesium and calcium deficiencies in soilless horticultural media. Coir fiber is rarely used as a potting material, except for orchids, and does not need buffering, as it has a very low cation-exchange capacity (CEC) capacity, hence not retaining salts. Coir does provide a suitable substrate for horticultural use as a soilless potting medium. The material's high lignin content is longer-lasting, holds more water, and does not shrink off the sides of the pot when dry allowing for easier rewetting. This light media has advantages and disadvantages that can be corrected with the addition of the proper amendment such as coarse sand for weight in interior plants like Draceana. Nutritive amendments should also be considered. Calcium and magnesium will be lacking in coir potting mixes, so a naturally good source of these nutrients is dolomitic lime which contains both. pH is of utmost importance as coir pith tends to have a high pH after some months of use, resulting in plant stunting and multiple deficiencies. Coir also has the disadvantage of being extremely sensitive to the Leucocoprinus greenhouse fungus. The addition of beneficial microbes to the coir media have been successful in tropical green house conditions and interior spaces as well. The fungi engage in growth and reproduction under moist atmospheres producing fruiting bodies (mushrooms). Bristle coir Bristle coir is the longest variety of coir fibre. It is manufactured from retted coconut husks through a process called defibering. The coir fibre thus extracted is then combed using steel combs to make the fibre clean and to remove short fibres. Bristle coir fibre is used as bristles in brushes for domestic and industrial applications. ==Uses==

Cordage, packaging, bedding, flooring, and others in Kerala, India from Sonsorol, Palau. All parts of the canoe are connected by thin coir ropes. Red coir is used in floor mats and doormats, brushes, mattresses, floor tiles and sacking. Many sources of coir, however, are heavily contaminated with pathogenic fungi, and the choice of the source is important. Coir is also useful to deter snails from delicate plantings, as a growing medium in intensive glasshouse (greenhouse) horticulture, and as an inert substrate in some hydroponic growing systems. . The soaking hose provides water and some nutrients. Coir is also used as a substrate to grow mushrooms. The coir is usually mixed with vermiculite and pasteurised with boiling water. After the coir/vermiculite mix has cooled to room temperature, it is placed in a larger container, usually a plastic box. Previously prepared spawn jars, usually grown using substrates such as rye grains or wild bird seed, are then added. This spawn is the mushroom's mycelium and will colonize the coir/vermiculite mix, eventually fruiting mushrooms. Coir fibre pith or coir dust can hold large quantities of water, just like a sponge. It is used as a replacement for traditional peat in soil mixtures, or, as a soil-less substrate for plant cultivation. Animal bedding Coconut coir pith is also used as a bedding in litter boxes, animal farms and pet houses to absorb animal waste. It can further be used as a terrarium substrate for reptiles or arachnids. Construction material Coconut fiber (coir) is used as a construction material because the natural fibers are eco-friendly. Additionally, coconut fiber (CF) has low thermal conductivity, is very tough, ductile, durable, renewable and inexpensive. It was observed in an experimental study that by partially replacing 2% of cement with CF, the compressive strength of the concrete is increased. Biocontrol Trichoderma coir pith cake (TCPC) has been prepared and successfully used for control of plant diseases. The dry product TCPC has a long shelf life. == Safety ==

Coir is an allergen, as also are the latex and other materials used frequently to treat coir. Biosecurity risks Coco fibre can harbor organisms that pose a threat to the biosecurity of countries into which it is imported. Coco peat has been imported into New Zealand since about 1989 with a marked increase since 2004. By 2009 a total of 25 new weed species had been found in imported coco peat. The regulations relating to importing coco peat into New Zealand have been amended to improve the biosecurity measures. On the other hand, coir can also contain beneficial life-forms. Coconut coir from Mexico has been found to contain large numbers of colonies of the beneficial fungus Aspergillus terreus, which acts as a biological control against plant pathogenic fungi. Trichoderma is a naturally occurring fungus in coco peat; it works in symbiosis with plant roots to protect them from pathogenic fungi such as Pythium. Coco peat may be sterilized to remove potential pathogens and weeds along with beneficial life. This may be done to remove contaminants in fresh material or to reuse old coir. Both heat (boiling or baking) and chemical means can be used. ==Major producers==

Total world coir fibre production is . Kerala, a state in the coastal region of India, produces 60% of the total supply of white coir fibre in the world. Sri Lanka produces 36% of the total brown fibre output. Over 50% of the coir fibre produced annually throughout the world is consumed in the countries of origin, mainly India. Together, India and Sri Lanka produced 59% of the coir produced in 2020. Sri Lanka remains the world's largest exporter of coir fibre and coir fibre based products. ==See also==