Planting a coconut seedling
Source: QR 03 - නිවැරදිව පොල් පැළයක් සිටවන ආකාරය — Coconut Research Institute Sri Lanka, 2022-03-29.
1. Choose the place
- In a home garden, pick a place that gets proper sunlight.
- A flat surface with sandy loam soil is ideal.
- Keep 26 feet between one plant and the next.
2. Dig the hole
| Soil | Hole size |
|---|---|
| Sandy loam | 3 x 3 feet |
| Hard gravel | 4 x 4 feet |
- While digging, keep the soil from the first 1 foot (topsoil) in one pile and the soil from below it (bottom soil) in a second pile.
3. Materials per hole
| Material | Amount |
|---|---|
| Coconut husks | 2 layers |
| Organic fertilizer | 10 kg to 12 kg |
| Dolomite | 1 kg |
| YPM (young palm mixture) — wet zone | YPM-W, 1250 g |
| YPM (young palm mixture) — dry zone | YPM-D, 1 kg |
4. Fill the hole
- Lay a layer of coconut husks at the bottom of the hole, with the cotton (soft, fibre) side facing up.
- Add just enough topsoil to cover the husk layer.
- Lay another layer of coconut husks the same way.
- Add the rest of the topsoil on top of it.
- Mix the organic fertilizer, YPM and dolomite into the bottom soil.
- Fill the hole with that mix until 15 cm from the top are left unfilled. This gap helps water move towards the seedling.
\ | /
\ | / seedling
_______________\|||/_____________________
| ||| |
| 15 cm left unfilled |
|_______________________________________|
| 5. bottom soil mixed with organic |
| fertilizer, YPM and dolomite |
|_______________________________________|
| 4. topsoil - the rest of it |
|=======================================|
| 3. coconut husks, fibre side up |
|_______________________________________|
| 2. topsoil - just enough to cover |
|=======================================|
| 1. coconut husks, fibre side up |
|_______________________________________|
<------------- hole width -------------->
5. Plant the seedling
- Dig a small hole in the filled soil for the seedling.
- Remove the bottom of the polybag and place the seedling in the hole.
- Add some soil around it, and only then remove the polybag completely. This protects the roots of the seedling.
6. After planting
Add mulching around the seedling using coconut husks.