Date: Fri, 8 Aug 1997 08:11:29 +0200 (MET DST) From: Guy Van Der Kinderen <Guy.VanDerKinderen@rug.ac.be> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg3004$foo@default> Subject: Coconut milk
To Loyd and others,
Here's more about coconut milk. This liquid endosperm is known to
contain high levels of zeatin riboside, a cytokinin. It has been used to
germinate several temperate terrestrial orchid species, or to enhance
seedling development (because of the cytokinin). Since it also contains
many other nutrients, it is often used as such, only with the addition of
sugar and agar, but also in mixtures with other nutrient media. A
well-known germination medium is ZAK: 10 g sucrose, 15 g agar (which may
be decreased for CP to 8 or even 6 g), 20 ml of coconut milk, 1 l of
water. According to the orchid-authority Joseph Arditti (in: Orchid
Biology, Reviews and Perspectives II, ed. J. Arditti, Comstock Publishing
Associates, 1982), and several others, it is best to take water from
unripe coconuts, although he states that matured nuts may also be used
with good results. I can confirm this, since we have only ripe nuts here
from the shop, and I used the milk with success (that is, in orchids).
Arditti further states that coconut milk can be autoclaved, although I
prefer to add the liquid to the autoclaved medium by filter sterilisation
(most cytokinins are thermolabile). As said, the liquid was extracted from
fresh (mature) nuts (make sure the milk is not spoiled) through holes
drilled in the nut's 'eyes'. The milk was filtered over cloth or glass
wool, and kept frozen in small portions in plastic bottles, for later use.
How is that compared to making ice cream, Loyd? After all, the
most strange additives have been used to germinate orchid seeds, such as
potato-extract, tomato-juice, banana homogenate,... So, why not try
coconut ice cream?
Kind regards,
Guy VdK
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