Reference: Kasma Loha-unchit in It Rains Fishes.

Fruit, Nut or Seed? The name connotes that it is a nut, but just by looking at it, it seems more like a fruit since it hangs and comes from the coconut palm tree. Some people say that it is both and also a seed. So what is it really? A FRUIT Because it comes from a coconut tree and may be eaten! A NUT Because it looks likes a giant nut. But unlike other nuts, cannot be eaten as a whole! A SEED Unlike some fruits that have seeds inside that may be used for planting, the coconut is different because it is a seed in itself! The coconut naturally falls from the tree if not picked. A mature coconut has a shell that is hard to crack. If left alone, the dry and brown coconut will grow a green shoot out of its shell. At the eye of the coconut, an embryo develops from the nutritious juice and white flesh of the fruit. This becomes the young coconut seedling which can last for weeks or months merely sustained by the food and water of the coconut. The roots will slowly develop and grow out of the shell, anchoring the new plant in the ground. This then becomes a tree on its own with time. Coconut palm trees live long and productive lives. They become coconut bearing in 5 years and lasts up to 80 years. Coconuts float, giving them the ability to travel to distant islands. Once marooned on that island, since the coconut itself is the seed of the coconut tree, they can root themselves and become not just one but many coconut palm trees that again, with time, will be part of the beautiful landscape of a tropical island!