Coconut palm in Vile Parle leaves botanists puzzled
A coconut palm in Vile Parle East, Mumbai, has unusual 6-foot aerial roots, puzzling botanists about their function and stability role.
Mumbai: A coconut palm, tucked away in a corner of the Saraswati Sadan Housing Society in Vile Parle East has become the talk of the town among botanists. Its aerial roots, typically just above the soil, are at a six feet height on the plant’s trunk.
Botanist Chandrakand Lattoo explained that coconut palm trees develop aerial roots primarily as a stabilising mechanism, just above the ground, aiding the slender palm to withstand the strong gusts of wind. Unlike aerial roots seen in other plants, like the epiphytic orchids, these don’t help the plant absorb moisture or nutrients from the air. However, the Saraswati Sadan coconut palm has left scientists puzzled, with several unanswered questions.
In his many years as a botanist Lattoo had never seen such a tree with roots 6 feet in the air. “The trunk above the roots has a thicker girth than the trunk below, giving it a disproportionate look. It may be that the tips of the aerial roots are active in absorbing moisture, while the rest of the roots, darker in colour, are offering stability.” But that is just Lattoo’s hypothesis. Why the roots have sprouted, how they support the tree, are all questions only a cross section analysis could explain, Lattoo added.