Yield and quality of toddy from tall and dwarf varieties of coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) as influenced by inflorescence morpho-anatomy and season

The effect of variety, morpho-anatomy of the spadix, and tapping season of toddy yield and quality of coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) was investigated. Tapping was done on four different varieties of coconut: the tall palms Salambuyan and San Ramon and dwarf palms Malayan Red Dwarf and Sto. Nino. The study showed that tall palms were superior in terms of number of leaves, stem girth, length of the spadix, central axes, number of cut spikelet per section and total number of male flowers. Regardless of variety, longer length of the spadix was observed during the dry season, while more leaves were produced during the wet season. Most of the developing female flowers and cut spikelet were located at the middle section of the spadix, whereas smaller circumference, lesser, shorter and narrower vascular bundles were recorded at the tip section of the spadix of all the varieties. Circumference at the middle and the base sections of the spadix was bigger during the dry and the wet seasons, respectively. The dwarf palms possessed shorter interval from first paring to commencement of toddy flow than the tall palms, while tapping duration was observed to be longer during the dry season. Total toddy yield and yield per section of both palm types were comparable, although there was significant variation in toddy yield per section of the spadix for each variety. The bulk of the toddy yield (80 percent of the total) came from the tip and the middle sections of the spadix. In all the varieties, sap flow continuously increased within the tip section of the spadix, was at maximum at the middle section, and stopped at the base section. The chemical compositions of the sap from the two palm types were comparable except on the contents of phosphorus and total nitrogen, which were found higher in the tall and the dwarf palms, respectively. The total soluble solid (TSS) content of the tall palm Salambuyan was higher than that of the dwarf palms during the wet season. Higher TSS at the base of all the varieties was recorded for both tapping seasons, whereas higher total sugar content of the sap was noted during the wet season. Tapping duration, circumference of the spadix per section, length of the tapped spadix per section and cut spikelets per section were positively correlated with toddy yield. On the other hand, toddy yield was negatively correlated with an increase in number of leaves, and the total number, width and length of the vascular bundles. Chemical composition of the sap was not correlated with toddy yield.