Nuts for Coconuts!

Coconuts are awesome! Why you ask? Because they are the one nut that just keeps on giving.

They give us delicious coconut water, coconut oil, amazing white flesh, coconut milk and also have some incredible medicinal benefits.

5 Facts on the Awesomeness of Coconuts!

  1. Fresh Coconuts are cholesterol free, 99 percent fat free, low in carbohydrates and occurring sugars and have less than 100 kilojoules per 100ml. This makes them a great high nutrient/low energy food. They’re also additive and sweetener free! 😉
  2. Forget multicoloured Sports Drinks!  Coconuts contain electrolytes and are a natural isotonic with similar or the same rehydrating benefits as this magical lolly water (just without the multimillion dollar advertising and sponsorship deals!)
  3. Coconuts are a good source of some of our body’s favourite nutrients and minerals, like zinc, selenium, iodine, sulfur, manganese, boron, molybdenum, ascorbic acid and B group vitamins
  4. They are good for digestion and handy to have around when the dreaded stomach flu is around.  They’ve also been known to reduce the size of gallstones!
  5. Last, but not least!  They are also great for dabbing on skin to help reduce inflammation and soreness around skin allergies and irritations. I remember one New Year’s by the beach when one of our little yogis came face to face (quite literally) with a nasty stinger!  Thanks to a quick thinking friend and a fresh coconut, the encounter was a bit less painful than it could have been!  On another note, it has also been suggested that the potassium and antioxidents in coconuts promote smoother, more youthful looking skin!

Here are some more fun facts for kids about the magical coconut or for coconuts gone wild, check out this amazing list of 333 uses for coconut oil!

So here at Rainbow Hollow, you can now understand why we eat and drink so many coconuts! And since we discovered many coconut shells sitting in our compost bin that may take many years to break down, we wanted to come up with ways that we could use these shells.

Here is one fun way to reuse your coconut shells.

How to make a coconut shell hanging basket

Firstly dry out your shell for a few days, making sure you have scraped out all the last bits of flesh.

Drill three holes around the top where you have cut open the shell.

Drill one more hole at the bottom for the water to drain through.

Fill your shell with some beautiful soil

Plant some seeds, seedlings or cuttings. You can make a herb garden, a succulent garden, flowers, fruit or anything your heart desires, so long as it will thrive in a small pot (have a chat to your local nursery owner).

Cover with rocks and decorate with little ornaments (we made ours out of sculpty!)

Thread some hemp string, left over ribbon or chain you have lying around though your drilled holes and tie it together at the top. Anything strong enough to hang your coconut hanging basket is fine.

Now hang up your shell (outside or inside) where it will catch the sun.

So enjoy your magical, delicious, super amazing coconuts!!  The nut that gives us water, food, nutrient AND entertaining craft activities!

Rainbows!! 🙂

 

 

Rainbow Pammy
administrator
Pammy is an avid lover of nature and art as a tool for mindfulness, She study's and explores her surroundings in the Perth hills and beaches to create raw and organic pieces including botanic art, ceramics, wild clay, printings, pressings and preserving's. With the idea of country heals, art heals, she uses nature and the practices of yoga in both her daily life, in her permaculture garden and her art. Pammy aspires to share her passion for sustainability, the connection to land and country and art as healing with her wider community through gatherings, workshops and yoga.

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