Coconut coir – also known as coco coir – is composed of the brown and white fibers found between the shell and the outer coating of a coconut seed. A coconut consists of two main parts, the inner coconut kernel which we eat, and the outer husk. The outer husk consists of fibers and corky material found between the fibers. In horticulture, the term coir is used interchangeably with the term coir pith and is sometimes called coir peat, coir dust, coir meal or coco peat. The material is brown, sawdust-like and looks similar to dry peat moss. Most of the coir used in horticulture comes from larger coconut fiber processing mills located in Sri Lanka and India. Choir has many of the same properties as peat moss including an ability to hold a lot of water. Coir tends to have high levels of potassium and low levels of calcium (ref 4). It is not a perfect substitute for peat moss, but for the purpose of this post let’s assume it is good enough to be used as an alternative potting media.
