Pattaya Garden Unveils Rare Coco de Mer Harvest Worth Millions
Nong Nooch Tropical Garden in Pattaya has successfully harvested rare Coco de Mer palms, yielding 18 seeds valued at 1.8 million baht after a 6-7 year cultivation process. The garden's botanists achieved this through hand-pollination of the dioecious species native to the Seychelles, which holds the record for the world's largest seed. The event showcased the fruit's interior and allowed public tasting, highlighting the garden's role in conserving over 18,000 plant species.
Nong Nooch Tropical Garden in Pattaya, Chonburi, has showcased the opening of rare Coco de Mer fruits valued at 1.8 million baht. The harvest of 15 fruits produced 18 seeds worth approximately 100,000 baht each, the result of a cultivation process requiring 6-7 years from pollination to harvest.
On November 11, 2026, garden president Kampol Tansajja led a team of botanists in an event to peel and split the sea coconuts, also known as double coconuts (Coco de Mer), a rare palm species from the Seychelles Islands. Valued at roughly 100,000 baht per fruit, this marked the second such opening this year, allowing staff, media, and tourists to examine the fruit's interior and taste its flesh.
The Coco de Mer, native to the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean, holds the Guinness World Record for the largest seed of any plant. The species is dioecious, with separate male and female trees, requiring pollen transfer from male to female flowers for fruit set. Nong Nooch's botanists achieved continuous fruiting through hand-pollination during optimal windows.
However, success does not come overnight. After pollination and fruit set, another 6-7 years of care are needed before fruits mature fully and are ready for harvest. Germinating seeds for propagation takes an additional two years.
In this opening, 15 fruits yielded 18 seeds with a combined value exceeding 1.8 million baht. All fruits were split to extract seeds for propagation, while both young and mature fruits were peeled for tasting by staff, media, and visitors.
Currently, Nong Nooch Tropical Garden maintains 104 Coco de Mer trees: 59 planted in ground (7 male, 11 female, 41 undetermined sex) plus 45 seedlings under nursery care for future propagation. The garden houses over 18,000 plant species from around the world, and its conservation and propagation of the Coco de Mer represents a significant botanical mission, reflecting Thai expertise in cultivating and preserving rare foreign flora while developing a world-class botanical learning center.
