Coirpith is an underutilized by-pro

Coirpith is an underutilized by-product of the coconut.
The use of coirpith waste in agriculture as a rooting
medium, mulch and soil conditioner to improve soil
drainage has proved bene®cial (Hume, 1949). India
ranks third in the world in the production of coconuts.
It is estimated that 0.5 million tonnes of coirpith is
generated per annum in India. Coirpith constitutes
about 70% of the coconut husk. Studies on the physical
properties of the material have established that it has a
porosity of about 70% and the water holding capacity is
above 500% (Anida Das, 1992). Addition of coirpith
compost (CPC) has been proved to be successful in the
cultivation of groundnut (Nagarajan et al., 1986), rice
(Selvi and Augustine Selvaseelan, 1992), coconut (Joshy
et al., 1985) and horticultural plants (Theradi Mani and
Marimuthu, 1994; Ravi Chandra et al., 1996).
Mulberry (Morus alba L.) is the sole food for the
silkworm Bombyx mori and the production of good
quality and quantity of cocoons depends on the production
of a good quality and quantity of mulberry
leaves in the sericulture industry. The e€ects of addition
of a ®xed concentration of CPC with various combinations
of inorganic fertilizers on the growth and yield of
the Kanva-2 variety of mulberry plant have been investigated
(Joseph et al., 1996). In the present work e€ects
of addition of increasing quantities of CPC alone on the
growth, and the quality of leaves, of the MR-2 variety of
mulberry plant, extensively cultivated in the Coimbatore
district have been investigated.