Coconut as a substrate comes from the husk, often referred to by the English term “husk”. In countries such as India and Sri Lanka, the fiber from the skin serves different purposes, such as mattress and car seat filling, mats and brooms.
During the husk fumigation process, the material remains between the fibers. This material has a fine structure. The industry refers to it as coconut grit or sometimes coconut peat. It is therefore a by-product from the fiber industry. Coconut substrate is coarser in structure when the whole skin is used.
This happens in places where there is no or a limited fiber industry. The complete husk (including fibers) is cut or ground and sieved to the desired size. Coconut is also found in potting soil substrates. These are often the short fibers from the fiber industry.
