If there’s one plant that just screams “tropical” and “exotic”, it’s the coconut palm. Seen on countless holiday programs, the images of coconut palms lining beaches of the finest white sand lapped by crystal blue waters all under a cloudless sunny sky are close to what many people would call “paradise”.

I find the coconut palm incredibly elegant – the tall slender trunk, upon which sits a globe of palm leaves, each leaf up to three metres long and nestled at the base of this are the coconuts. They are simple trees but to me they’re arrestingly beautiful. They are the unmistakable symbol of foreign, exotic and hot climes that we conjure to cheer us up when it’s dark, cold and miserable at home.

Having recently returned from holiday where these palms were abundant, I took lots of photos of just coconut palms, but since I’m hopeless with a camera, there isn’t a single picture I have that fully captures the grace and beauty of these trees, so I have a gallery of them.