Accession Count: 97
Common Name:
true date palm, date palm
Family Name:
Arecaceae
Botanical Name:
Phoenix dactylifera
Sub Species:
Variety:
Forma:
Cultivar:
Characteristics:
The date palm is an upright, evergreen tree growing up to 35 m (110 feet) tall (5). After the first 6 to 16 years, they may produce offshoots at the base of the trunk and grow shorter than 35 m, they typically have a single trunk in cultivation (3, 5). The trunk has a characteristic diamond pattern and is rough gray and up to ½ m (18 inches) in diameter (1, 3). The trunk pattern reflects the presence of the leaf scars and is especially noticeable when pruning leaves upward-pointing, overlapping, persistent, woody leaf bases (5). The crowns of leaves are smaller than a Canary and more of a gray-green or sometimes blue color which is deeper colored in hot, dry climates (4). Leaves resemble a ‘feather-duster’ as fronds are pinnately compound, 5-7 m (15 to 20 feet) long, with armed petioles and stout midribs that hold the slender pinnae (1, 5). The leaflets are ½ m (18 inches) long (1, 3, 5) and are induplicate, meaning they appear to have been folded in half lengthwise (5). The base of the leaves form a “V-shaped” in an upward pattern that allows water to be caught at the base of the leaf (3). As each leaf unfurls from the sheath, leaflets splits into a network of leaflets with stringy fibers remaining at the leaf base (3, 5). Date palms are dioecious – both a male and a female plant are needed to produce fruit (3). Pollen is usually wind borne from the male flowers to the females but in cultivation, pollination may be done manually by workers (3). Non-pollinated female blossoms will abort and fall to the ground without ever making fruit (3). However, some date palms have both male and female flowers; or they may produce perfect flowers which house male and female structures in one flower (3, 5). Flowers are small, and fragrant with female flowers being white, and the male flowers being creamy white with copious wax covering them (5). Both are borne on a spadix which is divided into 25 to 150 strands that are 30-75 cm (12-30 inches) long on female plants, and 15-22.5 cm (6-9 inches) long on male plants (5). After about 10 years of growth plants are able to bear fruit (3). The flower stalk elongates as the clusters of fruit develop, bending over and dangling 1.8 m (6 feet) below the canopy (5). The fruit is an oblong drupe, 2.5-7.5 cm (1 to 3 inches) long, which is initially dark brown, but becoming red-yellow-brown when ripe (3, 5). The fruit is filled with a firm, astringent flesh that becomes a soft, sweet pulp at maturity and surrounds a single, cylindrical, slender, very hard stone grooved down one side (5). It is this sweet and thick fruit layer that makes Phoenix dactylifera popular for consumption as a food crop (3).
Compound:
Pho dac
Geographic Origin:
Middle East
Ecozone Origin:
Palearctic
Biome Origin:
Natural History:
The date palm is believed to have originated in the lands around the Persian Gulf and in ancient times was especially abundant between the Nile and Euphrates rivers (5). The earliest findings of date palms were around 5,000-6,000 B.C. in Iran, Egypt, and Pakistan. There is archeological evidence of cultivation in eastern Arabia in 4,000 B.C The date palm was commonly found in the Middle East (and still is), then brought to Spain by Moors (2). The Spanish then introduced the tree to the Americas. Spanish explorers introduced the date into Mexico, around Sonora and Sinaloa, and Baja California and the first date palms in California were planted by Franciscan and Jesuit missionaries in 1769 (5). In the 21st century, there are an estimated quarter of a million bearing trees in California and Arizona (5).
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Natural History of the UA Campus Arboretum Specimens:
Accession # : 216 was recognized as a University Heritage Tree in 2003. This tree was given to the University in 1955 by students from Iraq. It honors Dr. Phillip Eckert, Dean of the UA College of Agriculture. At that time the University was collaborating (with the US Dept. of State and the US Dept. of Agriculture) to assist in the development of the Agricultural College of Iraq at Abu Ghraib, near Baghdad. This was one of the first such collaborations between a US university and a foreign government. Dr. Phillip Eckert was Dean of the College of Agriculture in 1952. He had responsibility for coordinating the project. To honor and thank him in 1955, Iraqi students planted a date palm from Iraq on campus. The tree still stands by Old Main. When his daughters, Susan Eckert and Karen Sanzone visited campus with Patricia and Hussam Urfali, (wife and son of of Hufdhi Urfali, one of the original Iraqi students), the story of this important tree became known. The 75+ year old tree has an interpretive sign to honor Dr. Eckert and his efforts in establishing the Agricultural College of Iraq.
Cultivation Notes:
Date palms grow readily from seeds but require constant moisture during germination (5). Additionally, 50% of the seedlings may turn out to be males and further, seedlings take 6 to 10 years to produce fruit (5). For this reason, date palms are most often propagated from suckers at the base of a mature female tree when they are 3-5 years old (2, 5). These 3-5 years old offsets weigh 18-34 kg (40 to 75 lbs) when they are separated from the parent plant (5). Date palms have a moderate growth rate of 30-45 cm (1 to 1.5 feet) a year, reaching 5 m (20 feet) in 15 to 20 years depending on the cultivar and soil and water conditions. This species generally grows in warm climates where the temperature rarely falls to 20°F (-6.67°C) and will suffer cold damage at temperatures below -8°C (18℉). Commercial fruit production is possible requires a location with a long, growing season with daily maximum temperatures of 32.22°C (90°F) and less than 1.25 cm (1/2 inch) of rain during the ripening season (5). Date palms do, however, handle high temperatures better than many palms, especially if given additional water (2, 3). While date palms generally require a small amount of water during production, and can tolerate very long periods of drought, they require a high amount of water to produce a heavy bearing crop (5). For this reason, dates are often produced in areas with periodic flooding, and surface or sub-surface water available (5). Full sun is necessary and well-drained but sandy soil is preferred (1, 5). Soils with sand, sandy loam, or clay textures are fine as long as there is good drainage and aeration (5). It can tolerate alkaline soils and has moderate tolerance to soil salinity, but high salinity will stunt growth and reduce fruit quality (5). Commercial fertilizers are utilized in Saudi Arabia and the United States and in Iraq, organic fertilizer is applied at the rate of 44 lbs (20 kg) per tree (3,5). Date palms are susceptible to palm heart fungus rot, and fusarium wilt (3).
Ethnobotany:
The most common use of this species is for food production. The date has been a food staple in Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, the Sudan, Arabia and both Iran and Iraq have always led the world in date production with an estimated 22 million date palms being produced annually (5). The medjool variety of Phoenix dactylifera is one of the more popular varieties because of its soft, supple fruit (3). Dates can be eaten dry or fresh out of hand, or incorporated into other food products (3, 5). Surplus dates are made into syrup, alcohol (5). Culled fruits are dehydrated, ground and mixed with grain to form a very nutritious stockfeed and dried dates are fed to domesticated animals in the Sahara desert. Young leaves can also be cooked and eaten as a vegetable, though the harvesting process kills the palm. In some countries, date seeds are roasted, ground, and used to “enhance/adulterate” coffee and the finely ground seeds are mixed with flour to make bread in times of scarcity. Almost every part of the tree can be used. The wood is used for timber, the leaves are used to make fabric and both leaves and fruit stalks can also be used for fuel (2). The date palm has also been a popular cultural symbol representing fertility, with a great amount of literary work devoted to its history and it has been depicted in bas relief on coins (5).
Height:
50 - 100 feet
Width:
20 - 50 feet
Growth Rate:
Slow Growing
Grow Season:
Summer
Flower Season:
Summer
Color:
White
Function:
Accent
Spread:
Non-spreading
Allergen:
Non-allergenic
Invasive:
Benign
Toxicity:
Benign
Hardy:
Semi-hardy
Water Use:
Low water Use
