CHAEACTEES OF THE LEA\T:S OF THE DATE PALM. 



17 



parison \vill be made of some of the Deglet Noor seedlings with the 

 average for that variety, or what may be called a standardized tree. 

 Two sets of readings were taken from the Deglet Noor fruiting 

 seedling raised by Mr. James Reed, at Thermal, Cal, In both of 

 these the data are well within the range of variation of the eijrht true 



Noor records, 

 and the average of the 

 two is curiously near 

 to the average of the 

 Deglet Noor. The 

 pinnge are more closely 

 crowded than in any of 



Deglet 



the 



Deglet 



Noor rec- 



ords, and the percent- 

 age of introrse pinnse is 

 above the average, but 

 within the range. 



The proportion of 

 paired, triple, and 

 quadruple groups of 

 p innse is rem arkably 

 near the average. The 

 fruit of this presum- 

 ably half-blood Deglet 

 Noor seedhng has not 

 been distinguishable 

 from that of the stand- 

 ard imported 

 Noor varieties. No 

 other Deglet Noor 

 seedlinghas been found 

 so closely duplicating 



the Deglet Noor in 

 fruit. 



Of others that have 

 fruited, showing de- 

 cided 



P-3='P/a/?e cfdAn^ 



/P^/?ac^AS 



Deglet 



Deglet 



Noo 



R 



Fig. 10. — Diagrams showing the characteristic divergence of the pinnae 

 of a Deglet Noor date leaf, at 8 to 9 feet from tlie base of the leaf, 

 recorded on form B, The upper diagram shows the divergence from 

 the blade plane; Uie lower, the divergence from the apex: A , An- 

 trorse pinnae; /, introrse; R, retrorse. 



characters in color, flavor, or texture of the fruit, none has been 

 found with the same close approximation to Deglet Noor fohage. In a 

 slender-fruited seedling, for example, raised by the California Date Co., 

 at Heber, CaL, the fruit has the Deglet Noor flavor and texture in 

 a high degree. The form of this fruit is long and slender, entirely 



distinct from the Deglet Noor. 



Referring to Table I, showing the 



point characters, this variety, as compared with the Deglet Noor, 



