24 AGRICULTURE IN THE SAHARA DESERT. 



has been applied. No distinction between varieties is made in the 

 Oued- Souf in manuring, nor, so far as could be ascertained, in regard 

 to other cultural practices. 



HARVEST. 



At the time of the writer's visit (November 22-20, 1904) the date 

 harvest had been completed in all the gardens of the Souf country. 

 The Deglet Noor harvest is said generally to begin about October 25. 

 In the Tunisian oases, on the other hand, the harvest of Deglet Noor 

 and Fteemy dates — the two most important varieties — was at its 

 height in November, and continued throughout December and even 

 the earlier part of January. Of course, in the latter case many of 

 the dates were ripe long before they were gathered, and the long, 

 duration of the harvest was largely due to the relative scarcity of the 

 expert labor required, the crop being many times as large as in the 

 Souf. Yet it seems certain that in the Oued Souf, dates, especially 

 the Deglet Noor variety, ripen earlier than in the Oued Rirh oases 

 of Algeria or the Djerid oases of Tunis. This would be expected 

 from the fact that the summer is drier and likewise hotter in the 

 Oued Souf than in the oases of the Djerid. Furthermore, the situ- 

 ation of the gardens, in hollows bordered by hills of light-colored 

 sand that are generally higher than the tallest palms, is favorable to 

 an early ripening of the dates, as they must receive a great amount of 

 additional heat by reflection from the soil. More perfect natural 

 conditions for forcing fruit to early maturity could probably not be 

 found in the world.'' 



This greater heat and dryness of the Souf climate affect the fruit 

 in other ways than merely by hastening its ripening. The dates pro- 

 duced are reputed to be the best grown in the Sahara. They seem, 

 as a matter of fact, to be sweeter and at the same time drier and more 

 solid than in the Djerid. This is especially true of the Deglet Noor, 

 which is of decidedly firmer texture, containing less water. The 

 Souf dates are said to keep better and to be more adapted to export 

 than those of the other oases, showing less tendency to blacken and 

 become moldy. 



It was a matter of regret to the writer that the harvest was not 

 witnessed in the Souf, although it could not be learned that the meth- 

 ods followed there differ from those practiced in other oases. So far 



iRollaiid ( Hydi-ologie dn Sahara Alsei'ien. Taris. 1894. p. 222) describes the 

 l)asins as " a sort of fiery furnace, under the infiuence of solar radiation. The 

 .lates here attain i)erfect maturity. Here are realized, better tlian anywhere 

 else in the Sahara, the conditions assigned by the Arab proverb to the prosperity 

 of the palm and the excellence of its fruits : ' Its feet in the water and its head 

 in the fire of heaven.' " 



