VARTETTES OF PRIMARY IMPORTANCE. 



69 



The foliairc of this variety (PI. XW) is luxuriant and tho luinior- 

 ous leaves ai'c lona'. wide, and crowded with l()n<>:, broad leallets. In 

 eoloi- thev are decidedly l)luish, owinir to the presence of a heavy 

 white bloom. AVhen this is rubbed otl'. a rich, deep irrass-ffreen color 

 appears. The spines are stout and <rr(H'n. The deep oran£>-e-coloi'ed 

 stalks of the fruit clusters are shorter, much stouter, and much less 

 bent than in the Dejjlet Noor, so that tlie bunches do not hanii: <lown 

 belovv- t!ie crown of foliaoje, as in that variety. The clusters them- 

 selves are shorter and more crowded with I'ruit. 



This is by far the most abinulant variety in the .Terid oases, com- 

 prisin<i- i)robably at least one-third of all the date palms in that 

 region. The best fruit of this varivty is said to I)e ]iro(luced in the 

 oasis of Kriz (El Oudiane). In the Nefzaoua it is not abundant, 

 and in the oases near the coast it is of relatively snudl importance. 

 In the oases of eastern Al^reria, althou<ih o(.,)<)Tai)hically so near 

 the Jerid and in such close communication with the latt(M' region, 



this variety seems to be little known. 



althouah at Ourlana, in the Oued I\irh, 



it is said to occur undi'i- the name of 



" Bou Aroussa " (father of the bride). 



After the Dejrlct Noor, Fteemy is the 



variety most (jenerally esteemed amouii' 



the natives of the Jerid. Its groat im- 



jDortance is shown by the fact that it is 



apparently the only variety of which 



the fruits are differently designated, 



according to Avhether thev are in the 



bunch (halig) or detached (mantoor). 



other parts of Tunis and Algeria and even, it is said, to Europe 



(probably to Italy). It is one of the kinds that is most sought after 



by the nomadic Arabs who barter the grain they raise in the plateau 



region for the dates of the Jerid. 



Although inferior in flavor to the Deglet Noor, the Fteemy is 



unquestionably an excellent variety, greatly excelling the Deglet 



Noor in vigor, rapid growth," early productiveness, and large yields. 



The oblong fruit when ripe is of a fine reddish-purple color, which 



contrasts strikingly with the deep orange branches of the clusters. 



It is very rich in flavor, extremely sweet, and so soft and sirupy as 



to melt in the mouth wdien fresh. It can not be eaten in great 



oMr. Bernard G. Johnson, who is stationed at the cooperative date garden 

 of the Bin-eau of Plant Industry and the California experiment station at 

 Mecca. Cal., reported in Octoher, 1905, that amon.ij; the offshoots from Tunis 

 planted there in May of the same year, those of the Fteemy variety were show- 

 ing signs of growth in larger proportion than those of any other kind. 



92 



Fk;. 12.— Outlines of Fteemy seed 

 and fruit. (Natural size.) 



It is largely exported to 



