46 DATE VARIETIES AND DATE CULTURE IN TUNIS. 



PLANTING. 



Planting is done in the Jerid during- the months of March to June. 

 It is said that in well-drained soils it can l)e begun with safety as 

 early as March 1, but in very wet land must be postponed until a 

 month later. At (labes the amins say that if offshoots are detached 

 in March, after the sap has begun to flow freely in the palm, the 

 chances of their growing are better than if taken earlier, although 

 they can be removed with little risk as early as February 15. 



In the newer gardens of the Jerid the palms are generally set in 

 Avith some attempt at alignment (PI. VII, fig. 2) at intervals of 15 

 to 30 feet each way, 30 feet being recognized as quite sufficient for 

 obtaining the maximum yields." In the older gardens, as pointed 

 out above, the trees stand at very irregular intervals and are often 

 much crowded (Pis. I. and IV, fig. 2). The holes made to receive the 

 offshoots are usually 3^ feet in diameter and about l-l feet deep in new 

 land, while in replacing an old or diseased palm the hole is made 

 3 to G feet deep, probably in order that as nuich as possible of the 

 old soil may be removed. The hole is then filled with well-washed 

 sand, which is trodden down firmly around the base of the offshoot 

 as soon as it is set in and again after the first irrigation. 



A practice that is highly recommended, j^articularly in gardens 

 Avhere the water table is high, is that of placing stones in the bottom 

 of the hole so as to support the base of the offshoot, thus insuring 

 good drainage. This custom has fallen into disuse in the Jerid, but 

 when old trees are dug up there it is said that stones are frequently 

 found among their roots. The practice still prevails in the Mzab 

 oases of Algeria.'' 



It frequently happens that the offshoot is more or less curved. To 

 make it develop into a straight palm, it is recommended to plant it 

 with the concave side facing southeast, " like a man saying his 

 prayers," as the Arabs express it. The young palm, th;is receiving 

 jnore of the sun's ravs on its concave than on its couA^ex side, sTadu- 

 ally becomes straight.'^ 



« There is a proverb current among the Inhabitants of the Mzab oases in 

 Algeria (quoted by Charlet. Les I'alniiers du Mzab, Bui. Soc. Geogr. d'Alger, 

 1905) to the effect that "If one plants at 30 cubits, one has dates without 

 trouble; if one plants at 20 cubits, one has them only by taking great paius ; 

 but if one plants at 10 cubits, *it is labor wasted." 



^ Charlet, Les Palmiers du Mzab, Bui. Soc. Geogr. d'Alger, 1905. 



(• The same practice occurs in the Mzab oases, according to Chariot ( Bui. Soc. 

 Geogr. d'Alger, 1905). This autlior malces the interesting statement that suclcers 

 sometimes finally grow that have shown no sign of life for one and one-half to 

 two years after being planted. The natives say that growth can sometimes 

 be started in such a case by transplanting to another i)art of the garden. They 

 believe that the offshoot had willfully refused to grow in its first station on 

 account of the dislike it had taken to some neighboring palm. 

 92 



