968 



DATE 



DATE 



3 to 5 or 6 feet apart in the row. When the dates 

 come into bearing, the undersirable ones and the 

 males may be removed and the probability is that 

 a sufficient number of good varieties will remain to 

 make the row properly continuous; and the rows will 

 be far enough apart for the regular or permanent 

 plantation. 



Suckers or offshoots are taken from the base of the 

 young palm (Figs. 1223, 1224). One to several suckers 

 may be removed each year, averaging two to four 

 for the productive period, and when they are three to six 

 years old and have begun to develop roots of their own. 

 All species belonging to the genus Phcenix are diffi- 

 cult to transplant with uniform success. Frequently as 

 high as 50 per cent of transplanted dates die even 

 when watered daily and given the best of care. In 

 planting suckers with the best of attention, a percent- 

 age die; while without 

 care not one in a hun- 

 dred will grow. It is 

 due not so much to the 

 lack of experience in 

 removing the suckers 

 as to lack of proper 

 care after removal, 

 that so large a per- 

 centage fail. 



Suckers may be re- 

 moved at any time 

 during the spring or 

 early summer, or even 

 in the winter, if proper 

 care be given them 

 after removal. If they 

 are to be planted in 

 the open ground it is 

 advisable to remove 

 them in spring or early 

 summer, April prob- 

 ably being the best 

 month. In winter, 

 when the plants are at 

 a standstill, the suckers 

 may be removed with 

 comparatively small 

 loss, if the "bulbs" or 

 bottoms be not less 

 than 4 inches in dia- 

 meter. It is necessary, 

 when suckers are re- 

 moved at this season, 

 to set them in rather 

 small pots, so that the 

 earth, which should be 

 given a daily soaking, 

 may have a chance to 

 get warm quickly. The 



1224. Deglet Noor date palm about eight years old, with offshoots 

 and ripe fruit. 



pots should be kept in a dry greenhouse, or, better 

 yet, imbedded in a hotbed of manure, covered with 

 the customary frame and glass. In all cases the leaves 

 should be cut back to 6 to 12 inches in length, and 

 sometimes they are removed. Transplant only when 

 the ground is warm. 



If proper attention can be given it is best to plant large 

 suckers where they are to remain, as a second chance 

 for loss occurs when they are transplanted from a 

 nursery to the position that they are finally to occupy. 

 An iron bar weighing thirty to forty pounds, and 

 flattened to a 4-6-inch cutting end, may be used to 

 cleave the offshoots from the tree. The leaf-stalks 

 should be cut away, exposing the bulb of the sucker, 

 care being taken not to injure the bulb in removing. 

 One should cut in rather deeply at either side, not being 

 afraid of injuring the old plant, cutting out a V-shaped 

 portion extending from the base of the bulb downward 

 for a few inches. Wounds may be painted with coal- 



tar to prevent bleeding and evaporation. It is 

 important, when planting the suckers in the field, 

 to set them so high that the crown-bud will not be 

 covered with water during irrigation, in order to avoid 

 decay and death. 



A successful method of rooting the suckers is to 

 bank up earth about the base of the parent tree and 

 above the base of the suckers, and keep moist by 

 watering daily to induce formation of roots. Suckers 

 may be partially severed from the old stock before the 

 banking is done, or after the roots have started. When 

 the roots are well grown, the suckers may be trans- 

 planted with little loss. 



The suckers will grow perfectly well, however, if 

 no roots are left attached. The offshoots may be cut 

 away from the parent plant, with all the leaves removed, 

 and leaving only the bud in the center or at the apex 



surrounded by the leaf- 

 stalks. Such offshoots 

 will stand very much 

 exposure and may be 

 shipped long distances 

 without being packed 

 in moist material, care 

 being taken that the 

 boxes are so filled with 

 packing that they will 

 not be jammed or 

 bruised in transporta- 

 tion. After they are 

 Blanted, they should 

 e kept constantly 

 moist about the bot- 

 tom and should not be 

 allowed to suffer any 

 check. The Arabs 

 apply water every day 

 for thirty or forty days 

 and then continue to 

 irrigate each week un- 

 til the following win- 

 ter, care being taken 

 not to water too much. 

 If these precautions 

 are taken and if the 

 offshoots are planted 

 in warm ground, there 

 need be very little loss. 

 They should never be 

 set in the open ground 

 when the soil is cold, as 

 in fall or winter. If the 

 offshoots are to be taken 

 off at that time, they 

 must be grown in pots 

 or in some similar way, 

 as described above. 



The growing of dates. 



The date palm grows in nearly all kinds of soil, if 

 only the climatic conditions are right. If it be suffi- 

 ciently irrigated and have the requisite amount of heat, 

 the soil seems to be a secondary consideration. In 

 general it may be said, however, that sandy-loam soils 

 of the desert, with a small percentage of clay and 

 slightly charged with salts, are preferable to rich and 

 heavy soils, suitable for growing ordinary crops. The 

 question of water is of great importance in the culture 

 of dates, as it is necessary that the roots of the date 

 palm be in moist earth throughout the year. In general, 

 the amount of water required for successful culture is 

 considerable. If sufficient water cannot be supplied by 

 natural methods, one must resort to irrigation. Water 

 should be supplied at frequent intervals throughout the 

 year. However, the most should be supplied in the spring 

 before blooming, and in the fall prior to the ripening of 



