210 MANUAL OF TROPICAL AND SUBTROPICAL FRUITS 



other hand, by using the proper care growers frequently succeed 

 in making 90 to 95 per cent of their offshoots take root. 



After they are removed to the open field, the young palms 

 should be protected by wrapping during the following winter 

 from the possibility of freezing, as they are tender at first. 

 Newspaper is- as good as anything for the purpose; canvas, 



burlap, and palm-leaves are also 



used. 



V 



For security, the orchardist 

 should allow one or two male 

 date palms for each acre of fruit- 

 bearing trees. Care should be 

 taken to secure males that flower 

 early in the season and yield 

 abundant fertile pollen; sterility 

 is common. 



The female palm ordinarily 

 blossoms between February and 

 June (in California usually dur- 

 ing March and April). Flowers 

 appearing later than May 1 are 

 not worth pollinating, so far as 

 commercial production is con- 

 cerned. Artificial pollination 

 has been practiced since the 

 dawn of history, and offers no 

 difficulties. 



The flowers of the two sexes can be distinguished readily 

 (Fig. 28). The branchlets of the male inflorescence are only 

 about 6 inches long, and are densely clustered at the end of 

 the axis, while those of the female are several times as long and 

 less densely clustered. The male blossoms are waxy white in 

 color, the female more yellowish ; while also the latter are 

 much the less closely crowded together on the branchlets. 



FIG. 28. On the left, a sprig of 

 staminate or pollen-bearing flowers 

 of the date palm ; on the right, pis- 

 tillate flowers which will, if properly 

 pollinated, develop into fruits. 



