THE PALMS 281 



plumes that reach fifteen feet in length and touch the 

 ground with their drooping tips. Huge clusters of bright 

 yellow, dry, olive-shaped berries ripen in midsummer. 



The date palm of commerce, once confined to the tropical 

 deserts of Asia Minor and North Africa, has been suc- 

 cessfully established by the Government in hot, dry locali- 

 ties of the Southwest. Fruit equal to any grown in 

 plantations of the Old World is marketed now from the 

 Imperial and Coachella valleys in California, and from 

 orchards near Phoenix, Arizona. Dry air and a summer 

 temperature far above the hundred degree mark is neces- 

 sary to insure the proper sugar content and flavor in 

 these fruits, which are borne in huge clusters and ripen 

 slowly, one by one. 



Fan-shaped leaves plaited on the ends of long stalks 

 that are usually spiny-edged are borne by the stocky 

 Florida palmettos and the tall desert palm of California, 

 planted widely in cities of the Southwest and in Europe. 

 Several genera of this fan-leaved type are represented in 

 palm gardens, and in the general horticulture of warm 

 regions of this country. 



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