UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

 BULLETIN No. 223 



Contribution from the Bureau of Plant Industry 

 WM. A. TAYLOR, Chief 



Washington, D. C. 



PROFESSIONAL PAPER 



June 23, 1915. 



BOTANICAL CHARACTERS OF THE LEAVES OF 

 THE DATE PALM USED IN DISTINGUISH- 

 ING CULTIVATED VARIETIES 



By 



SILAS C. MASON, Arboriculturist, Crop Physiology and 

 Breeding Investigations 



CONTENTS 



Introduction 1 



The Date Tree 3 



Leaf Characters of the Date 3 



Use of the Field Protractor 13 



Page 

 Forms for the Observer's Use .... 13 

 Application of the System to the Deglet 

 Noor Variety and Its Seedlings ... 16 



WASHINGTON 



GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 



1915 



