344 



PEACTICAL J'.OTANY 



markets, and shredded and desiccated coconut finds a place 

 in the preparation of candies and various articles for the table. 

 The date palm furnishes one of the most considerable arti- 

 cles of food for the peoples of northern Africa and western 

 Asia. It has been in cultivation for as much as four thousand 

 years and there are several thousands of named varieties. It is a 

 most productive tree, bearmg for a century or more, and when 

 well grown producing from 100 to 600 pounds of fruit a year. 



Fig. 279. Trillium 



A sliade plant of the Lily family, which blossoms before the 

 trees beneath which it grows are in leaf 



Vigorous and successful attempts are now under way to 

 introduce date culture into the United States.^ A very hot, 

 dry climate is required, as the late varieties demand a mean 

 temperature of 90° F. for three mcinths of the year. It is 

 important to secure a moist soil (by irrigation if necessary) 

 for date culture. A large region of central Arizona, the Colo- 

 rado desert in California, and several other arid or semi-arid 

 areas will probably be found adapted to this industry, and ' 

 dates have already been successfully grown in some portions 

 of this region. 



1 See Yearbook of the Department of Agriculture, 1900. 



