2 BULLETIN 1457, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
region of varietal culture in Egypt, with approximately 2,200,000 
trees. 
The five scattered oases of the Libian Desert, including from north 
to south Siwa, Baharia, Farafra, Dakhla, and Kharga, make up the 
second region of varietal culture, 1 roughly estimated to contain 
500,000 palms. 
Four rather disjointed portions of the Nile Valley above the storage 
basin of the Aswan Dam, from Korosko and Ibrim, through the 
Sukkot district past the Third Cataract and around the great Don- 
gola bend and past the Fourth Cataract to Berber and Atbara, prac- 
tically the southern limit of Nile Valley date culture, are comprised 
in the third region of varietal date culture. 
The main Nile Valley from the upper limits of Giza Province 
on past Assiut, Luxor, and Esneh to the First Cataract at Aswan, 
comprises the first great seedling-date district, with about 3,500,000 
trees; and the detached Oasis of Fayum constitutes the second, with 
500,000 trees. 
In both of the seedling regions a few trees of choice named va- 
rieties of reputation in other Provinces may be found in the gardens 
of the more wealthy and intelligent people, and throughout the Mile 
Valley an occasional superior seedling may be cherished by the same 
class of people. 
VARIETAL CULTURE IN LOWER EGYPT 
Considering the conditions in Lower Egypt which lead to varietal 
cultivation of dates, it is the most important reg'on of diverse agri- 
culture in the entire valley, and date culture forms but a small part 
of the entire agricultural industry. As a rule the richer and more 
valuable lands are devoted to the staple crops — cotton, maize, and 
wheat. Citrus and deciduous fruits are grown in small areas, con- 
siderable areas are in onions and other vegetables, and berseem, the 
chief forage of hundreds of dairy- cows, is grown as a winter crop. 
The more sandy or salty and less highly remunerative lands are 
left to date culture — usually lands bordering the richer Delta area, 
the dune lands fronting the Mediterranean, and the more sandy lands 
bordering the desert on the east and west. 
Besides its teeming population of village dwellers, Lower Egypt 
has more than 1,500,000 people :'n 13 cities of from 25,000 to 800,000 
population, all lovers of fresh elates from childhood. 
It is easily seen how an extensive commerce in the crisp, juicy 
Hay any, and other varieties in the rutab (fresh) stage has developed. 
Dates in this hard-ripe condition need to be shipped but short dis- 
tances to reach the consumer. No time need be lost in curing them 
in drying yards, no labor involved in turning, piling, or sorting, and 
no tedious skill in packing in layers, as for long-distance shipments. 
The most inexpensive crates and braided baskets serve as containers. 
The product is quickly marketed and quickly consumed, the price 
thus reaching the purse of the grower, leaving the customer eager 
for another shipment. 
The Hayany is par excellence the variety that meets these condi- 
tions. 
1 The spelling of oasis names, except where quoted, follows that used hy the surveys 
department of the Public Works Ministry of Egypt. 
