FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
161 
introduce them to our extreme south¬ 
western border.* 
It requires a very dry and hot atmos¬ 
phere to mature its delicious fruit 
bunches. The Arabs have a saying that 
the “Date Palm must have its head in 
the fire and its feet in wateF’in order to 
be a success as a fruiting tree. Volumes 
have been written on the uses of the Date 
Palm. There are numerous distinct 
varieties of dates grown, all readily dis¬ 
tinguished by the Arabs and provided 
with names. These varieties are propa¬ 
gated by suckers which appear more or 
less numerously around the bases of the 
trunks. Many large Date Palms are 
found in the gardens of Florida, grown 
by the earlier settlers from the stones of 
commercial dates. Most of these, often 
quite tall, have only a scanty crown of 
light grayish-green leaves, while others 
are extremely dense and very beautiful, 
showing a much darker bluish-green 
color. They usually also produce num¬ 
erous suckers almost as large as the main 
stem, forming in this way frequently 
very tall and impenetrable thickets. 
When these side shoots are removed, the 
main trunk usually grows much faster. 
Years ago, I received seeds of a variety, 
Ph. dactylifera excelsa, from the Ri¬ 
viera, which is perfectly identical with 
many of the dense and darker green 
seedlings found in our gardens. Though 
well grown specimens of the Date Palm 
are beautiful, they cannot rival in beauty 
with the two next species. 
Phoenix sylvestra, Roxh. East Indian 
Wild Date Palm, Sugar and Wine Date 
Palm. This is one of the most beauti¬ 
ful and one of the grandest palms in ex- 
*See Bulletin No. 53, Bureau of Plant Industry. 
istence. It is also one of the fastest 
growers with an immense crown of 
bluish-green leaves, having a spread of 
20 to 25 feet in diameter. This most 
exquisite palm should be grown every¬ 
where in the State, as it is hardy from 
Jacksonville southward. To do its best, 
it requires a rich—in fact a very rich—• 
soil and moisture. It will grow well in 
poor uplands, but then extra applications 
of fertilizer must be given. There are 
a few fine specimens in Florida, the most 
beautiful, I think, can be seen in the 
grounds of the late Mr. E. H. Hart, at 
Federal Point. I quote from one of his 
articles: “In the vegetable as well as in 
the animal kingdom, the most useful are 
not always the most beautiful, hence we 
need not be surprised at finding some 
palms whose fruit is comparatively worth¬ 
less to be the most desirable for orna¬ 
ment. Chief among such is Phoenix 
sylvestris, the Wild Date of India, whose 
rapid growth, hardy constitution and 
dense crown of elegantly curved leaves, 
densely set with narrow leaflets, espe¬ 
cially adapt it for decorative purposes. 
Although yielding a small and inferior 
berry, yet as an economic plant it stands 
in the foremost rank. In India it is ex¬ 
tensively cultivated for the sake of its 
sap, which, drawn off from the bud, is 
boiled down into syrup and sugar, or 
by distillation converted into arrack, a 
fiery tipple of the Orientals. The fresh 
juice in the early stages of fermentation 
becomes a pleasant and wholesome wine, 
and later on it furnishes a yeast of excel¬ 
lent leavening power * * * * It 
may surprise many in this hemisphere 
who love the drink which ‘gladdeneth the 
heart of man’ to learn that among the 
