Date palm

Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) is a palm of the family Arecaceae, 15–25 m tall (sometimes 30 m), with a straight trunk carrying persistent old leaf bases. The pinnate leaves are 3–6 m long, clustered in a crown at the top, with sharp spines on the stalks. The tree is dioecious: male and female flowers grow on separate trees, small and cream-coloured in spathes; in cultivation pollination is done by hand, placing male pollen on female inflorescences. The fruit is a cylindrical drupe (date), 3–7 cm long, ripening from yellow to brown to black, with very sweet flesh and a single hard stone. The species originated in the Middle East and North Africa, has been cultivated for over 6,000 years, and is the emblematic crop of desert oases.

Date fruit is an energy-rich food thanks to its high sugar content (mainly glucose and fructose), while also supplying fibre, potassium, magnesium and B vitamins. The fruit is eaten fresh (soft types) or dried; made into jam, date syrup, pastries and date sugar; the tree sap (date honey) is used as a sweetener and drink; roasted seeds can make a coffee substitute. In Middle Eastern cuisine dates are tied to Ramadan. Date leaves are woven into mats and roofing, and the trunk and leaf stalks are used as material. In Vietnam dates are mainly imported; a few places such as Ninh Thuan in central Vietnam grow them ornamentally and experimentally, but the humid climate is not really suitable.