Date (Phoenix dactylifera L.) belongs to the Family Palmaceae. It was under cultivation about 5,000 years ago and Saudi Arabia or India is considered as its real home. The date palm is a genus of about 10 species and phoenix dactylifera is the only date, fruit of which is eaten. The date palm requires lot of heat for its growth and ripening of the fruit. The old maxim 'head in fire and feet in water' truley applies to date cultivation. Date is a delicious fruit and has a great food value for the poor and rich alike in desert areas.
The trunk of a date palm is cylinderical, growing to a height of 100 feet, with clusters of yellow milky fruits at the crown. On ripening, the fruit turns light brown to dark brown with a hard grooved seed inside the flesh. Other parts of the tree have also useful uses. The leaves are used to make caps for 'namazis', 'chattais' for mosques, 'baskets', 'pankhas' (hand-fans) and crude toys for the children in rural areas.
Date is a diocious plant. Therefore, the male and the female flowers exist on separate plants. Therefore, hand or mechanical pollination is essential for fertilization. Male flower-branches are tied, hung among the female-cluster at a proper time to help natural pollination. Manual pollination is an ardous task. As it requires a man to climb up a date palm tree with a male flower infloresence, which is hung or shaken on the female infloresence to pollinate the flowers. This operation is required to be done 2-3 times to ensure fruit setting.
DISTRIBUTION:Date being a heat-loving plant, is grown in the irrigated areas of arid regions. Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Morrocco, Tunisia and Egypt are the main date producing countries. Australia, Mexico, Florida, Claifornia, Arizona and parts of Texas in the USA are also successfully producing dates on commercial scale.
AREA AND PRODUCTION: Pakistan is one of the important date producing countries of the world. The date production is estimated around 550,000 tonnes a year, but only 9 to 10 percent of the total produce is exported due to lack of marketing, drying and packing facilities available in the date growing areas of the country.
On 5-years' average basis, province-wise area and production in Pakistan are as follows:-
SOURCE: Agricultural Statistics of Pakistan 2001-2002, Minfal, Islamabad.
From the above table, it will be observed that after Balochistan, Sindh is contributing more to date production in Pakistan. The production of Punjab and the NWFP is not much.
CLIMATE AND SOILS: The date palm does well in hot climatic conditions. It can tolerate as high temperature as 580C. Fruit setting and fruit development are hampered below the temperature of 250C. Rains during the pollination period and ripening of the fruit are disastrous and pollination has again to be done for fruit setting. The date palm grows well in well-drained soils with slight salinity. But highly saline conditions are not conducive for its cultivation. Frost does not affect date palms.
PROPAGATION: Dates are propagated by seed but the seed-produced dates are not good in quality. Suckers, which develop at the base of as much as 10 feet up the trunk of a tree are best for propagation. When the suckers are 3-6 years old, these are detached from the mother plant and planted in nurseries for proper rooting and then transplanted at the desired places in orchards in spring. When 10 year old, a date palm can produce 100 to 200 pounds of fruits a year.
VARIETIES: The varieties under cultivation in the country are: Hillawi, Khadrawi, Zaidi (Punjab), Aseel, Tota, Karbalai "introduced by some date growers from Iraq". (Sindh), Dhaki (NWFP) and Bermi, Begum Jangi, Daglat Noor (Balochistan).
NUTRITIVE VALUE: Date is a complete food. It has mention in the Holy Quran at several places. During the holy month of 'Ramazan' every Muslim wants to break his fast with a few Khajoors (dates). The Hajwa variety of date, grown in Medina, is attached great esteem by the Muslims, as it is said to have been cultivated by the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW) by his own hands. It is the most delicious date and most expensive. Its approximate cost is Rs.800 per kg.
Date has sugar content of about 54 percent and protein about 7 percent. The nutrient value per 100 grams of edible portion of date is as follows:-
Energy = 271
Water = 14.22 g
Protein = 2.2 g
Fat = 0.5 g
Carbohydrate = 60-70 g
Fibre = 2.3 g
Ash = 2.3 g
Potassium = 666 mg
Calcium = 59 mg
Phosphorus = 63 mg
Iron = 3 mg
Niacin = 3.1 mg
Thiamin = 0.09mg
Riboflavin = 0.01mg
Vitamin A (I.U.) = 50
Source: Agri News Update and Habib-e-Zarat, October-December 2003, HBL-Karachi.
According to the same source "date also contains elements Silicon and Boron in adequate amounts. Silicon plays a significant role in bone development against demineralisation in osteoporosis."
MEDICINAL BENEFITS: Date has hordes of medicinal benefits. According to Dasture, date is "demulcent, tonic, expectorant, laxative and aphrodiasic. Its infusion made with milk is nourishing and restorative. Infusion made in water relives alcoholic intoxication, asthama, cough, cold, laryngitis, chest complaints, fever, gonorrhoea, dysentry and liver complaints. The sap tapped from the stem is rich in vitamin B and C. Toddy is demulcent, diuretic and refrigerant in genito-urinary disorders." Medicinal Plants of India and Pakistan, J.F. Dastur, FNI, Taraporevala Sons and Co, Bombay 400-18, India, 1962.
USES: Date is an excellent desert fruit and is consumed in many countries for its delicious taste. The fruit is also made use of in 'chutney', 'halwa' and 'sweet-bread'. On its drying, the trunk is used in villages to level ploughed or uneven land, drawn by the bullocks. The trunk is also used to make huts and to provide support for the roofs in 'kutcha' houses made in tural areas. The seed is crushed and fed to the livestock on some date growing countries with equal benefit.
FACILITIES NEEDED:From the fore-going paras it would be seen that date has a potential for production and export. Due to lack of curing facilities, the full export potential has not been exploited so far. Of the total production, only 10 percent is being exported. The National Agricultural Research Center (NARC) has developed a solar date drying system to reduce pre-and-post-production losses. The mositure percent in our conventional methods of date drying takes about 10 to 14 days. The new method found by the NARC reduces 20 to 60 percent moisture in about five days.
Date growers complain that they are not given a better price for their produce. In certain seasons due to un-favourable conditions, insect pest and diseases take a heavy toll of their produce, for which control measures are not available to them. The authorities concerned should look into the difficulties of the date growers that are hindering increase in acreage and production.
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Year Punjab Sindh NWFP Balochistan Pakistan
(Area in '000' hectares)
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1990-91 14.3 17.2 0.9 9.6 42.0
to
1994-95 11.1 19.5 0.9 42.0 73.5
Average: 12.0 18.7 0.9 22.9 54.5
1995-96 11.1 19.7 0.9 42.9 73.9
to
1999-00 11.1 22.2 1.0 42.4 76.9
Average: 11.1 20.7 1.0 42.4 75.5
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(Production in '000' tonnes)
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1990-91 96.2 97.6 5.5 88.0 287.3
to
1994-95 91.5 30.7 5.9 403.4 531.5
Average: 90.4 80.7 5.8 216.2 393.1
1995-96 91.5 31.7 5.9 403.6 532.5
to
1999-00 89.5 244.6 6.6 239.2 579.9
Average: 92.5 111.5 6.3 370.9 581.7
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