Date Palm or Phoenix Palm

The common date palm is native to northern Africa, southwest Asia, and India and is cultivated extensively in hot, dry regions throughout the world. The trunk is straight and rough and grows to a height of up to 18 m (up to 60 ft). It bears a head of waxy-green, barbed leaves, about 3 m (about 9 ft) long, and a number of branching spikes that, on the female tree, bear 200 to 1,000 dates each. A cluster of dates weighs up to 12 kg (up to 25 lb), and the annual yield of a single tree may reach 270 kg (600 lb). The tree begins to bear about the eighth year, reaches maturity at 30 years, and begins to decline at about 100 years. From earliest times, fertilization has been aided by cutting off the male flower cluster just before the stamens ripen and suspending it among the flowers of the female tree.