Date trees produce delicious fruit

By Catalogs Editorial Staff

All about date trees

About date trees
Date palm trees, also called Phoenix dactylifera, are generally medium-sized but can grow up to 25 meters tall. They have a crown of green leaves on top and have flowers that grow date fruits. It is thought that the date palm originated in Northern Africa?s desert oases, and possibly in Southwest Asia, as well. Dates generally do not form in cool climates. Once planted, it can take date trees four to seven years to begin bearing fruit. Date trees are sometimes used in landscaping.

The fruit trees have separate male and female plants. Female plants are the only ones that produce dates, and in order to do so, a male plant needs to be nearby.

How to eat dates
Dates can be eaten in a large variety of ways. Some people enjoy eating dried dates plain, which are sweet and chewy. Sometimes dates are pitted and then stuffed with items ranging from walnuts to cream cheese to lemon peel. You can also eat dates dipped in chocolate.

Dates are chopped up and used in sweets such as puddings and cookies, especially in Morocco, where dates are very frequently eaten. Date nuts are also used to make delicious date nut bread and cookies.

In some countries, such as North Africa and India, the sweet sap is removed from date trees and made into molasses, palm sugar, and alcoholic drinks.
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More about date fruit
Dates can appear to look yellow-orange, or even red, and are oval-shaped. Dates are very sweet and ripen in four stages. They grow anywhere from 3?7 centimeters long and 2?3 centimeters in diameter.

Fresh dates are a great source of vitamin C. While dates are not eaten as frequently in the United States, dates are a staple of food in the Middle East and have been for thousands of years. They were commonly eaten in ancient civilizations.

In certain parts of the world, dates are believed to hold medicinal powers. Some believe that it counteracts intoxication from alcohol. Some use it for intestinal troubles. Others turn dates into a paste or syrup and use it to treat everything from fever to sore throats.