Date Palm Plantation
September 14, 2018
Photographer: Menashe Davidson
Summary Author: Menashe Davidson
The photo above (top photo) shows a modern palm date plantation near Qasr Al Yahud, some 9 mi (15 km) from the north shore of the Dead Sea, in the Jordan Valley of Israel. The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera, palm family Arecaceae) has been cultivated since antiquity. Its fruit, known as a date (bottom photo), has long been a staple food in the irrigable deserts of North Africa and the Middle East. All parts of the date palm (trunk, midribs of leaves, leaflets, leaf bases, fruit stalks, fiber, seeds and fruit) were of economic value in olden times. While palm trees have been grown in grove plantings since the ancients understood the food value of dates, in recent times, particularly in the past several decades, there's been a change in how this crop is managed. Improved plant varieties and propagation material, improved knowledge of soil conditions, improved water control and water efficiency, especially drip irrigation approaches, have resulted in more nutritious dates and increased crop yields. Photo taken on June 1, 2018.
Photo Details: Top - Camera: NIKON D7100; Software: Windows Photo Editor 10; Exposure Time: 0.0040s (1/250); Aperture: ƒ/29.0; ISO equivalent: 250; Focal Length (35mm): 88; Bottom: same except - Exposure Time: 0.010s (1/100); Focal Length (35mm): 112.