Date Palm in Pakistan, Current Status and Prospective (original) (raw)
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Date Palm Status and Perspective in Pakistan
Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is the third most important fruit crop after citrus and mango in Pakistan. This crop is found in all four provinces of Pakistan on 90,000 ha with a production of around 600,000 mt yr −1. Pakistan's position is always among the seven largest producers and exporters of dates in the world. Sindh and Balochistan provinces contribute more than 90 % of production and crop area in Pakistan. In Sindh, Khairpur is the biodiversity center having more than 300 date palm cultivars. Date palm has a very strong effect on socioeconomic activities of the area. The top Pakistani cultivars are Aseel, Dhakki, Begum Jangi, Rabai, and Muzawati. Pakistani date fruit is being exported as fresh, dry, or chohara. Most date-processing factories in Pakistan are located in Khairpur. This chapter provides basic information describing date palm cultivation in Pakistan, major fl ood-affected date palms and fruit, protection from monsoon rains, the fi rst commercial trial for date palm micropropagation using infl orescence explants at the Date Palm Research Institute (DPRI) at Khairpur, and major date palm problems generally in Pakistan, including diseases and pests, with emphasis on the Khairpur and Balochistan areas, and date fruit drying through the use of solar dryers.
Performance of Date Palm Production under Contract Farming inKhairpur Sindh Pakistan
Date palm is possibly the most ancient cultivated tree in the world. This tree is considered as an important constituent of farming system in dry and semi-arid regions and is suitable for both small and large scale farming. Dates are a very nutritious and delicious fruit containing mainly carbohydrates and several types of sugars but also proteins, vitamins, and minerals. A kilogram of dates contains 2500-3000 calories. Pakistan is the 4th largest producer of dates with total annual production at around 650,000 tons in the form of over 300 varieties produced in Pakistan, Aseel, Karblain, and Kupro are considered the best varieties of Sindh. Begum Jhangi and Mozavati are the best varieties of Balochistan while Dhakki is the best variety of Dera Ismail Khan in KPK. Sindh alone contributes more than 55% of the total date’s production in Pakistan and the share is on the rise. In Sindh, the highest concentration of date palm is in Khairpur district where date palm trees grow like weeds and produce about 90% of dates in the province. Keywords: Date palm, farming system, varieties, nutritious, semi-arid, calories, Khairpur
2013
Date palms of 10 year old Ajwa, Safawi and Ruthana varieties from Al-Madina, Saudi Arabia were evaluated under the agroclimatic conditions of Khairpur, Sindh, Pakistan throughout the growing seasons from 2009 to 2011. The results obtained indicated better fruit quality similar to those fruits obtained from the original place of origin. The palms of the three varieties were thriving successfully. The edible stage of vars. Ajwa and Safawi is tamer and rutab for var. Ruthana. The fruit was harvested early from 13 to 20 th of July before the onset of monsoons. The fruit size of vars. Ajwa, Safawi and Ruthana at their edible stages were 3.16, 4.25 and 3.52 cm long, and 2.31, 2.05 and 2.38 cm in diameter, respectively. The average fruit and seed weight of vars. Ajwa, Safawi and Ruthana were 11.42, 10.49 and 12.42 g, and 1.23, 0.88 and 1.1 g, respectively. The fruit flesh percentage in vars. Ajwa, Safawi and Ruthana reached 89.14%, 90.84% and 90.92%, respectively. It was found that the climatic conditions of Khairpur are suitable for the cultivation of these three exotic varieties. The vegetative, flowering and fruit characteristics of the three varieties were described, and the impact of climatic conditions on fruit quality was discussed in this study.
FACTORS HAMPERING DATE PALM PRODUCTION IN THE PUNJAB: A CASE STUDY OF DG KHAN DISTRICT
2012
This study was conducted to assess some of the factors hindering the production of dates in one of the major date-palm growing regions of the Punjab, Pakistan. Dera Ghazi Khan district was selected as case study area and a structured interview schedule was used to collect quantitative data from 120 date growers. The qualitative data were collected through in-depth interviews with the key informants.
A Study on Different Arabian Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) Accessions in Bangladesh
The Agriculturists, 2016
to study the survival abilities of 10 Arabian date palm accessions in Bangladesh. The experiment was laid out in a two factors (ten accessions and three pot mixtures) in the Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications. There were significant differences in various traits among the genotypes. The time required for germination was the lowest for Dubai small but the highest for Dabash. The time required the completion of germination of saplings was the least for Deglet Nour (Algeria) and the highest for Marium (Algeria). The highest number of leaves was found in the Deglet Nour (UAE) and the lowest was in Farida. After 12 months, the tallest plant was measured for Dubai small but the shortest was for Deglet Nour (UAE). The highest plant vigour after 12 months was found in Deglet Nour (Saudi), while the lowest was in the Deglet Nour (UAE). Among the three pot mixtures, soil : cowdung = 1:1,showed best results for plant height and vigour.
American Journal of Plant Sciences, 2012
This paper is based on research work conducted during 2008-2010 in Dera Ismail Khan (D. I. Khan) District, Pakistan, to investigate SocioEconomic Impacts of Dwarf Palm (Nannorhops ritchieana) and Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera) on the local inhabitants. A questionnaire for data collection of Dwarf Palm was designed and local people were interviewed. The main Dwarf Palm (Mazri) areas are lying between the Koh-i-Surkh and Marwat hill and yielding about 1000 tons of mazri leaves annually. Date Palm plantations are concentrated in Paniala, Paharpur, Chawdwan and Dhakki. The prominent varieties grown in the area are Dhakki, Shakri, Gulistan, Zaidi, Hillawi, Basra, Azadi and khudarawi. Dhakki Dates are well-known among all other varieties. Total area under dates cultivation in the district is 100,000 hectares, with total production of 11,000 tons dates. An average yield of Dhakki-Dates y −1 ranges from 6500 to 7000 tons i.e., 75% of the total production of dates in the area and dried dates production ranges from 800-1000 tons•year −1. A significant population is involved in processing of mazri and date palm leaves to prepare different products. Dates have a tremendous potential for economic uplift of the people. But growers face limitations and challenges regarding lack of information about customers and markets, harvesting, processing, and packaging techniques and infrastructure for producing good quality fresh dates. Fruit dropping in date palm particularly in Dhakki variety has become a serious concern. More than 70% date fruits drop before maturity. If production and processing constraints are properly handled, this may have significant socioeconomic impact on local inhabitants.
Date palm improvement with innovative technologies
2013
Date palm, Phoenix dactylifera L., a monocotyledonous angiosperm diploid species belongs to the Arecaceae family. This perennial and dioecious species is the cornerstone of the economy in many date palm producing countries in North Africa and the Middle East and provides nutrition, food security, and raw materials to the food industry; and is considered as a tree of life. It can be propagated by seeds and the progeny is highly heterogeneous and often produces poor fruit quality. Propagation by offshoots is a routine practice. Date palm trees provide sustainable agro-ecosystems in harsh dry environment, and create ‘microclimate’ that allows to develop agriculture with multiple cropping systems. It provides fruit, fuel, fiber and shade for other essential cover crops. Dates are highly nutritious, a source of sugar, minerals, and vitamins; consumed as fresh or dried, and various products derived from dates.
Date Palm Genetic Resources and Utilization - Volume 2: Asia and Europe
This important reference book provides a comprehensive assessment of date palm genetic resources and utilization in individual date-producing countries worldwide. The book is published in two volumes; each consists of 15 chapters written by prominent scientists of each country and supported with color illustrations and tabulated data. Volume 1 addresses date-producing countries within Africa and the Americas; whereas, Volume 2 pertains to countries in Asia and Europe. This volume presents the current status and prospects of date palm cultivation in the Asian and European continents. The Asian countries included are: Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Pakistan, Oman, Yemen, Israel, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Syria, Palestine and India. Europe is represented by Spain. Topics discussed in each chapter include cultivation practices, genetic resources and conservation, plant tissue culture, cultivar identification, cultivar descriptions, date production and marketing, processing and novel products and concludes with recommendations for further development. This volume ends with appendixes presenting available information on each of the above-mentioned countries pertaining to cultivar descriptions and distribution, commercial sources of dates, offshoots and in vitro plants and research institutes and scientific societies concerned with date palm research and production. The book is a valuable resource for students, researchers, scientists, commercial producers, consultants and policymakers interested in agriculture particularly in date palm industry. Readers can derive great benefit from the adoption of policies and practices discussed to enhance production and expand industrialization of traditional and potentially new date products.
Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) Biology and Utilization
The Date Palm Genome, Vol. 1, 2021
The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is the type species for the genus Phoenix of the family Arecaceae (Palmaceae). Phoenix species are native to tropical and subtropical areas of Asia and Africa. The date palm has been domesticated for several millennia in its centres of origin, diversity and domestication in the Middle East and North Africa. From there, date culture spread to other areas having a suitable climate (hot and arid or semiarid) with sufficient water available either as groundwater or irrigation. The date palm was introduced into the Western Hemisphere much later and has a more limited production area there. The date palm is a unique, arborescent monocotyledonous plant with distinctive anatomical features and environmental adaptations. It grows in arid, sandy environments but requires large volumes of water for growth and fruit production; it tolerates saline conditions but is not a true halophyte. Numerous labour-intensive cultural practices including pruning, pollination and bunch management are necessary for successful date production. Postharvest handling may include dehydration or hydration, depending upon the fruit moisture content at harvest. Date fruit is also processed into pastes, syrups, butters and other products. Production of dates has increased in recent decades and will likely continue to increase in the near-term future.