Plants of the Bible - Date Palms

The first reference to the date palm is when the people of Israel entered the desert after leaving Egypt, at Elim ( Exodus 15:27 ; Numbers 33:9 )

The palm was prominent in the decoration of the Temple ( 1Kings 6:29,32,35 , 7:36 ; 2Chronicles 3:5 ; Ezekiel 40:16,22,26,31,34,37, 41:18-20, 25-26 )

In addition to its fruit, the date palm was valued for its leaves which were used to make roofs ( Nehemiah 8:15 ).

It is a symbol of righteous ( Psalm 92:12 ), beauty ( Song of Songs 7:7 ).  Its branches are a symbol of victory ( Revelation 7:9 ). 

The branches were used during event of rejoice.  It was carried at the Feast of Tabernacles ( Leviticus 23:40 ).  At Jesus’ triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, the crowds took palm branches to greet him ( John 12:13 )

Jericho was known as City of Palms. ( Deuteronomy 34:3 ; 2Chronicles 28:15 ).  Another city, called Tamar, located somewhere near the southwestern of Dead Sea ( Ezekiel 47:19, 48:28 ).  Mount of Olives may once flourished with palms ( Nehemiah 8:15 )

The Judean date palm is a cultivar of the date palm ( Phoenix dactylifera ).  It was considered a staple in the Judean Desert.   The date palms now grown in Israel were imported from California and are of a strain originating in Iraq.  The date palms in Mexico and California were introduced from Arabs by the Spaniards around 1700s.

History

During the Romans invasion, thick forests of date palms towering up to 80 feet in height and 7 miles wide covered the Jordan River valley from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea.  The tree so defined the local economy that Emperor Vespasian celebrated the conquest of Judea by minting the"Judaea Capta", a special bronze coin that showed the Jewish state as a weeping woman beneath a date palm. 

According to Pliny the Elder, a Roman naturalist of 1^st century AD, wrote that Judean date were knows for their succulence and sweetness.

The date growing as a commercial fruit export stopped at the end of 70 AD, when the Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans. 

The cultivar was thought to have become extinct sometime around AD 150.

Discovery, Germination, Growth & Genetics
of an ancient Judean date palms' seed

During excavations ( 1963-1965 ) at fortress in Masada believed to be built by Herod the Great in the 1^st century BC, a cache of seeds was found contained in an ancient jar.  Radiocarbon dating at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich confirmed the seeds were from 1^st century AD.

After the discovery, the seeds were stored for 40 years at Bar-Ilan University.

On 25^th January 2005, a team of researchers lead by Sarah Sallon, treated several of the seeds prior to germination.   Of them, 3 seeds were planted at Kibbutz Ketura, southern Israel.  One of the seeds sprouted.  The plant was nicknamed Methusaleh after the biblical figure lived for 969 years.

It was the oldest species to be revived, superseded a 1200 years old lotus seed germinated in China.

Preliminary molecular characterization shows high levels of genetic variation in comparison to modern, elite cultivars currently grown in Israel : Morocco’s ‘Medjool’ ( 35.3% difference ), Egyptian’s ‘Hayani’ ( 19.5% difference ), Iraqi’s ‘Barhee’ ( 16.5% difference )

Etymology

The generic name derives from φοῖνιξ (phoinix) or φοῖνικός (phoinikos), the Greek word for the date palm used by Theophrastus and Pliny the Elder. It most likely referred to the Phoenicians, Phoenix, the son of Amyntor and Cleobule in Homer's Iliad, or the Phoenix, the sacred bird of Ancient Egypt.

The species name ‘dactylifera’, comes from ancient Greek ‘dáktulos’ which means ‘finger’.

“Tamar” is the Hebrew word of date palm.   It is also a female name.  In the Bible, Tamar was twice the daughter-in-law of Judah, as well as the mother of two of his children, the twin Zerah and Pharez ( Genesis 38:1-27 ).  Tamar was also the name of King David’s daugther, sister of Absalom ( 2 Samuel 13:1-21 ).

Botany

Medium sized plant, 15-25m tall, often clumped with several plants.  Leaves are pinnated, 3-5m long, with spines on the petiole.  About 150 leaflets, 30cm long, 2cm broad.

Dioecious.  Naturally wind pollinated, but in commercial planting, assisted pollination is practiced.  Commercial planting have 1 male plant and up to 50 plants per acre.   Partenocarpic cultivars are available, but yield poorly.

Fruit are oval-cylindrical, 3-7cm long, 2-3cm diameter.  Single seeded.

Propagation for commercial plantations by cuttings.   Fruiting after 4 – 7 years after planting.  Mature palms can produce 80 – 120 kg per harvest season. 

Dates ripen in 6 – 7 months, harvested from September through December.

Dates ripen in 4 stages, which are known through the world by their Arabic names : kimri ( unrip ), khalal ( full-zise, crunchy ), rutab ( ripe, soft ), tamr ( ripe, sun-dried ).

References

1.Sarah Sallon, et. al., Germination, Genetics and Growth of an Ancient Date Seed, 13 June 2008, Science 320, 1464(2008)

2.Wikipedia

3.http://www.bible-history.com/isbe/P/PALM+TREE/