The bake-apple is accepted as a date. The fruit's English name (through Old French), as able-bodied as the Latin breed name dactylifera, both appear from the Greek chat for "finger," dáktulos, because of the fruit's continued shape. Dates are oval-cylindrical, 3–7 cm long, and 2–3 cm diameter, and if ripe, ambit from ablaze red to ablaze chicken in colour, depending on variety. Dates accommodate a individual rock about 2–2.5 cm continued and 6–8 mm thick. Three capital cultivar groups of date exist: bendable (e.g. 'Barhee', 'Halawy', 'Khadrawy', 'Medjool'), semi-dry (e.g. 'Dayri', 'Deglet Noor', 'Zahdi'), and dry (e.g. 'Thoory'). The blazon of bake-apple depends on the glucose, fructose and sucrose content.
The date approach is delicious, accepting abstracted macho and changeable plants. They can be calmly developed from seed, but alone 50% of seedlings will be changeable and appropriately bake-apple bearing, and dates from bulb plants are generally abate and of poorer quality. Most bartering plantations appropriately use cuttings of heavily agriculture cultivators. Plants developed from cuttings will bake-apple 2–3 years beforehand than bulb plants.
Dates are by itself wind pollinated but in both acceptable haven agronomics and in the avant-garde bartering orchards they are absolutely pollinated manually. Natural pollination occurs with about an according amount of macho and changeable plants. However, with assistance, one macho can blend up to 100 females. Since the males are of amount alone as pollinators, this allows the growers to use their assets for abounding added bake-apple bearing changeable plants. Some growers do not even advance any macho plants as macho flowers become accessible at bounded markets at pollination time. Manual pollination is done by accomplished laborers on ladders. In some areas such as Iraq the pollinator climbs the timberline application a appropriate aggressive apparatus that wraps about the timberline block and the climber's aback to accumulate him absorbed to the block while climbing. Less generally the pollen may be destroyed assimilate the changeable flowers by a wind machine.
Fresh dates, clockwise from top right: crunchy, brittle opened, bendable out of skin, soft.
Parthenocarpic cultivators are accessible but the seedless bake-apple is abate and of lower quality.
Dates decline in four stages, which are accepted throughout the apple by their Arabic names kimri (unripe), khlal (full-size, crunchy), rutab (ripe, soft), tamar (ripe, sun-dried).
Dates are an important acceptable crop in Iraq, Arabia, and arctic Africa west to Morocco and are mentioned added than 50 times in the Bible. In Islamic culture, dates and yogurt or milk are commonly the aboriginal foods captivated for Iftar afterwards the sun has set during Ramadan. Dates (especially Medjool and Deglet Noor) are aswell able in America in southern California, Arizona and southern Florida in the United States and in Sonora and Baja California in Mexico.
Date award can yield 4 to 8 years afterwards burying afore they will buck fruit, and aftermath applicable yields for bartering autumn amid 7 to 10 years. Mature date award can aftermath 80–120 kilograms (176–264 lb) of dates per autumn season, although they do not all decline at the aforementioned time so several harvests are required. In adjustment to get bake-apple of bankable quality, the bunches of dates have to be attenuated and bagged or covered afore ripening so that the actual fruits abound beyond and are adequate from acclimate and pests such as birds.
History
Dates accept been a basal aliment of the Average East and the Indus Valley for accoutrements of years. They are believed to accept originated about Iraq, and accept been able aback age-old times from Mesopotamia to aged Egypt, possibly as aboriginal as 4000 BCE. The Age-old Egyptians acclimated the fruits to accomplish date wine, and ate them at harvest. There is archaeological affirmation of date agronomics in eastern Arabia in 6000 BCE. (Alvarez-Mon 2006).
There is aswell archeological affirmation of date agronomics in Mehrgarh about 7000 BCE, a Neolithic acculturation in western Pakistan. Affirmation of agronomics is always begin throughout afterwards civilizations in the Indus Valley, including the Harappan aeon 2600 to 1900 BCE.
In afterwards times, traders advance dates about South West Asia, arctic Africa, and Spain and Italy. Dates were alien into Mexico and California by the Spaniards in 1765, about Mission San Ignacio.
A date approach cultivar, accepted as Judean date palm, is acclaimed for its abiding accepted seed, which auspiciously sprouted afterwards adventitious accumulator for 2000 years. This accurate berry was accounted to be the oldest applicable berry until the beginning of silene stenophylla seeds added than 30,000 years old, but the top adaptation time absolute of appropriately stored seeds charcoal unknown.
The date is not, of course; the alone palm. This actual simple and archaic timberline ancestors is disconnected into added than 100 genera, abnormally adapted, of which abounding others are advantageous to man, in accurate the attic palm, the sago palm, the "dragon's claret palm" and the African approach - which produces the oil for a acclaimed soap of the aforementioned name. For a lot of of those trees, however, Arabia is too dry. It is the date approach which is the approach timberline throughout the peninsula, and even further. Spreading out from the Average East, date award were agitated far and advanced by Muslim traders and travelers, until today they abound in every Islamic country whose altitude is dry enough.
Dates, however, go abundant added aback in time. Charcoal of dates accept been begin on a amount of neolithic sites, decidedly in Syria and Egypt. This agency that they were getting eaten by man as abundant as 7,000 to 8,000 years ago, although we accept no affidavit that they were able that early. In the third millennium B.C., however, able dates are announced of with annual in the Gilgamesh Epic, the amazing annual of a adventure which ranges from Lebanon to Bahrain: "And did you not adulation Ishullanu, the agriculturalist of your father's approach grove? He brought you baskets abounding with dates afterwards end; every day he loaded your table."
Date award aswell arise engraved on seals of that period, sometimes belted by animals, sometimes by gods and men, and in Assyria, as afterwards in Greece, it was assuredly a angelic tree.
The date may accept been beneath admired in Egypt. It is not represented by a basal cacographic aspect and there are beneath pictures of it than one adeptness expect. Furthermore, the Greek historian Herodotus, who wrote a active and advisory annual of the country and community of Egypt in the average of the fifth aeon B.C., says annihilation of the agronomics of date palms, although he gives abounding data on added crops. We do know, however, that date award existed actual early, partly from archaeological affirmation and partly from cavalcade capitals acutely carved to represent date award - for archetype the granite pillars, dating from about 2,500 B. C, of the funerary temple of King Sahure at Abusir, now in the Cairo Museum.
Besides its beauty, the date palm's basal accent to the pre avant-garde abridgement of Arabia - and absolutely to aboriginal activity on the peninsula - makes it unsurprising that it should be frequently mentioned in the Koran. There is a decidedly admirable advertence in the surah advantaged Mary. Afterwards the annunciation, we are told: "Thereupon she conceived, and retired to a far off place. And if she acquainted the affliction of accouchement she lay down by the block of a approach tree, crying: 'O, would that I had died and anesthetized into oblivion.'
"But a articulation from aloft cried out to her: 'Do not despair. Your Lord has provided a beck which runs at your feet, and if you agitate the block of this approach timberline it will bead beginning accomplished dates into your lap. Therefore rejoice. Eat and drink. And should you accommodated any bitter say to him: "I accept vowed a fast to the Merciful One and will not allege to any man today""'
The Prophets Mosque, congenital at Medina about A.D. 630, was fabricated about absolutely of palms: the columns and beams of the trunks, and the thatching and adoration mats of the leaves. According to one tradition, it was at Medina that the acreage was aboriginal able by the birth of Noah afterwards the Flood, and it was there that the date was aboriginal planted.
Whether that aboriginal burying was in Medina or elsewhere, the date approach anon advance to the coasts of Africa, to Spain - breadth it is still developed in the east, a admonition of the aeon of Arab ascendancy - and to western Asia. In arctic India, however, it is said to accept been alien by the soldiers of Alexander the Great, who argument the stones from their date allowance about the affected so that, in the advance of time, approach groves grew up. This aeon the date was alien into southern California, breadth is it still able on a bound but advantageous scale.
But dates are not all that the date approach has produced. From Egypt, Rome took the adroit timberline as a adorning motif, abnormally in mosaics. The Roman examples were rather rough, but anon the architecture anesthetized to Byzantium, breadth we acquisition it afresh and again, in the marvellous mosaics of Ravenna and later, Byzantine Rome. This is hardly surprising, for the approach came to be anxiously associated with Christianity - appropriately Approach Sunday and the approach as an aspect of martyrdom. But as an aspect of architecture it alcove its finest beginning in the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem and in the Abundant Abbey at Damascus, whose brightness can be apparent to the present day.
The date palm's aberrant adhering flowers, august into an about abstruse pattern, were aswell congenital into architectural architecture and during the 18th century, if European appearance angry to the Orient, approach flowers became a actual accepted motif; some are even abstract in cottony on the hem of a baroque dress now in the Metropolitan Museum in New York.
In the Arab world, the date is not artlessly admired as a broiled fruit. Apprenticed into cakes, it is still acclimated as augment for band and horses and even dogs in the oases of the Sahara if little abroad is available.
Date stones can be arena and alloyed with added abrade to eke it out, and the aftereffect is a adorable nutty-tasting aliment still accessible in Hofuf. Alternatively, the provident Bedouin, abnormally in Najd, adored the stones from his dates to absorb and augment to his animals if agriculture was scarce. Approach hearts are a able-bodied accepted airiness and the adolescent leaves can be adapted and eaten as a vegetable.
In Arabia, the dates by themselves were already an important aspartame aspect and are still about eaten with coffee to adverse with its bitterness; abstract apprenticed from dates is aswell eaten. There are aswell sweets based on dates, decidedly the dates blimp with marzipan or walnuts accepted in the eastern Mediterranean countries.
For the nomad, the date meant survival. It is a acceptable food, of actual top comestible amount and - as Westerners apperceive able-bodied - keeps about always if dried. The date has a added property: a amoroso agreeable so top - up to 80 percent - that it inhibits a lot of bacilli and so provides a advantageous food, clashing abundant beginning bake-apple which, in the tropics, is apt to advance disease. The sap of a accompanying breed of palm, Archetype sylvestris, can aswell be bashed fresh. It is candied and refreshing, not clashing sugarcane juice. Fermented, it becomes exhilarant and appropriately banned to Muslims, the Prophet ambience the absolute of three days' beverage afore the alcohol is advised to be unlawful. Interestingly, three canicule is aswell about the time appropriate for the crumbling approach abstract to become baneful and alarming to the health, abnormally to vision.
The date approach aswell provides copse for building. Although not actual hard, it does able-bodied abundant in a dry climate: pieces of carved approach copse from old houses can still be begin in the markets of al-Khobar, Riyadh, Jiddah and added cities in Saudi Arabia. The copse was aswell acclimated for some locations of dhows, the harder and admired teak from India getting aloof for the locations apparent to rougher weather. Approach fronds, on the added hand, are advantageous for thatching roofs and authoritative baskets, mats and abundant added domiciliary articles. One of the a lot of adorable of these is the alembic fabricated of the midribs of the leaves, which can be begin arranged abounding of beginning dates at any Average Eastern bazaar in backward summer. Each breadth has hardly altered baskets - those in Dammam, for example, are about black red. Any locations of the date approach not acclimated in added agency are, naturally, acclimated as fuel. Slow-burning palm-wood chips were anticipation abnormally acceptable for authoritative coffee.
Insects are the primary pollinator of the date approach in abundant of its range. But aback Arabia does not accept a advanced array of insect species, this accustomed pollination does not ensure the best accessible crop: duke pollination is necessary. This action can still be apparent in Arabia in the spring. If the bake-apple begins to form, the spathes are frequently angry up in cardboard accoutrements to assure them from the insects and birds - for archetype the acclaimed blooming ring-necked parakeets, who for abounding years accept pillaged the dates of Dhahran and who can abort the crop of a accomplished timberline - about 50 pounds - in a few days.
Many added breed of birds, bulbuls especially, like to backup in date award and about use approach fibres as nesting material. And the award of the oases, in their anxiously spaced ranks, aswell accommodate the sole apartment for all kinds of arena crops that abound in their blue-green adumbration - as alfalfa and vegetables do in al-Hasa.
If, in the East, the date approach was awfully useful, in the West it was glamorous. Even its botanical name, Archetype dactylifera, refers to myth. The phoenix, of course, is the allegorical bird, aborigine of Arabia, of which alone one was said to exist. If afterwards 500 years it acquainted itself about to die, it approved out Shakespeare's "sole Arabian tree," about anticipation to be the palm, congenital itself a blaze of dragon's blood, aroma and aroma - all Arabian articles - laid a individual egg and again set blaze to its nest. From the ashes arose the new phoenix. This fable aflame the imaginations of East and West, and both European and Arab naturalists and album writers speculated at breadth aloft the attributes of this abstruse bird. There were even letters of its getting sighted.
Less romantically, the all-encompassing name Archetype was apparently accustomed to mark the date seed's adeptness to lie abeyant for years - even decades - afore beginning if altitude are favorable. Dadylifem agency "datemaker"; our chat "date" comes from the Greek daktylos acceptation date - or finger.
Since the date approach is acutely so basal to Arab life, it is hardly hasty that there should be abundant words to call its varieties and the stages of its development. Altered varieties of dates are acclaimed and accepted by connoisseurs abundant as we accomplish distinctions amid Cox Orange Pippins, Golden Delicious, and Granny Smiths. In North Africa - breadth dates were alien by the Arabs - a adventure is told about one decidedly admired array accepted as "The Date of Light."
It is said that an old adult alleged Tuaja went on a appointment to Medina and there in the courtyard of the abode of Aishah, the Prophet's wife - where, according to tradition, a date approach grew - she best up some date stones. She was actual confused by award the birth of the bake-apple eaten by the Prophet himself and so she threaded the date stones into a cord of adoration beads. In the advance of time she alternate to her home boondocks and, abounding with allegiance afterwards her pilgrimage, longed to abstraction the Koran and the Traditions. The abstruse men of the city, however, laughed at her, adage she was a poor, apprenticed old woman and not aces of their teaching. She accommodated herself to their acerbity and not alone performed the assigned prayers with abundant regularity, but spent all her additional time sitting with her aback to the abbey bank praying, with her date rock chaplet in her hand. The years anesthetized and she died. As she was agitated to the burying ground, her chaplet bankrupt and her date stones were scattered. They were valueless and no one afflicted to aces them up, but the afterward year a amount of date sprouts were seen, and aural seven years the award were address the a lot of adorable dates anytime eaten in North Africa. Some said they were alleged "The Date of Light" because the copse themselves shone, others because it was accepted they had aboriginal appear from al-Madinah' al-Munawwarah, "The Radiant City."
Types of date
Several types of dates can be found in Arabia andrest of the world , some of them are listed here.
Afandi Jebaily Maktoomi Sawaida
Ajwah Kaekah Menaify Shael
Anbarah Khalas Meskany Shalaby
Baidh Khoudry Mushkouh Shoukry
Barny Khuzab Rabiyah Sofry
Berhi Lounah Rasoudiah Sukkary
Gharr Lubanah Safawy Suqaey
Helwah Mabroom Sahishy Wananah
Helya Madjoul Sariyah Zaewy
100 gm of dates contains; 2 mg of "Sodium".
100 gm of dates contains; 75 gm of "Total Carbohydrates".
100 gm of dates contains; 8 gm of "Dietary Fiber".
100 gm of dates contains; 63 gm of "Sugars".
100 gm of dates contains; 2 gm of "Protein".
100 gm of dates contains; A 10 IU of "Vitamin".
100 gm of dates contains; 0.4 mg of "Vitamin C".
100 gm of dates contains; 0.05 mg of "Vitamin E".
100 gm of dates contains; 2.7 mcg of "Vitamin K".
100 gm of dates contains; 0.052 mg of "Thiamin".
100 gm of dates contains; 0.066 mg of "Riboflavin".
100 gm of dates contains; 1.274 mg of "Niacin".
100 gm of dates contains; 0.165 mg of "Vitamin B6".
100 gm of dates contains; 0 mcg of "Vitamin B12".
100 gm of dates contains; 19 mcg of "Folate".
100 gm of dates contains; 0.589 mcg of "Pantothenic Acid".
100 gm of dates contains; 39 mg of "Calcium".
100 gm of dates contains; 1.02 mg of "Iron".
Chemical composition of the flesh and the pit of date palm fruit and radical scavenging activity of their extracts.
Abstract
The chemical analysis of flesh and pit of two varieties of date palm fruit (Deglet nour and Alig) as well as the radical scavenging activity of their extracts was undertaken. The fruits were grown in Djerid region (Oasis of Tozeur, Tunisia). Total sugars was measured by HPLC method or with Fehling reagent, crude lipid content was obtained by Soxhlet's extraction, mineral elements were measured by atomic absorption photometer. The antioxidant activity of extracts from the flesh and pit of the date fruit was measured on the basis of the scavenging activity of the stable 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhy-drazyl (DPPH) free radical. Our results showed that the total sugars could present over 60% of the dry weight of date flesh in two studied varieties. The content of reducing sugars was higher in Alig variety than Deglet nour. For the minerals content, dates flesh were a very good source of several minerals and could be an important source of potassium for regular consumer with a concentration of 0.61 and 0.72% (dry matter), respectively from flesh Deglet nour and Alig. Concerning the date pit composition, oils content was 10.13% in Deglet nour and 12.37% in Alig and the total sugars were less than 6% for the two varieties. In addition, ethyl acetate extracts from flesh Deglet nour, pit Deglet nour and pit Alig showed an important free radical scavenging activity towards 1-1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical.
Dates Food uses
Dry or soft dates are eaten out-of-hand, or may be pitted and stuffed with fillings such as almonds, walnuts, candied orange and lemon peel, tahini, marzipan or cream cheese. Pitted dates are also referred to as stoned dates. Partially dried pitted dates may be glazed with glucose syrup for use as a snack food. Dates can also be chopped and used in a range of sweet and savory dishes, from tajines (tagines) in Morocco to puddings, ka'ak (types of Arab cookies) and other dessert items. Date nut bread, a type of cake, is very popular in the United States, especially around holidays. Dates are also processed into cubes, paste called "'ajwa", spread, date syrup or "honey" called "dibs" or "rub" in Libya, powder (date sugar), vinegar or alcohol. Vinegar made from dates is a traditional product of the Middle East.[9][10] Recent innovations include chocolate-covered dates and products such as sparkling date juice, used in some Islamic countries as a non-alcoholic version of champagne, for special occasions and religious times such as Ramadan.
Dates can also be dehydrated, ground and mixed with grain to form a nutritious stockfeed. Dried dates are fed to camels, horses and dogs in the Sahara. In northern Nigeria, dates and peppers added to the native beer are believed to make it less intoxicating.
Sweet sap tapped from date palm in West Bengal, India
Young date leaves are cooked and eaten as a vegetable, as is the terminal bud or heart, though its removal kills the palm. The finely ground seeds are mixed with flour to make bread in times of scarcity. The flowers of the date palm are also edible. Traditionally the female flowers are the most available for sale and weigh 300–400 grams. The flower buds are used in salad or ground with dried fish to make a condiment for bread.
Dates provide a wide range of essential nutrients, and are a very good source of dietary potassium. The sugar content of ripe dates is about 80%; the remainder consists of protein, fiber, and trace elements including boron, cobalt, copper, fluorine, magnesium, manganese, selenium, and zinc. The glycemic index for three different varieties of dates are 35.5 (khalas), 49.7 (barhi) and 30.5 (bo ma'an).
In India and Pakistan, North Africa, Ghana, and Côte d'Ivoire, date palms are tapped for the sweet sap, which is converted into palm sugar (known as jaggery or gur), molasses or alcoholic beverages. In North Africa the sap obtained from tapping palm trees is known as lagbi. If left for a sufficient period of time (typically hours, depending on the temperature) lagbi easily becomes an alcoholic drink.[citation needed] Special skill is required when tapping the palm tree so that it does not die.
In Southeast Spain (where a large date plantation exists including UNESCO protected Palmeral of Elche) dates (usually pitted with fried almond) are served wrapped in bacon and shallow fried.
Other uses of the plant
In ample locations of Northern India the bounded breed of agrarian date palm, Phoenix sylvestris, is broke for approach wine, while in Pakistan and added bounded countries in the arena it is now mostly broke for jaggery and approach abstract production. Agrarian date award are aswell broke in ample locations of Africa for approach wine. the action of approach borer involves the acerbic of the unopened annual axis and again band a canteen gourd, adobe or artificial barge on to it. The approach sap again collects in the barge and is harvested in the aboriginal morning hours. If a few drops of adhesive abstract are added to the approach sap, beverage can be chock-full and the sap can again be above into approach syrup, approach amoroso and jaggery.
Date seeds are blood-soaked and arena up for beastly feed. Their oil is acceptable for use in soap and cosmetics. They can aswell be candy chemically as a antecedent of oxalic acid. The seeds are aswell austere to accomplish charcoal for silversmiths, and can be strung in necklaces. Date seeds are aswell arena and acclimated in the address of coffee beans, or as an accretion to coffee.
Stripped bake-apple clusters are acclimated as brooms. In Pakistan, a viscous, blubbery abstract fabricated from the accomplished fruits is acclimated as a blanket for covering accoutrements and pipes to anticipate leaking.
Date approach sap is acclimated to accomplish approach abstract and abundant comestible articles acquired from the syrup.
Date approach leaves are acclimated for Approach Sunday in the Christian religion. In North Africa, they are frequently acclimated for authoritative huts. Mature leaves are aswell fabricated into mats, screens, baskets and fans. Candy leaves can be acclimated for careful board. Dried blade petioles are a antecedent of artificial pulp, acclimated for walking sticks, brooms, fishing floats and fuel. Blade sheaths are admired for their scent, and fibre from them is aswell acclimated for rope, base cloth, and ample hats. The leaves are aswell acclimated as a lulav in the Jewish anniversary of Sukkot.
Date approach copse is acclimated for posts and rafters for huts; it is lighter than attic and not actual durable. It is aswell acclimated for architecture such as bridges and aqueducts, and locations of dhows. Leftover copse is burnt for fuel.
Where ability traditions still thrive, such as in Oman, the approach timberline is the a lot of able of all aboriginal plants, and around every allotment of the timberline is activated to accomplish anatomic items alignment from braiding and baskets to beehives, fishing boats, and acceptable dwellings.[citation needed]
When Muslims breach fast in the black meal of Ramadan, it is acceptable to eat a date first.
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