Thon Intha | ต้นอินทผลัม | Phoenix dactylifera
Family: Arecaceae - Genus: Phoenix
Even though the date palm is not native to Paksong area, we planted a couple of these palms near the Natural Building project on the premises of Eco-Logic Thailand.
Phoenix dactylifera, commonly known as date or date palm] is a flowering palm, grown for its edible sweet fruit.
Date trees typically reach about 21–23 meter in height, growing singly or forming a clump with several stems from a single root system.
The date palm has separate male and female plants.
Dates are naturally wind pollinated. Natural pollination occurs with about an equal number of male and female plants. However, with assistance, one male can pollinate up to 100 females. Since the males are of value only as pollinators, this allows the growers to use their resources for many more fruit-producing female plants.
Date palms can take 4 to 8 years after planting before they will bear fruit, and start producing viable yields for commercial harvest between 7 and 10 years. They typically begin to bear fruit in April or May, and are "ripe for the picking" around late August to September. A single tree can produce 200 to 300 pounds of fruit per year, and it can be harvested many times throughout a season, as the dates do not ripen all at once.
THE TREE
Date trees typically reach about 21–23 meters (69–75 ft) in height, growing singly or forming a clump with several stems from a single root system.
THE LEAVES
The leaves are 4–6 meters long, with spines and leaflets. The leaflets are 30 cm (12 in) long and 2 centimeter wide. The full span of the crown ranges from 6–meter.
Young date leaves are cooked and eaten as a vegetable, as is the terminal bud or heart, though its removal kills the palm.
THE FLOWERS
The flowers of the date palm are also edible.
The flower buds are used in salad or ground with dried fish to make a condiment for bread.
Mature male date palms usually produce from 5 to 10 large flowers each year.
The date palm flowers form within the long stout spathe which, on bursting, exposes many thickly crowded floral branchlets inside.
Adult female date palms produce from 5 - 20 spathes. The male flowers are borne single and are waxy white, while the female flowers are borne in clusters of three and are yellowish green in color.
THE FRUIT
Date fruits (dates) are oval-cylindrical, 3 to 7 centimeters long, and about 2.5 centimeters in diameter, ranging from bright red to bright yellow in color, depending on variety. At about 61-68 percent sugar by mass when dried, dates are a very sweet fruit.
CULINARY USES
Dry or soft dates are eaten out-of-hand, or may be pitted and stuffed with fillings. 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.
Young date leaves are cooked and eaten as a vegetable.
The finely ground seeds are mixed with flour to make bread in times of scarcity.
The flowers of the date palm are also edible. The flower buds are used in salad or ground with dried fish to make a condiment for bread.
NUTRITION
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.
TRADITIONAL MEDICINAL
NOTE: please take advice from a doctor if you are planning to use herbal medicine.
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INTO THE WILD: a down to earth experience
For guests and visitors to Paksong we organize weekly tours "The Edible Forest" and Foraging weekends: Into the Wild. We work with local guides to take you in the jungle of Paksong. After foraging, we will cook a meal with the ingredients, using bamboo together with you!
Come and join and learn about the abundance of food that nature gives us!
INTO THE WILD!
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