Thorough research: A date with palms

Scholar grows and evaluates three date palms that are not native to the country.

SUKKUR:

M Phil research scholar Nizamuddin Tunio revealed during a seminar that he has been successfully growing and evaluating non-native date palms in the country for the past two years.

The M Phil seminar on 'Field Evaluation of Three Saudi Arabian Date Palm Varieties; Ajwa, Safawi and Ruthana' was held in the Department of Botany of Shah Abdul Latif University (Salu), Khairpur. Tunio, under the supervision of Prof Dr Ghulam Sarwar Markhand, presented a paper on the subject, while the faculty dean of the natural sciences department, Prof Dr Yasmeen Faiz Kazi, presided over the seminar.



During the presentation, he revealed that experiments were conducted to examine the flooring characteristics and the physical and chemical properties of date palm fruits at different stages of their growth. He said that the three date palm varieties were genetically different and that Ajwa delayed spathe emergence and pollination as compared to the Safawi or Ruthana. The length, the width and the weight of the fruit, its flesh and the seed were examined in the physical characteristics study. For the chemical analysis, moisture content, pH value, total soluble solids and total sugar content were examined.

Prof Dr Kazi appreciated the research work presented by the scholar and said that the research will benefit the growers of date palms. Prof Dr Markhand said that the work will pave way for future research. "This research will provide a guideline for date palm growers of the area, who can earn more profit by growing these varieties," he said. "At the date palm research institute established by Salu, we are working hard to grow the date palms through which the growers can get more yield and spend less."

Prof Dr Markhand added that it was common perception that Ajwa dates can only be grown in Madina in Saudi Arabia but that has been proven wrong. "We have not only successfully planted Ajwa but it is also bearing high quality fruit," he claimed. "Similarly, other varieties of Ruthana and Safawi have also shown good results." The professor asked date palm growers to not stick to only one variety of date but to try other varieties as well.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 27^th, 2014.