The process of date production

The Date palm is an illustrious desert tree that is originally from the Middle East. There are several different varieties of dates that have been imported to the US and of these, the most common are probably the Deglet, Barhi, and of course, the Medjool. These are only the most popular varieties. There are hundreds of varieties, but these trees are known to give the best and most plentiful fruit, and are thus, the most likely to be grown commercially. This narrative will focus on the Medjool, coined the King of Dates.

There are four main stages in the production of Medjool dates. These stages include pollination, thinning, bagging and harvesting. The process of growing other varieties is basically the same, excluding the painstaking procedure of thinning and simplified harvesting. Pollination of a date tree is a relatively unique horticultural process. There are two sexes amongst date trees. For every thirty female trees, there is one male tree in a conventional date garden. The male tree flowers about three weeks before the female trees. The male flowers are then cut and the pollen is extracted. When the female flowers pop up, the pollen is applied. Before applying the pollen, the centers of the date bunches must be cut out. This allows room for circulation of the pollen and simplifies the thinning process which occurs one to two months later.

When the dates get to be about pea size, we begin to thin the bunches. This is one of the most labor intensive aspects of growing a good quality Medjool date. Two of every three dates must be plucked from the bunches by hand, in a skillful fashion, allowing the maximum distance between each baby date. This is where the growing practices between varieties of dates begin to differ. Other less demanding varieties such as the Deglet, Barhi, Sahib, and the Bread date are exempt from this process.

During the month of July, we begin the process of bagging. The basic principle is to cover the fruit with bags to insure that the rain and birds are kept from damaging the fruit as they are ripening. There are two types of bags. The first type is a paper bag that wraps around the date bunch and is open at the bottom. The second is a cloth bag made with a semi water resistant mesh cloth that is sealed at both ends. The cloth bag is becoming the preferred method amongst organic date growers because having the bunch sealed at both ends helps to keep out harmful insects. The cloth bags are also re-useable.

We then water and tend to the trees until the big push of harvest arrives in late August. Medjool dates are picked in five phases in order to get all of the dates at peak ripeness. Medjool dates are allowed to cure on the tree, as there is no better environment for curing dates than the 110 degree day time temperatures that nature provides in the desert. Although working in this environment is difficult, it is the only way that we can bring you the top quality Medjool dates that you have come to love!