Very many lovers of indoor floriculture at least once tried to grow something exotic and interesting from seed or seed of purchased fruit. Perhaps it was figs, banana, kiwi, coconut or citrus fruits, pitted dates. Just about it and we will talk. Overseas guest has long ceased to be something out of the ordinary, and it can easily be found on store shelves. So why not try to grow your own palm out of it? Knowing how to grow dates from a stone at home, you can easily realize your desires. There is nothing complicated in this, the main thing is to make a little effort and have a little patience. And a grown date palm will not cause you much trouble at all, but will only delight you with its beauty.
Date tree
In other words, a date palm is a plant from the genus Palm, which includes from 14 to 17 species that grow in Africa and Eurasia. The fruits of many of them are very common foods.
Dates were grown in ancient Mesopotamia (the territory of modern Iraq) in the fourth millennium BC. For millennia, dates have remained the staple food in North Africa and the Middle East.
Biological description of the genus
All representatives of a small genus - mainly trees or squat shrubs with characteristic pinnately dissected leaves. In addition, a distinctive feature of most representatives is a single trunk without branching. Long hard leathery leaves of dark green color near the base have spines. Date - a tree with small yellow flowers collected in panicled inflorescences. Cirrus leaves are located on a long handle at an angle. The height of the palm tree can be different and ranges from 15 to 30 meters.
Date fruit
They are not edible in all species, but only in a few. Palm dates are especially appreciated. Sweet fruits have long been used by people as a high-value food product. As a rule, they are sold and exported in dried form. They have a high calorie content and the highest glycemic index. Therefore, people with diabetes need to be extremely careful with these fruits.
Bone date tree
To grow an exotic palm tree at home is quite real and very simple. Most importantly - pay attention to the dates, it is desirable that they be fresh, not dry. You can eat fruits with pleasure, but leave a few seeds. Rinse them thoroughly with water and dry them slightly with napkins. Then, in order to violate the integrity of the seed coat, you need to rub it with sandpaper, slightly scratch it. This procedure will accelerate germination. Keep in mind that a home date tree will not bear fruit, you will get only a beautiful palm tree with large decorative leaves.
How to germinate the seeds?
First of all, you need to prepare the soil in which you will plant the seeds. A soil mixture of the following composition is recommended: peat, sand, sawdust in a ratio of 1: 1: 1. Plant seeds from the date vertically, so that the top is covered with a layer of earth one centimeter thick. From above it is desirable to cover the container with swamp moss (sphagnum) to prevent evaporation of moisture. If not, just place the container in a transparent plastic bag and place in a warm place (at least 25 ° C). Constantly maintain soil moisture. Bone dates sprout in different ways, on average from one to three or even six months, so you have to be patient. Sprouts appear most quickly in fresh seeds.
Date Seedlings
It is simply impossible to confuse seedlings with anything else. They, like soldiers, jump out of the ground. Thin and long sharp green skewers in the first days are pulled instantly. It is necessary to wait until they grow to a height of 10-15 cm, and only then plant them in separate small pots. Or, as an option, you can immediately plant the seeds in a separate container. The date tree from the seed grows, as a rule, strong and healthy. The main thing is to properly care for him. Let's find out how to do it.
Place in the house and soil for a date palm
The best place will be in a house where there is a large amount of diffused sunlight without direct hit by burning rays. To maintain the symmetry of the plant, it is recommended to rotate it around its axis 180 degrees every two weeks. Then the palm will not lean in one direction, and all the leaves will remain straight, smooth and green.
The soil for the date palm should consist of the following components: turf, leaf soil, humus, peat land and sand (in a ratio of 2: 2: 4: 1: 2). Be sure to make good drainage from the expanded clay layer and add charcoal to the soil. A date tree grown from seed is replanted annually at a young age, and once every five years is reached. A signal for this will be the roots that will go out through the drainage holes, which means that the pot has become too small.
Before you grow dates from a seed, it is worth considering whether you can provide him with suitable conditions, including temperature conditions. In winter, the air should be warmed up from 16 to 18 ° C, and in summer - up to 25-30 ° C.
Water regime and fertilizing
During the period of active vegetation and the growth of green mass (from April to August), watering should be plentiful, do not allow the drying of an earthen coma. And in the autumn-winter time, you need to take small breaks: at this time, the plant begins a mild period of rest.
Fertilizing with complex mineral fertilizers is also carried out from April to August with a frequency of once every two weeks. Use special preparations for palm trees or for decorative and deciduous plants with an optimal content of the main elements - nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium - in a ratio of 3: 1: 3. The date tree belongs calmly to the dry air of apartments with city heating; humidity of 40-50% is enough for it. In the summer, the palm can be taken out onto the balcony or loggia and periodically wiped off the dust with a damp sponge.
Characteristic signs of a lack of useful elements
Having learned about how to grow dates from seed at home, it is important to remember the main problems that may arise when growing palm trees.
- Nitrogen deficiency. Symptoms: palm leaves turn light green, plant growth stops.
- Potassium deficiency. It appears in spots of bronze color on a leaf blade. Symptoms appear on the old parts of the plant in the first place, only then they switch to young ones. Also, yellow translucent or orange spots may appear on the leaves. Gradually, necrosis begins with them. The sheet dries and curls.
- Magnesium deficiency. Symptoms are similar to the previous case, appearing first on old leaves. Deficiency of the element manifests itself in the form of a wide yellow band along the edge of the leaf blade, while it itself retains a bright green color.
- Manganese deficiency. The first signs of element deficiency begin to appear on young fresh leaves in the form of chlorosis, poor development, smaller size compared to the rest. The deficit is mainly caused by the fact that the element does not dissolve at high pH or low air temperature in winter.
Main problems
1) The date tree has stopped growing. This phenomenon is usually accompanied by leaf chlorosis. The reason is the low air temperature, root growth, and therefore their absorption of nutrients, ceases at 16-17 ° C. There is a shortage of several trace elements at once. The way out of the situation is maintaining the correct temperature in the room at the level of 25-27 ° .
2) Lack of nutrients. The first symptom is the appearance of chlorotic spots, which, if not taken, turn into necrotic spots. A lack of copper, manganese and iron can cause high soil acidity. Use fertilizers correctly, in strict accordance with the instructions.
3) Edge burn of leaves. Palm trees, including the date tree, are very sensitive to waterlogging of the soil and do not tolerate poorly drained substrates. First, the roots are damaged, and, as a result, an edge burn on the leaves soon arises. The solution is to change the substrate and reduce watering.
Knowing how to grow dates from a stone at home, the main conditions of detention and possible problems, you can get a beautiful and strong plant.