The date palm is one of the most important commercial trees in the world. In our latitudes, palm trees with their feathery leaves are mainly cultivated as houseplants. Interesting facts about the date palm – a profile.
What are the characteristics and care requirements of the date palm?
The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) is a feather palm with a height of up to five meters when grown indoors. It prefers warm, sunny locations and requires plenty of water without waterlogging. Its flowering period is between February and June and it is non-toxic to humans and animals.
Date palm profile
- Botanical name: Phoenix dactylifera
- Family: Arecaceae
- Genus: Date palms
- Occurrence: Phoenix – Canary Islands, Africa
- Appearance: Feather palm with tuft of leaves
- Height: in cultivation up to five meters
- Leaves: green pinnate leaves, in cultivation up to 60 cm
- Flower: yellow-white
- Flowering period: February to June
- Fruits: golden yellow, small in cultivation and not edible
- Use: Agricultural tree in nature. Ornamental plant in the house
- Winter hardiness: limited to -6 degrees
- Poisonousness: non-poisonous plant
Uses of Date Palm in the Home
In our latitudes, the date palm is primarily used as an ornamental plant for the house and garden. While date palms can grow up to 25 meters high in nature, when grown indoors they only reach heights of around five meters.
Fruits only develop to a limited extent on cultivated specimens. In contrast to the fruits of the real date palm, they are not edible in nature.
The right care
Date palms prefer a warm, sunny location. In summer the temperatures can be 25 degrees and more. In winter the date palm should be kept cooler. When wintering, the ideal temperature is 15 degrees.
Date palms need a lot of water, but cannot tolerate waterlogging. Watering is always carried out only when the top layer of the substrate is completely dry. Fertilization is carried out every 14 days with a commercially available liquid fertilizer (€6.00 on Amazon).
You have to repot a date palm in spring every four to five years.
Date palms are not poisonous
Date palms do not contain any toxins and can therefore also be grown in households with children and animals. However, the stems and the tips of the leaves become quite pointed and sharp, so you can suffer injuries if handled improperly. Therefore, place date palms in a safe location.
Tip
In the Arabian and African regions, the date palm plays an important role in food. It produces many fruits in nature that are not only eaten by humans but also fed to animals. Stem and leaves are used for building houses and everyday objects.