Date Producing Palm tree

[PalmSprings]

I am looking for a type of Palm tree that can be pallinated to give large Madool type dates. I have a spot in the front yard and would like to plant it . A tall tree would be good as my home is high. It wouldn't match the neighborhood though which are all wheeping willows and maple trees, but there's no association. Who sells these trees and will they grow in Sacramento,CA.

[cencalpalmguy]

There are a few types of date palms that will grow here like the Canary Island Date or the True Date (phoenix dactylifera) but they will not produce edible dates for you. Edible dates have to be grown where it doesn't freeze and has more consistent temps. If you are still interested in planting one and you have a very large space they sell c.i.d.p's at home depot or lowe's. The true dates you may have to look a little harder for.

[iamjv]

Hello Palmsprings and welcome to the board.... if you lived in Palm Springs then you'll have no problem growing date palms. In Sacremento they'll grow but not produce fruit properly as you'll not have the intense heat that they require. The true date is Phoenix Dactylifera and it is the phoenix species you are thinking of. The Medjool variety is an excellent choice as it has the largest of the date fruits. All others are smaller in size, and in my opinion flavor. The medjool is also one of the largest varieties grown in the Coachella Valley. I am sure you can find a local nursery who might be selling these palm trees. Best of luck. Jv

[Jim in Los Altos]

I actually think you may have a good chance at getting them (Phoenix dactylifera) to produce edible dates in your area. Anyone who has lived in Sacramento knows that the summers are intensely long and HOT. I live in a much cooler part of N. CA and I know of at least a couple of edible date producing trees here.

If you're looking for large field grown dates, many of the desert date orchard growers often sell very large specimens when they become taller than is practical. You may have to google for more info unless someone else on this board can help.

[Kris]

Hai,iam glad even you are a phoenix species fan,and if your are near-by to this place go an check this farm.these guys know what exactly you want.

http://www.datepalm.com/dp/index.php/palm-info/medjools

http://www.datepalm.com/dp/

All the best in your search for the best date palm for your garden...

Love,

Kris

[ghar41]

Hi Sacramento, and welcome to Palmtalk!

Im 60 miles south of you in Modesto, our climates are very similar. P dactylifera and the gijillions of P. dactylifera hybrids, grow very well in the valley. They love the 100 F days in the summer, and tolerate our wet winters.

There are 3 trees here at the Black Angus Restaurant on Sisk Rd. that can be seen from Highway 99 as you pass through town. They were brought in as large trees sometime around 1982. At least one of them is a female and has fruited numerous times over the years. It seems to always begin the flowering process in the winter with the fruit ripening in the late spring. Thing is, it is so wet and cold during this time that rot seems to get them every time.

My gut feeling is that there is a poor chance of getting any decent fruit here. Even though these trees, along with Washingtonia filifera and other desert palms grow well here, they just don't have the same look as those down in the Coachella Valley and other areas in and around Palm Springs and Indio. The leaves on trees in those areas have a certain color and glaucescense that is unmatched in our wet winter areas.

I am certainly no expert though. Ive also read that they should be hand pollenated, so maybe the trees here just set poorly....

Many years ago, a friend at our lunch table at work gave me a handful of dates. I kept and germinated the seed, they germinate very quickly.

This small tree in my yard is from one of those dates.

[JasonD]

There was a Palm Society member in Winters, west of Davis, whose Phoenix dactylifera occasionally produced ripe fruit, but the climate there is a bit drier and possibly hotter than Sacramento's. It's tucked-in behind the Coast Range in more of a rain shadow and away from the summer marine influence.

[DoomsDave]

Palmsprings!

Welcome to our band, and board, and join us in a thorazine cocktail . . . . .

We're all nutty about palms.

Off the top of my head, I'd say you'll have a hard time getting dates to produce well where you are, because, while Sacramento gets hot in the summer, it's still not like Palm Springs. Plus, freezes up where you are will damage the fruit. On the other hand, the trees themselves are as tough as nails, and will take temps to 10 F; if the tops freeze, they resprout from the roots.

That said, you're welcome to prove us wrong about raising dates!

If you want edible dates, buy yourself a male and a female Medjool rooted offset. Don't waste your time with seedlings raised by open-pollinated dates. I believe you'll need to hand pollinate them, and you'll want to defang those nasty spines. Raising dates is a lot of work, so I've heard, and noted from a couple of visits to the desert.

[John Case]

I am a bit confused.

I have been to Indio a number of times and it freezes there almost every year.....how do they protect the fruit?