Date Crop Outside the Sonoran Desert

[ahosey01]

I am starting this thread out of a curious thought that came from a discussion in the climate forum.

I am wondering if there are any commercially viable date growers in California or other areas, outside of the normal Sonoran Desert range.  Typically, commercial date crops are harvested in four places in the United States:

• In the Hyder Valley in eastern Yuma County, AZ
• In the Bard Valley around Yuma
• In the Imperial Valley in southeastern California
• In the Coachella Valley (the big one) in eastern riverside county.

Most likely, dates would also grow just fine in the Colorado River valley just south of Bullhead City, and in the Palo Verde Valley around Blythe - I just don't believe there is much commercial production going on there.  There used to be more production in the eastern part of the Salt River Valley near Phoenix, but most of that area has been built into homes and industry now.

The two environmental factors that dates require to ripen to harvest - and taste good - are a.) a lack of late-summer rains, and b.) high daytime temperatures.  I'm sure there are many more and I just don't know them.

Anyways, it seems like there would be some areas of California's central valley - or perhaps even some of the drier portions of South Texas - where daytime highs are high enough, and late summer rains infrequent enough, that dates could be grown.  Is anyone aware of any commercial date production outside of the four areas I listed above?

Let me know!

[Dimovi]

What I know is pretty much what you said. Dates need hot but also dry summer days.

I think almost any place between west Texas and California should work.

Warm desert, warm semi-arid, warm mediterranean and maybe mild cold semi-arid climate zones should be good.

[TexasColdHardyPalms]

Starting from big spring TX all the way west would work in the summer, except it is too cold for reliable commercial production until you get on the other side of the mountains into Tucson.   

The area from Zapata to Laredo, TX would be a perfect climate as well.  

The second most important factor is irrigation and from my understanding is the number one limiting factor. 

[Austinpalm]

I read many years ago on this board that the Texas ag-extension agency looked into growing dates around Laredo.  I believe they decided it was too humid around harvesting time to get quality dates.  John Volke of PSST put up some pix of a few feral Phoenix dactylifera resulting from that trial.  Do a search and you should be able to find it.

 

[Austinpalm]

On 8/14/2020 at 3:17 PM, Dimovi said:

What I know is pretty much what you said. Dates need hot but also dry summer days.

I think almost any place between west Texas and California should work.

Warm desert, warm semi-arid, warm mediterranean and maybe mild cold semi-arid climate zones should be good.

Something is awry with this map.  South Florida is being listed as the same climate as northern Minnesota.  Also thinking that warm desert around Midland-Odessa Texas is incorrect.  If that climate exists in Texas, I expect it is more likely to be found farther south and just west of Big Bend near Presidio. But, I could be wrong.

[zero]

50 minutes ago, Austinpalm said:

Something is awry with this map.  South Florida is being listed as the same climate as northern Minnesota.  Also thinking that warm desert around Midland-Odessa Texas is incorrect.  If that climate exists in Texas, I expect it is more likely to be found farther south and just west of Big Bend near Presidio. But, I could be wrong.

Yeah, those maps that are color-coded are difficult to interpret at times.  Too many shades of blue make things confusing.  The only bright dark blue on the map is some of HI and south FL should be the same color but it does look like the south FL blue matches better with MN blue.  Isn't there a guy up in northern MN growing a coconut?   

[Brian F. Austin]

Here in Austin I’ve seen some dactyliferas on Riverside dr that produce dates every year. I don’t know of the quality. I’ve heard they need dry summers to finish correctly. I’ve got some Halawi dates that are supposed to be better in humid weather. 

[Brian F. Austin]

Btw I was at a large organic farm here in Austin and they were planting 75 satsuma oranges. I said why don’t you plant Date palms too and he laughed and said no way they would survive. So I think peoples minds need to be changed.