AFTER-CARE OF TISSUE CULTURE DATE PALMS

Please note that these notes are intended for guidance only, local conditions will
determine the optimum treatment for your plants. It is strongly advised that
customers seek expert local advice to assist them in managing and growing on
their Date Palm plants.
UPON ARRIVAL:
Plants should be cleared from airport customs as soon as possible. If the plants are
delayed for a few days, they must be kept in a cool, shaded area.
It is important that the plants are removed from their boxes without delay, given a
good watering using sweet water (i.e. salinity not more than 600 ppm total dissolved
solids) and placed in shaded tunnels or houses, with good wind protection
Commercially available nets that cut out 50-70% of direct sunlight are satisfactory.
Shading requirement will vary with variety - for example, Khalas will require 70%.
The average number of pots per square metre = 225.
It is important that the plants are kept in the pots, sheltered and under shade for 2 to 4
weeks to gradually acclimatise them to local conditions.
Whilst in the original torpedo pots, plants must be kept well watered, especially if the
plants are large. Do not allow the pots to dry out nor to become waterlogged. Sweet water
(i.e. salinity not more than 600 ppm total dissolved solids) must be used. If local water is
more than 600 ppm, it must be diluted with city water.

Watering of torpedo pots:

For smaller plants, water every morning and evening, before 8am and after 6pm by
overhead drench. For taller plants to make sure that water is reaching all the pots,
water at the base. Check the weight of a sample of trays, before and after watering to
assess the applied quantity that has been retained in the pots. Level of watering is
difficult to specify exactly, as it will vary with the size of plants bigger plants will
need more water than smaller sizes. Some careful judgment will be needed.

Feeding of torpedo pots:

If ready to re-pot after 2 weeks, no need to feed, but if longer than 2 weeks, feed once per
week with a watering can instead of the normal watering. The feeding rate should be
equivalent to the 100ppm Nitrogen rate detailed below.

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Spraying of torpedo pots:

Application of a commercial formulation of spraying (white) oils at the

recommended dosage on the label can help to keep plants pest-free (but take care to
apply when leaf and air temperature is low). Re-apply after one month.
As a precautionary measure, plants should be drenched at appropriate intervals with
proprietary broad-spectrum fungicide, using a suitable rotation of fungicides as
determined by the manufacturers recommendations. It is advisable to drench soon
after receipt with carbendazime and/or prochloraz, as per manufacturers instructions,
to protect plants during the acclimatization stage; this should be followed by an
appropriate maintenance program. We recommend that plants are also drenched with
a fungicide such as propamocarb hydrochloride, as per manufacturers instructions,
48-72hrs prior to them being repotted for growing on. Following repotting, plants
should be drenched again with propamocarb or similar, followed up by a
carbendazime /prochloraz drench and then a proper maintenance regime with a broadspectrum fungicide rotation as above. Due attention should be given to local
environment factors/influences in determining the most appropriate maintenance
regime.

GROWING ON:
D.P.D. strongly recommend that plants supplied in torpedo pots should be re-potted
and grown on in a sheltered nursery until they have achieved at least two Pinnate
leaves, before they are planted into the field.
Nursery shade-house design and preparation
Choice of pots or bags:
It is critical that the containers, whether bags or pots, will allow the compost to drain
freely so that the roots do not become water-logged and are thereby deprived of
oxygen.
Ideally, use good quality plastic pots of 7 to 10 litres. The pots should have several
drainage holes of about 5mm diameter in the base and a plinth which allows an airgap underneath the pot, which would allow the pot to drain freely to the outside.
Pots of this construction have several advantages: they guarantee good drainage out
of the pot, and for this reason can be used on any surface; they are robust and cannot
be punctured or ripped accidentally during planting or subsequent handling in the
nursery shade-house; they can be safely transported to the final customer or to the
field; they can, be sterilized and re-used.

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Arrangement of floor in a typical nursery shade-house to receive plants:

In the growing on area (shade house) plants should be stood on a clean level surface that
permits adequate drainage from the pot but is pest free, suppresses weed growth and
prevents root growth from the date palm plants into the substratum Ideally pots/bags
should be stood on a permeable, horticultural fabric liner however, good quality plastic
sheeting can also be used with certain precautions:
Rigid pots can stand on plastic sheeting placed directly on leveled and compacted soil.
However, if bags are used, it is critical that the floor is prepared correctly to allow the
bags to drain safely. Because a bag has no rigidity, if it is placed directly on a plastic
sheet on soil, the base of the bag can easily spread out in contact with the plastic sheet
and block the drainage holes. Also any subsidence due to settlement of the sub-soil will
generally result in the bag standing in a puddle and the roots becoming waterlogged. For
this reason, the plastic sheeting should be covered with a layer of clean washed
stone/gravel, leveled to a depth of circa 75 mm, to aid drainage.
Try to avoid direct contact of young plants with local soil at all times. Therefore do not
place trays of torpedo pots on local soil when removing from boxes or moving to their
new location. Similarly do not place young plants in direct contact with local soil.

a)

Preparation of shade house floor for pots:

The soil area must be weeded and the soil made as flat and as compact as possible.
The soil area should then be covered with a horticultural liner fabric or heavyduty polythene sheeting. Minimize the number of overlaps by using fabric or
polythene of a width that best matches the area to be covered. The sheet should be
trimmed up to the surrounding concrete wall. Ideally if permeable horticultural
fabric liner is not available, use double-sided polythene, black underneath, and
white on top. But if this is not available, use good quality black polythene sheet.
The polythene sheet should not be punctured. Install the irrigation dripper lines.

b)

Preparation of shade house floor for bags:

Prepare and compact the soil exactly as above, and sheet the soil as above with a
single width, but trim to allow the polythene sheet to rise 100 mm up the
surrounding concrete wall. A few holes should be made in sheet to allow simple
drainage but without disturbing the flat surface. Clean, washed stone/gravel to
be laid over the plastic and levelled to a depth of 75 mm. Install the irrigation
dripper lines.
Repotting of torpedo pots into pots/bags

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Choice of potting soil mixture:

A suitable potting mixture is one that provides an open structure for good drainage
The recommended mix is 60% imported potting compost + 20% Perlite/Vermiculite +
20% pure fine sand from a desert location (washed to remove clay and salt). It is
advisable not to use local soil as it may contain insect pests or diseases, and it
certainly contains fine clay which will impede the drainage of the potting mix. The
function of the Perlite is to open-up the texture of the mixture to assist drainage and
assist aeration of the roots. If Perlite cannot be obtained, a coarse grit/sand from a
desert location (washed to remove clay and salt) may be substituted. When using local
sand this should first be analyzed for salt concentration and potentially toxic mineral
residues; this will also provide information on potential deficiencies of key nutrient
elements. It may be necessary to take sound advice as to the location of suitable sand
and grit of the correct quality.

Pot filling:

It is advisable to fill the pots to the required volume with the mixture and stand the
filled pots in their final positions in the nursery shade-house ready for planting. The
potting mixture should not be dry, and should be kept moist, but it must not be wet. It
is advisable to prepare a planting-hole with an empty torpedo pot by gently pressing it
into the mix to receive the plant.

Re-potting:

Plants in torpedo pots for re-potting should have moist compost, but must not be wet.
They should be taken to the nursery shade-house in small batches, and handled close
to the pot which is to be planted.
The plastic torpedo pot is removed by inverting the torpedo, and gently tapping the
plant out using the minimum force applied to the rim of the pot with the minimum
disturbance to the root system and adhering compost. With bigger plants it is often
necessary to push any large roots, which have emerged from the bottom of the
torpedo, back into the pot simultaneously with the tapping out. In extreme cases,
these roots may need to be cut. Do not remove any of the compost from around the
root system. It is advisable that once the plant is removed from the torpedo, there is
no unnecessary delay before planting, as the root system will be very sensitive to
drying out.
Plant the plant into the prepared hole and gently firm the compost around the plant. It is
important that the compost is not squeezed or compressed any more than is necessary to
hold the plant upright in the new pot. If needed, the taller plant may require some
physical support during the first two weeks after planting, and these plants will need to be

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protected against winds blowing through the nursery shade-house.

When using local soil/sand this should first be analyzed for salt concentration and
potentially toxic mineral residues; this will also provide information on potential
deficiencies of key nutrient elements.
Plants can grow in these conditions for up to 12 months and should reach a height of
80 cms (incl. container) if well cared for.
Average number of pots per sq.metre = 25.

PLANT CARE
If temperatures exceed 35C, some cooling and humidifying will be required during
the first 3-4 months of growing on. In a simple shade house structure with no
evaporative cooling system, this can be achieved by spraying the surrounding
chippings/matting with water twice daily (under shade). Free drainage is essential at
all stages.
Great care should be taken when applying water to the plant leaves - this should not
be done in direct sunlight or during the hottest periods of the day. The action of direct
sunlight on water droplets on leaves will lead to severe marking and damage.
Similarly water, pesticide or fertilizer sprays applied to leaf surfaces when the plants
are hot will also cause leaf damage. Wherever possible, apply foliar sprays early
morning or late evening.
Once plants have been repotted, a commercial drip irrigation system is best for
watering feeding. Regular inspection and proper maintenance of drip lines and nozzles
is essential.
At the growing-on stage, we recommend the use of a high quality liquid feed, such as
Scotts Universol or Phosyn Croplift, to provide N:P:K at approximately a 2:1:2
ratio (NB + Mg if other sources of Mg are not present ). It is also very important to
apply chelated iron and complete trace elements for example Scotts Librel BMX
(chelated micronutrients) and Scotts Librel FeLo (chelated iron).
Application rates will depend on the rate of evaporation and how much water needs to
be applied. Where evaporation is high, lower application rates will help combat salt
accumulation.. Urea-based nitrogen fertilizers should be avoided as they can severely
damage young plants under high temperature conditions. The manufacturers
recommendations should be closely followed.

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At 1 month after re-potting, the feeding regime should start using final feed
concentration of 100ppm Nitrogen once per week with the second weekly watering
using water direct from the well. For reference, 100ppm Nitrogen dilution would be
achieved by dissolving 5Kg of a crystalline 20:10:20 formulation in 10,000 litres of
water. Application rates equivalent to 40 60 ppm Nitrogen will probably be
sufficient where evaporative losses are high. At 2 months from re-potting, the final
feed concentration regime can be increased up to 200ppm Nitrogen once per week
with the second weekly watering using water direct from the well. 200ppm Nitrogen
dilution would be achieved by dissolving 10Kg of a crystalline 20:10:20 formulation
in 10,000 litres of water.
Trace elements should be provided using the Librel BMX and FeLo formulations
added to the bulk fertilizer tank at a rate of 0.05 g/litre of Librel BMX plus 0.05 g/litre
Librel FeLo (g/litre final concentration) for the 100ppm N regime and 0.1 g/litre of
Librel BMX plus 0.1 g/litre Librel FeLo (g/litre final concentration) for the 200ppm N
regime. For clarity, 0.05 g/litre final concentration is equivalent to 500g added to
10,000 litres and 0.1 g/litre final concentration is equivalent to 1.0Kg added to 10,000
litres.
N.B. This rate of feeding may need to be adjusted from time to time according to
experience, depending upon the conductivity of the well water, or the availability of
commercial formulations, and the growth, development and appearance of the plants.
Where evaporation is high and the watering requirement is frequent, the combined
E.C. (electrical conductivity) value of the irrigation water and dissolved fertilizer
should not exceed 1.2 mS (1200 S) in order to avoid salinity problems.
The irrigation system should be flushed once per week with clean water without
fertilizer to prevent build up of salt deposits.
Irrigation system
Testing of water from wells:
All sources of water likely to be used for watering the plants should first be sampled
and analyzed. One of the main aims of this test is to measure the salt contents and
conductivity of the water before any fertilizer is added, as, depending upon the results,
the feeding regime may have to be adjusted to accommodate the combined level of
salts from the well and from the fertilizers (maximum EC 1,200 Siemens combined).
Design and operation of system:
It is efficient to feed the plants through a dripper irrigation system. This can be done
via a dosing pump Dosetron or by premixing the fertilizer into the irrigation water in
a bulk feed water tank. Where there is any doubt about the maintenance and

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monitoring of a dosing system, a bulk feed tank is probably the safest option. Using a
bulk feed system the soluble fertilizers are added to a fixed volume of water to make
feed-water at the final fertilizer concentration. This would be delivered via an
independent pump to the drippers at each watering. The pumps pipe-work should be
configured so that it can also re-circulate through the tank to assist solubility of the
feed crystals/concentrate and adequately mix the bulk feed-water to the final
concentration.
Size of mixing tank:
When date palm plants are grown in a similar system under a similar climate in the UAE,
it is necessary to water 7-litre bags twice per week during summer (once per week
winter), and the nominal quantity delivered to each pot is 600ml/pot/watering. In
Hadramout, 1.5 litres/pot/watering is required although evaporation rates are significantly
different. It is impossible, without direct experience of the nursery site, to make precise
calculations and comparisons based on a different climate with different evaporation rate,
humidity and temperature
It is good practice to allow for one watering per week in which no fertilizer is given. This
helps to flush the irrigation lines and prevent a build-up of salts on the dripper nozzles.
Where a bulk feed tank is used, the tank must not transmit light and when in use must be
kept lidded at all times to prevent the growth of algae. A concrete tank is the preferred
type.
Management and operation of the irrigation system:
It is essential that someone is given personal responsibility and takes detailed care of
the irrigation/feeding system and its operation.
It is essential that fertilizer is measured in to the bulk tank accurately
It is critical that at each watering there is regular checking for variability of the
distribution of water from bay to bay and from dripper nozzle to dripper nozzle.
It is very important that the irrigation tanks, pipe work and drippers are kept clean and
uncontaminated to prevent the spread of water-borne disease.
Checking should take the form of:a) spot-check measuring of the EC delivered from dripper nozzles
b) checking by eye for obviously slow or fast nozzles
c) spot-check measuring of the volume delivered from suspect nozzles
d) measuring by weight the water-holding capacity of a sample of bags/pots
before and after watering
When watering without feed, there are two possibilities:
a)
isolation of the tank system by closing the isolation stop valves and
pumping water direct from the well using the well-head pump; this would
give different pressure/flow rate characteristics compared to the tank/pump

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system, and a separate timing and calibration of the dripper nozzles would be
required to deliver the same volume.
b)
clearing the bulk tank of residual fertilizer and recharging with well water
as in the feeding operation, using the same pressure/flow rate and timing and
calibration of the dripper nozzles.

FIELD PLANTING
Density
The rules which apply to conventionally propagated date palms also apply to plants
propagated through tissue culture, and good practices should be followed at all times.
For any date palm plantation the limiting factor is the availability of suitable water. The
water requirement must be carefully determined beforehand, based on the proposed size
of the plantation: local advice should be sought. If the water requirement is calculated
incorrectly, and if insufficient suitable water is available, the plants will not thrive and
fruit yield may be affected.
If sufficient suitable water is available, it is recommended that a plant spacing of 9 metres
x 9 metres be adopted, giving approximately 125 trees per hectare. Although this is a
highly suitable spacing across a range of varieties, in certain cases where a higher density
plantation is required, the spacing may be reduced to 7 metres x 7 metres. This will give
an average planting density of 200 trees per hectare.
Planting Procedure
For plants that have been re-potted into 8 litre containers, the hole will need to be 1 metre in
diameter and 1 metre deep. The bottom should be filled to a depth of 20 cms with well
rotted manure, followed by 40 cms of good quality agricultural soil and topped up with a
mix of 70% soil, 30% peatmoss (or well matured horse manure). A good quality,
proprietary fertilizer mix that includes NPK + Mg, chelated iron and full trace elements
should be incorporated into this final mix at the manufacturers recommended level for
young plants (e.g. Phosyns Linah). Sufficient time and irrigation must now be given to
allow the soil refill to settle in the pit before planting. The level of the earth after watering
and drying out should be that of the surrounding soil. (If planting into good silt soil, the
above planting arrangement is not considered necessary and the hole should be dug just
deep enough to accommodate the plant).
The soil should be carefully tamped down around the plant so that the stem base is kept in
close contact with the soil at all times. A basin 15-30 cms deep and 1-1.5 metres in

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diameter should be formed around the plant, with the base of the plant being above the
water level at all times. After planting, it should be given water immediately and thereafter
irrigated as necessary, depending upon local conditions.
Newly planted date palms should be surrounded loosely with leafy material such as corn
stalks or date leaves for protection against sun and wind during the first summer and against
cold the following winter.
Alternatively, a shade can be constructed using 4 wooden stakes and wrapping shade
netting around the posts, to form a box around the date palm and provide protection from
the wind and sun.
The plant should not be tightly wrapped or its leaves restricted.

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Planting Depth
Planting depth is very important. It is particularly essential not to cover the base of the
shoot, as this is where the central growing point lies. Plants should be planted up to
(neither above nor below) the root-shoot junction: This is applicable at all replanting stages
from re-potting to field planting.

Watering
It is essential that the plants are well watered by hand immediately after planting and that
the soil around the newly planted plants is kept moist at all times by light, frequent
watering. Inspection should be made often during the first few weeks to see that the surface
soil does not dry and shrink away from the plant. Water quality is very important. Water
with a high salt content can lead to salination problems with consequent serious effects on
Date Palm performance.

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GENERAL INFORMATION
Time of Planting
In most date growing regions, spring and autumn are the preferred times for planting out
young date palms. Spring avoids the cold of winter and takes advantage of the warm
weather that causes rapid growth, while autumn gives the young plant longer to establish
before the heat of summer.
However, if irrigation is plentiful and frequent, if good quality water is available and if
adequate protection is provided, date palms can usually safely be planted at any time of
year. Periods of extreme heat or cold should be avoided.
It should be remembered that the younger the date palm at the time of planting, then the
more important it is for it to be protected against extreme conditions, and given correct and
careful attention.
Soil Type
Highly saline and highly alkaline soils must be avoided. Heavy clay soils restrict root
growth and generally inhibit development. Sandy soil has low water-retaining capacity and
allows excessive leaching of nutrients.
Loam and sandy loam soils have the best structure for date farming. The depth of soil
should be such as to enable the roots to anchor the palm firmly to prevent it being blown
over.
Soil type will, to some extent, dictate the frequency of irrigation. During the first summer,
daily irrigation may be required on very sandy soils, while on heavy soils, once a week may
be adequate.
A soil that readily takes water to a depth of 2-3 metres will contribute to giving good
growth and good productivity.

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FOOTNOTES:
Micronutrients:
Librel BMX composition
B
Cu
Fe
Mn
Mo
Zn

0.875%
1.70%
3.35%
1.70%
0.023%
0.6%

EDTA
EDTA
EDTA
EDTA

Applied at 0.04 g/L

Librel FeLo
13.3% FeEDTA (i.e. chelated)
Applied at 0.04 g/L (i.e. approx 6.6 ppm total FeEDTA with BMX iron as above)

Pesticides etc.

Fungicides:
The following have been found compatible with young date palm plants at D.P.D. :
Filex (Propamocarb hydrochloride) - Scotts or Fargro
Octave (Prochloraz) - Aventis, Scotts, others
Bavistin (Carbendazim) - various
Rovral (Iprodione) Aventis
Also:
Spraying oil (Certis)

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