Abu Dhabi: Along with celebrating the iconic fruit of the UAE, the 12th edition of the Liwa Date Festival is also showcasing some of the latest innovative research being carried out by Emirati scientists on growing date palm trees.
UAE University (UAEU), one of the main sponsors of the festival, used the opportunity to educate visitors on their latest work, which employs the use of tissue culture for growing date palm trees rather than traditional methods such as seeding.
“We try to grow the date palm by using tissue culture techniques. This allows us to grow the tree quickly, and also gives us more date palm trees,” said Eman Hussain, from the university’s date palm development research unit department.
First stage
“This [stage] takes place inside the laboratory; we get the heart of the plant — which is located just above the roots — and cut it into small pieces. We place the pieces in soil that has all the minerals and nutrients it needs,” she explained.
“The next step is to transfer this into another test tube for multiplication, and this takes around four to six months. During this period, small branches start to form and we then move on to the next stage for elongation, allowing the branches to grow fully with their roots.”
Second stage
“[This involves] taking the plant to our greenhouse, where the tree fully grows and is able to start giving fruit. Farmers can then collect the tree from us,” Hussain added.
The entire process takes up to three years, according to Hussain, but she notes that in that time, “we can grow thousands of trees with just one plant heart”.
With the whole process taking place under controlled conditions, Hussain says that this creates optimum growth and production of the trees.
“We don’t have to deal with problems like insects and diseases that could potentially harm the tree, because the growth is in a controlled environment,” she said.
“Weather issues are also not a problem for us because when we start growing the plant in the second stage, we also make sure to modify the temperature that best suits the plant’s needs and growth,” she added.
The research being done by Hussain and her team has also been officially recognised for its achievements. In 2015, they were named the recipients of the Khalifa Date Palm Award for Best Distinguished Producers.
Hussain said that she and her team are looking to improve on their research.
“We have a new professor from France, and the goal now is to try to quicken the process. We are looking at maybe having the tree grow in one or two years,” she said.
“We have a large demand for the dates that have been produced from our trees. We have customers not only in the UAE, but from around the world in countries like India, Jordan and others,” she added.
