Calling out to the
Permaculture Universe to answer the riddle of the mysterious date palm ? fiber? thing? .
Maybe someone out there has a lab in there basement or
experience with this and can tell me
the answer to the following...
I have a (4 years growth) date palm tree grown from seed. This is my first date palm tree, so I am kinda learning as I go. Not even sure what the sum of its parts are called. I got lucky maybe.
Last fall I started noticing a single strand hairlike "fibres" growing (?) out from the end of each blade of the date palm frond leaf.
I gave one a light pull (in hopes that these tiny fines could be spun into a
thread of some sort). Just a lite tug, only slightly before it broke. Meh.
This got me to wondering a few things... What is the purpose of this fragile hairlike fiber that grows out from the end of the blades?
Why doesn't it seem to grow anywhere else on the plant?
What is it comprised of?
Is this a sugar of some sort?
Is the plant extruding a strand of sugar to catch the humidity like a "dew catch" ?
Do both male and female date palm
trees do this?
Do all date palm trees do this?
Does the plant use this as a mechanism to attract
ants or other bugs so they will make fertile droppings or drop mycelium at the edge of the
root mass near the radius of the fronds?
The palm appears to be growing healthy and happily so the fibers (if they are fibers?) must have a purpose related to further growth.
I haven't been able to find any reference to this anywhere online or in
books.
Guessing these are a marker for one of the stages of maturity for this plant prior to fruiting.
Thinking it might be a starch or a sugar because date palms make a sweet fruit.
Similarly I have seen little
water droplets form and drip from the leaf tips of a different type of plant called "elephant ears", as well as from leaf tips of lemon trees I am growing. (Not sure what that is either.)
As far as I can tell these date palm fibers are not dripping any water and they do not appear to be wet.
By touch kind of remind me of a very delicate strand of corn silk.
Okay, what do you think about the odd fiber like things on the blades of the date palm leaves/fronds? what are they? and why are they?
Please help me find the answers.
Larry
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