Doum Palm. Gingerbread palm.
Latin Name: Hyphaene thebaica
USDA Hardiness: 10-12
Native Range: TEMPERATE ASIA: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Egypt (Sinai) AFRICA: Egypt, Djibouti, Eritrea, Sudan, Somalia, Chad, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte D‘Ivoire, Ghana, Gambia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo
Edibility Rating: 2 / 5
Medicinal Rating: 2 / 5
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Plant Type:
Medicinal Uses
Edible Uses
Edible Parts: Apical bud Fruit Seed | Edible Uses: The orange fruit has a flavour of gingerbread[200 ]. It is eaten raw and is also made into sweetmeats, molasses and cakes[46 , 301 ]. The ovoid fruit is about 8cm long[335 ]. The unripe seed is eaten raw[46 , 335 ]. It needs proper preparation[301 ]. (No more details given[K ].) Rich in oil and protein[335 ]. The germinated seedlings, harvested just below the ground, are used as a vegetable[301 ]. Apical bud - cooked[301 ]. Used as a tasty cabbage[301 , 774 ]. Ashes from the stipes of trees can be used as a substitute for salt[303 ].
Cultivation
Agroforestry Services: Crop shade Industrial Crop: Vegetable ivory Management: Standard Regional CropA surprisingly tolerant palm, found naturally in tropical and subtropical arid to semiarid areas at elevations from sea level to 1,400 metres[303 , 314 ]. It is able to tolerate temperate climates, but prefers a mean annual temperature above 28°c[303 , 314 ]. It grows wild in areas where the mean annual rainfall is 100 - 600mm, but can also tolerate growing in areas of much higher rainfall, as long as the drainage is good (there is a very large Doum palm in the Singapore Botanic Gardens)[314 ]. Requires a sunny, very well drained position[314 ]. Succeeds in a wide range of soils[303 ]. Tolerates medium salinity[303 ]. Prefers a pH in the range 6.5 - 7.5[303 ]. Established plants are very drought tolerant[314 ]. Growth is known to be relatively slow, and after germination a single strip-shaped leaf is produced, with fan-shaped leaves being produced at ground level 2 - 3 years after germination. At this stage, a new leaf is produced every 7 days and the stem is produced after 18 - 20 years[303 ]. Trees can commence fruiting when about 6 - 8 years old[303 ]. Mature trees of 6 - 8 years can produce 50 kilos of fruit per year[303 ]. A fire-resistant species, it is managed by coppicing and lopping[303 ]. A dioecious species, both male and female forms need to be grown if fruit and seed are required[303 ]. Hermaphrodite trees do occur rarely, but their fruits are smaller and sterile[303 ]. Carbon Farming - Cultivation: regional crop. Management: standard.
Known Hazards
None known
Habitats
Open grasslands and desert[314 ].