Researchers who re-tasted the first fruit of an ancient date tree from the Judean species that became extinct about 2,000 years ago • "The palm grove is the result of groundbreaking scientific research"
The fruit on the tree just before the cut
Photo:
Marcus changed to Lutz
After decades of research and fieldwork, Israeli researchers have succeeded in germinating dates from seeds of an extinct species from the Second Temple period - and now the trees are bearing first fruit.
A palm tree called "Hannah" by researchers, which sprouted from an ancient seed discovered in the Qumran caves and dates to the 2nd-1st centuries AD, bore first fruits.
The people of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies were the first in two thousand years to pick and taste the fruit of the biblical date.
The palm grove is the culmination of decades of research to revive ancient varieties of palm trees, led by Dr. Elaine Solvey, director of the Center for Sustainable Agriculture at the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies at Kibbutz Ketura, and Dr. Sarah Salon, director of the Natural Medicine Research Center on Borik there at Hadassah Hospital.
The date of the palm trees, known as Adam, Boaz, Hanna, Yona, Yehudit and Uriel, is in a cluster of 32 seeds discovered during the years 1991-1963 in the Qumran caves near the Dead Sea and in the excavations conducted by Yigal Yadin in the area, and their estimated age is 2,400-1,800 years.
In 2005, the researchers first germinated an ancient date seed that was discovered in the Masada excavations, and named the male tree that developed from it "Methuselah" - after the oldest man in the Bible. Eventually they were able to germinate and raise fruit-bearing female companions. The ancient fruit has special healing abilities. Now, for the first time, Hannah has borne fruit: Sansan (cluster) with 49 fruits.
According to Dr. Solway, the study is designed to trace the origins of the ancient palm tree populations and verify the survival and longevity capabilities of the seeds, and allows conclusions to be drawn about ancient farming techniques that enhanced the unique fruit - which is also relevant to modern date cultivation. The island of Arabia and North Africa, and researchers speculate that hybrids for the creation of the Judean strain were made in ancient Israel.
"It's very exciting to taste the dates, because we did not have guarantees that we would get a fruit-bearing female tree. So it looks like a miracle on several levels - seeds from archeological excavations that sprouted successfully, and against all odds, female trees sprouted among them. We are excited to revive an ancient date variety. , "Said Dr. Solway.
"The palm grove today is the result of generations of groundbreaking scientific research," says David Lerer, director of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies. "We have proven today that we can not only bring back our time - we are ancient varieties, but we have shown that scientific cooperation and academic partnerships are beneficial. Residents of the area. "
The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies is a leading academic institution in its field of environmental studies and the development of cross-border regional environmental leadership.
The institute is located in Kibbutz Ketura, and every year Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian students study there, along with students from all over the world.
The institute was established in 1996 and has since been involved in curricula and academic research on various environmental issues, with an emphasis on cooperation between Israel and its neighbors.