Alyahyai_Book Review

Emirates Journal of Food and Agriculture. 2015. 27(x): 1-1

doi: xxxxx
http://www.ejfa.me/

1 1
2 BOOK REVIEW 2
3 3
4 4
5
6
The Date Palm: Omani Date Palm Cultivars 5
6
[Mahmoud Abdulnabi Makki, Ahmed Mohammed Mahmoud Hamoudah, Ali Salem
7 7
Rashid Al-Abri. 1998. Directorate General of Agricultural & Veterinary Medicine,
8 Diwan of Royal Court, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. 642. Illustrated. Hardcover.]
8
9 9
10 Rashid Al-Yahyai 10
11 Department of Crop Sciences, College of Agricultural & Marine Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, PO Box 11
12 34, Al-Khod 123, Muscat, Oman. Email: alyahyai@squ.edu.om 12
13 13
14 14
15 15
16 16
17 Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) is the most important crop cultivar abundance, fruit color and taste, shape, volume and 17
18 in Oman and it occupies 50% of the total cultivated consumption stage. This was followed by listing the physical 18
19 area and 80% of all fruit crops grown in the country. characteristics of fruits for each cultivar that contained 19
20 This book, which was published in Arabic in 1998, is a details on the fruit, flesh and seed, supported by colored 20
21 catalogue of date palm cultivars in Oman, came to light 21
photographs. Moreover, nutritional organic and mineral
22 recently following its winning a 2nd place in the highly- 22
composition for each cultivar were also reported. A unique
23 regarded, Khalifa International Date Palm Award for the 23
to this book, is the third chapter, which lists the physical
24 category ‘Distinguished Researches and Studies‘ in 2015. It 24
25 characteristics of the spadix of 69 Omani male cultivars. 25
is the second volume on date palm, with the first volume Information on male cultivars included cultivar name,
26 that was entitled (Date Palm in the Sultanate of Oman) 26
27 distribution, spadix length, width and weight, strand length 27
provided general information on cultivation practices and and weight, and blooming period. Colored photographs
28 distribution of date palm in Oman. The publisher has a 28
29 of male spadix were presented in this chapter. The fourth 29
series of books under the theme, Pomology – Fruit Tree
30 chapter lists and illustrates the most common pests and 30
Horticulture, that covered, in addition to the two-volumes
31 diseases of date palm. The appendix contained historical 31
on date palm, three titles: (1) Fruit Production, (2) Riadh
32 information, vernacular names of various date palm parts, 32
Al-Jabal: The Temperate Fruits of Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar, and
33 (3) Pests of Date Palm and Dates. date maturity stages, and the cultural practices of growing 33
34 dates in Oman and the Arab World. The book ends with 34
35 This well-illustrated book is divided into four chapters: a comprehensive bibliography listing Arabic and English 35
36 Hormones and genetic engineering; Omani date palm references on date palm. 36
37 cultivars; description of the Omani male date palm 37
38 cultivars; and the fourth is on pests and diseases of date This well illustrated book is the most comprehensive 38
39 palm. The first chapter aims to explain the genetic and catalogue of Omani male and female cultivars. It is being 39
40 chemical basis for the large diversity of date palm cultivars. translated into English language and should provide the 40
41 It addresses the role of hormones on flowering, fruit reader with a comprehensive view of the diversity of 41
42 development, the genetic variability among date palm Omani dates. Further information on the plant vegetative 42
43 and the utilization of molecular techniques in cloning of characteristics and phenological cycles, could perhaps be 43
44 date palm cultivars. The second chapter enlists 239 female covered in future editions, will make this book the ultimate 44
45 cultivars in a tabulated form that included information on reference on date palm cultivars. 45
46 46
47 47
48 48
49 49
50 50
51 51
52 52
53 53
54 54
Emir. J. Food Agric ● Vol 27 ● Issue x ● 2015 1