At least 8 to 9 acre feet of irrigation water per year is necessary for good production on bearing palms. Israelis blame some of their problems on inability to control the flowering date. There can be some control by withholding irrigation during fall and winter. There must be no rain during flowering time. Any good soil that is not too heavy will do.
Dates do well even where there is a crust of salt on the surface.
Cultivation Propagated by seed or off-shoots. Seedlings are first planted in nursery rows and later transplanted to their permanent location. Sometimes planted around Aswan, they plant several seedlings in the same hole to insure the presence of females. These will root if their bases are encased in soil. In Egypt they say it takes 8 years for an offshoot to yield economically.