Apparently there are many scientist experimenting and perfecting new techniques for cultivating dates in environments traditionally unfriendly to growing medjool dates or any other dates for that matter. The world of biotechnology is apparently slowly changing the way we grow food. In a few years there may be some hybrid medjool dates grown in tropical or perhaps even cold regions. Rapid changes in technology are changing the way food is grown and even though consumers are becoming more and more sophisticated a lot of new product that often seems ridiculously fantastic is not natural grown, but a byproduct of scientific endeavor. We are consuming the fruit of the labor of biotechnology, often without or knowledge. What side effects will there be, it is yet to be determined. Not until we cross the bridge and after it is too late to take an type of corrective action are we likely to findout what the side effects are. It may not necessarily mean a negative and could actually result in positives. We may end up living longer healthier lives, or perhaps have shorter life expectancies. Maybe we will become insanely intelligent and or die by the millions and as a result put less pressure on our environment. Perhaps in a decade or two you will be buying cantaloupe size medjool dates that are twice as sweet as naturally grown medjool dates. It is an exciting world we live in, not just in biotechnology, but just about everything that is a part of our every day life from the most mundane chores to the foods we enjoy, to the way we work.
I was in a market in New Jersey and they had a big box of dates over in the dried fruit scetion. I ate one and was amazed at how sweet it was. It was brown, about 2 inches long and had a pit. I never ate a date before and was curious if these are a natural fruit or if someone cooked some ingredients to make this item. The fact that it has a pit makes me think it is a fruit that grows in a tree or bush or maybe underground like a potato. Maybe it is a nut that grows inside some kind of shell. I did find this blog that says something about Palm Trees but I thought Palm Trees grew coconuts on them. Can someone answer these questions? Also, if what I had was a dried date then what is a date before it’s dried? This blog says that they are cantaloupes before they are dried but I can’t imagine that this is true because it has one big pit instead of many little ones. Also what is a “Medjool?” I really like dates but I don’t really understand what they are. I found this blog via a google search but I don’t really know how to get back here. Thank you.
Wow, this isn’t just a Blog, it’s an entire web site! And it’s all about dates! I read every page and now I am a Date Expert. What a great Date Farm you have out there in California. I don’t have time right now to fully express my appreciation for the amazing amount of information that you have accumulated here but I am in awe. I knew nothing about dates yesterday and now I just love everything about them. You guys have done a major service to the Date Loving population.