Date cultivation in Dar al-Manasir

During recent years date trees even substitute seasonally irrigated crops such as wheat, beans and okra on the traditional Saqiah land.

A well chosen offshoot will not only guarantee a female fruit bearing palm tree but also inherit the same qualities of its mother plant.

[5] The date trees in the region of the Fourth Cataract attain an age of up to 150 years and consist most often of multiple shoots from a single clump called Bu'rah or Hufrah (بؤرة or حفرة).

Pollination of the female fruits is conducted in late February and beginning of March which is, according to the Coptic calendar still used for agricultural purposes by the Manasir, the end of the month Amshir.

[8] The exact amount depends strongly on the date variety, the specific growing conditions and age of the palm tree.

Salih recorded a similar saying in Birti: "It has been planted for hungry people, passing by guests, wayfarers, thieves, good will seekers, enemies and friends".

This custom, usually applied only to dates fallen to the ground and for women and children, differs from the national Islamic and statuary law on that matter.

[13] The mentioned economic, cultural and social factors result in a practical inconceivability of selling palm trees as real assets among the Manasir.

The situation in the 1920s, as described by Leach (1919) with the following words is still very much true of today; "… a man being in need of money, but disliking the thought of parting from the whole of his property, might sell half a tree.

This attitude of the Manasir is reflected in the practice of local merchants issuing loans to peasants in exchange for prospected harvests of particular trees.

For most Manasir it is therefore inconceivable to receive monetary compensation in exchange for their palm trees which are going to be flooded together with their villages and other agricultural land as a result of the erection of the Hamdab High Dam (Marawi Multi-Purpose Hydro Project).

As a consequence only months ahead of forced resettlement new shoots of date trees are transplanted to higher areas and irrigated with much effort.

Any small farming household tends to grow a variety of dates in order to be less vulnerable both to annually changing market prices and diseases affecting only specific types.

[18] The people are very proud of the taste, sweetness and nourishing merits of their dates and believe that these originate from their rocky land containing special minerals.

[19] The dates from Dar al-Manasir compare well with dates of other regions in Sudan, although earlier reports qualify them as being of inferior quality not fetching the market price of fruits from (Old) Halfa and Dongola[2] Date varieties and the average wholesale price during the harvest season 2004 (Dinars per sack Shawal, شوال – at about 75 kg; 1 Shawal = 15 Rub' (ربع) = 123.75 litres):[20] (prices reported by Al-Tayib Babikir Ahmad Muhammad from Mideimir (الطيّب بابكر أحمد محمّد من مديمر), local resident who studied agriculture for 4½ years in Halfah al-Gadidah.)

The Wad Laqai type is mostly found in the upstream end of Dar al-Manasir and in the neighbouring Rubatab Country around Abu Hammed.

Wad Laqai is considered to be one of the finest date fruits in the Sudan with an unrivalled softness and fresh taste.

Some older Manasir still prefer to drink their tea along with a handful of Wad Laqai dates as the traditional sugar substitute.

If fresh dates are picked others on the bunch easily turn into Karmush[22] The fruits are soft in consistency and can be pressed to form a cake called 'Agwah (عجوة).

Wad Khatib is the type of Mishriq palm trees best adapted to the stony and often shallow soil of the Fourth Cataract region.

The sample fruits, from Sulhah on Sherari Island (صلحة في شرري), are even shorter and appear less reddish in colour than those of Wad Laqai.

Barakawi are highly demanded on the national market and according to Yusif (1995:274) are even exported to Egypt where they are also referred to as Ibrimi (ابريمي) and Sakuti (سكوتي).

Barakawi are not among the most common palm trees in Dar al-Manasir, but their number increases considerably towards the downstream end and in the neighbouring Shaiqiyah Country with a centre of cultivation in the area of Karima.

ʿAbid Rahim trees are tall and potentially produce the highest quantity of harvest compared to other varieties in Dar al-Manasir.

The sample fruits, from Sulhah on Sherari Island (صلحة في شرري), appear well proportioned, about 4 cm long and fleshy.

Yusif (1995:277) quotes a local saying from the neighbouring Rubatab Country, by which a bird feeding too much on dates from the Bireir variety would suffer from a dry stomach, eventually causing it to drop dead from the sky.

[24] Like the Bur and Bireir varieties their produce in the region of the Fourth Cataract is limited by the fact that a good share of their fruits fall off prematurely.

The Bit Tamudhah variety is rarely to be found in Dar al-Manasir and has been introduced from the area of Mahas north of Dongola.

[26] The Bedouin Manasir alternatively call dates al-Zad al-negidh (الزاد النجيض) with the meaning of "the 'real' food for travelling".