We spent the night in Midelt and then drove into the high Atlas mountains. On the way, we stopped at an overlook where we could see date palms filling an entire valley. Hmad told us the valley had 10 million date palms prior to the drought, and maybe around 7 million now. They are each hand-pollinated. Men collect the stamens from the male trees, climb the female trees, and pollinate the flowers, tying them shut with a palm leaf (to prevent cross-pollination, maybe?). Imagining these millions of trees, each pollinated individually, by hand, boggles the mind. How is that even possible?
Hmad said that every family has their own groves of trees, and they all know which ones are theirs. Many people make it all possible, I guess. Still, it’s a staggering thought.
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