More Information About the Doum Palm

Lohutok, Sudan

I wrote about the doum palm yesterday.  Here is a little more information from Tropical Crops, Monocotyledons by J. W. Purseglove, published by Longman Group Ltd., 1979.  Purseglove's two-volume set (this book and its companion volume, Dicotyledons) is the premier English language reference about tropical crops.

Doum or Dum Palm [Hyphaene thebaica (L.) Mart.] grows wild throughout drier regions of tropical Africa to 600 meters altitude, the Middle East and western India.  It is fire-resistant and may form dense stands in hot dry valleys.  It is distributed by nomadic tribes as well as elephants and baboons which eat the seeds.  I found it interesting that the seeds are among the most common objects found in tombs in ancient Egypt.  I am not surprised that the seeds can last that long given how hard they are.  The ancient Egyptians cultivated it and considered it sacred because it was connected with the god Thout and his sacred animal, the baboon.  I will not go into Purseglove's technical descriptions beyond saying the doum palm is a fan palm that can grow to 15 meters and is the only palm with a branched stem.  He says the mesocarp (husk) smells and tastes of gingerbread.  The husk was already removed from the nut or seed pictured in my preceding post.    In appearance, the nut is similar to a miniature coconut but is much harder than a coconut.  The endocarp (shell) is hard and thin.  The endosperm is white, very hard and has a hollow center.  The endosperm was so hard I needed a hack saw to cut through it.  I cannot understand how a seed with such a hard endosperm could possibly germinate.

As for uses, Purseglove says the husk is edible and diuretic (tends to increase the discharge of urine).  It can be made into syrup or ground to a meal for making cakes and sweetmeats.  Seeds are used as "vegetable ivory" for making buttons, beads, etc.  The unripe kernels are edible.  The shell can be used for small containers such as snuff boxes.  The cabbage and cotyledon stalk can be eaten.  Maybe this is a plant which has helped people here survive through times of drought and war.  I doubt that it is a highly desired food.  Purseglove says the young unexpanded leaves are plaited in strips for making baskets, mats, hats, etc.  I have seen Lotuho hats made from doum palm leaves.  These hats are hard enough to serve as helmets which protect against traditional weapons.

Photo: Lotuho hat made from doum palm leaves