in their fruits but in the character of the tree itself as to stature and general shape; for instead of being large and tall they are low growing; but these are more fruitful than the others, and they begin to bear as soon as they are three years old; this kind too is common in Cyprus. Again in Syria and Egypt there are palms which bear when they are four or five years old, at which age they are the height of a man.
There is yet another kind in Cyprus, which has broader leaves and a much larger fruit of peculiar shape; in size it is as large as a pomegranate, in shape it is long; it is not however juicy like others, but like[1] a pomegranate, so that men do not swallow it, but chew it and then spit it out. Thus, as has been said, there are many kinds. The only dates that will keep, they say, are those which grow in the Valley[2] of Syria, while those that grow in Egypt Cyprus and elsewhere are used when fresh.
The palm, speaking generally, has a single and a single and simple stem; however there are some with two stems, as in Egypt,[3] which make a fork, as it were; the length of the stem up to the point where it divides is as much as five cubits, and the two branches of the fork are about equal in length. They say that the palms in Crete more often than not have this double stem, and that some of them have three stems and that in Lapaia one with five heads has been known. It is after all not surprising[4] that in more fertile soils such instances should be commoner, and in general that more kinds and more variation should be found under such conditions.
