Al Ain Oasis
The city of Al Ain takes its name from this oasis which, according to archaeological evidence from the Hili site, has probably been cultivated for at least three thousand years.
The oasis covers an area of approximately 1,200 hectares (nearly 3,000 acres) and contains over 147,000 date palms, up to 100 different varieties amongst them. The date palms are occasionally interspersed with other fruit trees including mangoes, oranges, bananas, figs and jujubes (locally known as sidr). The date orchards form a patchwork of individually owned plots, divided by a maze of pathways varying from one to seven metres in width. The boundary walls were originally made of mud brick, although most of them have been renovated using more modern materials.
Early Arab farmers discovered the need to cultivate the date palm to maximize its fruit production. Dates have been harvested in the region by countless generations who depended on the fruit as a high-energy supplement to their diet of cereals, milks, dried fish and meat. The date palm was therefore, and still is, a highly prized commodity.
Spring sees the start of seasonal cultivation, with the palms coming into flower and requiring manual fertilization. This necessitates an arduous climb to the top of the tree. One male palm is enough for the fertilization of 25 to 50 female trees. Palm trees depend on a plentiful water supply - up to 70 liters a day during the summer - brought from a source far to the southeast of the city by a system of ancient man-made underground tunnels called aflaj. When they reach the oasis, the aflaj divide into a network of channels and the distribution of water to individual orchards is democratically controlled.
As the individual fruits develop, the supporting stalk becomes longer and the dates form huge dangling bunches. When the dates are ripe, the farmer harvests them by hand, climbing the tree with the aid of a waist sling called a habool. Most dates are for human consumption and many tons are exported worldwide. Poor quality dates are used for animal fodder.
A walk along the marked route through the lanes of the oasis leads the visitor to a number of points of interest, including several large storage jars for dates, grain and water, the remains of an old fortification and the Al Nasseri Mosque, which has been renovated in the style of certain oasis buildings of the past. The Wadi Sarooj can be followed as it narrows and deepens, providing a water source some 20 metres below ground for the deep roots of the numerous established trees in the oasis. Although not cultivated, at least one example of the ghaf tree may be found in the oasis. This endangered evergreen tree was an essential source of food, fuel and shelter for desert dwellers. Efforts are currently being made to ensure that the ghaf tree becomes a protected species.
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