[mad=dog]

Most plants are hermaphrodites. That does not necesarily mean that they can produce offspring by themselves as many species have compatibility genes to prevent inbreeding.
In this case we have to hope that
1) The plant does not have compatibility genes or
2) More seedlings can be produced
The second option is clearly the optimum as it will give better genetical diversity and therefore more information for the scientists to work with.

As I understand it is not the same species as the regular date palm, but merely related to it. As a cultivated plant it does not thrive in nature (as an analogy imagine corn growing in the woods - big seeds that cannot be dispersed and a high demand for nutrients. It would be doomed outside the field) and I suspect it went extinct when war upon war in the area disrupted cultivation for a prolonged period. It seems to grow well in ecotypes similar to the Middle East - a climate I imagine is not optimal for normal date palms.

EDIT: Typo

EDIT: Apparently Date trees are dioecious. That is a big problem for the project. New stock can be produced from cutting, but that is not a workable solution in the long run as they will be clones of the original.

[ 06-15-2005, 02:17 PM: Message edited by: mad=dog ]