File:The American botanist - a monthly journal for the plant lover (1903) (17494808004).jpg

Title: The American botanist : a monthly journal for the plant lover
Identifier: americanbotani4161903bing (find matches)
Year: 1901 (1900s)
Authors:
Subjects: Botany
Publisher: Binghamton, N. Y. : Willard N. Clute & Co.
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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THE AMERICAN BOTANIST. 27 A DATE-LEAF BOAT OF ARABIA. While travelling up the coast of Arabia, last February, the writer's attention was attracted to some curious craft made entirely of date leaves that came along side as the Pemba" steamed into the desert harbor of Jask on the Arabian coast. The coast of the Persian Gulf is so barren that one can travel for many days along it without find- ing so much as a stunted tree or shrub, and- at this place the only plants of any size were some groves of date palms and a few acacias which had been planted by the English employees of the Persian Gulf cable company which has a station at Jask. Wood is so scarce in the region that even the roots of such small desert shrubs as are to be found are dug up for fuel, and timber large enough for boat-building would
Text Appearing After Image:
A DATE- LEAF BOAT.—Courtesy of the Botanical Gazette. have to be brought by water from Bombay. It is neces- sity, therefore, which has invented these curious date-leaf boats of Jask. They are made of the mid-ribs of the date palm leaf, which are about an inch and a half in diameter and ten feet long. These tough mid-ribs, from which the

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