Date palm help from someone who grows them for a living. We pollinate, thin, bag, harvest and replant our own orchard in Sky Valley every year. If you have a palm that won’t fruit, an offshoot to move, or an orchard you’re thinking about planting, we can help, by phone or video or at your property.

Bags protecting hand-pollinated Medjool flower clusters in spring at Desert Sun Dates
Hand-pollinated clusters bagged on our Medjool palms, the kind of work we can show you how to do

What we help with

  • “Why isn’t my date palm fruiting?” We’ll work out whether it’s male, unpollinated, too young, stressed, or not a true date palm at all, and what to do next. Start with our eight most common reasons.
  • Male or female. Identifying your palm’s sex at bloom, and what that means for fruit. See Male vs. Female Date Palm.
  • Hand pollination. Timing, pollen and technique for your palms, so you get a crop this year instead of next.
  • Offshoot removal and replanting. Deciding which offshoots are ready, cutting them cleanly, and replanting so they survive.
  • Thinning, bagging and harvest. Getting bigger fruit and keeping the birds and rain off it.
  • Pruning and health checks, including what to watch for with the South American palm weevil.
  • Planning a small orchard. Variety choice, spacing, water and irrigation, where to source true-to-variety offshoots, and an honest picture of the years before the first real harvest.

How it works

  1. Call or text (760) 501-1845 and tell us what’s going on. Photos of the palm, its crown and any flowers or fruit help a lot.
  2. Phone or video consult for most questions, from anywhere.
  3. On-site visit at your property for hands-on work like pollination, offshoot removal or orchard layout, within reach of the Coachella Valley and the Inland Empire.

Every job is different, so we quote it when you call.

Golden khalal Medjool dates ripening inside a protective harvest bag in September at Desert Sun Dates
September Medjool in the bag: where a year of the right steps ends up

Who we work with

  • Homeowners with one or a few date palms that have never fruited, or fruit poorly
  • New growers planting their first offshoots
  • Small-acreage owners weighing a date orchard
  • Property managers and landscapers who want fruiting date palms looked after properly

Quick Answers

Can you tell if my date palm is male or female? Yes, once it flowers. Send photos of the flower clusters in spring, or we can look in person.

Do you pollinate other people’s palms? Yes, as an on-site visit during bloom, usually February through April. Book early; the window is short.

Do you help outside the Coachella Valley? Phone and video consults work anywhere. On-site visits are within reach of the Coachella Valley and Inland Empire.

Do you sell offshoots too? Yes: female Zahidi and a limited number of Medjool. See offshoots for sale.

Tell us about your palm

A few lines on what’s going on is enough to start. We’ll reply within a day or two with next steps and a quote.

    Photos help. After you send this, you can text pictures of the palm to (760) 501-1845.

    Tell us about your palm: call or text (760) 501-1845. More free help in the Date Palm Growers’ Hub.