irisharchaeology:This unassuming looking plant is the only living representative of the Judean Date
irisharchaeology:This unassuming looking plant is the only living representative of the Judean Date Palm, a species of tree, which became extinct in antiquity. It was grown from one of a collection of seeds found inside a pottery jar at Masada, a historic mountain fortress in southern Israel. Subsequent radiocarbon analysis of the seeds indicated that they were circa 2000 years old and had been produced sometime between 155 BC and 64 AD.In 2005 Elaine Solowey, a botanical researcher, decided to see if these ancient seeds were still viable. After soaking them in water and then in an enzymatic fertilizer, she planted three of the seeds into pots. Eight weeks later one of the seeds sprouted and by November 2011 it a grown into a sapling nearly 2.5m in height. The Judean Date Palm had been resurrected.Source -- source link