الفهرس 
INTRODUCTION
General characteristics of datesOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
 |  | from | 178 |  |  |
| | | from | 178 | | |
Abstract
The importance of the date palm tree (Phoenix dactylifera L.) was appreciated at Arab and Islamic worlds over the centuries. This is because of the economic as well as the nutritional value of its fruit; hence it is one of the oldest cultivated tree crops. The date palm tree is among the most presented plants in our Holy Book, the Quran, and accordingly their fruit is among the most recommended ones of the earth. Our Prophet, Mohammad (peace be upon him) in his Sonaa directed the attention of his fellows for the outstanding benefits of date fruit for several conditions and all ages beginning from the baby, pregnant and lactating women to all persons especially during the holy month of fasting, Ramadan. The world production of dates increased considerably during the last 30 years. The Arab countries produce about 74.5% of global date production. Egypt considered as the first country of the top ten date producers in world (1,501,799 tons) (FAO, 2015). Although there are many varieties of dates in Egypt, only twenty are widely distributed and are of commercial value. Dates are produce during a limited period of the year (seasonal production); some of this yield is consumed among the same period. Moreover, dates are commonly stored for longer periods and thus are attacked by insects and other microorganisms. Currently, dates are preserved by many methods. The desirable preservation methods are used for improving the quality as well as prolonging the marketable period of date fruits. The effect of cooling, packing in vacuum, drying and steam heating and irradiation treatments on the quality properties and shelf life of Samany, Saidy and Sakkoty dates fruits during storage periods were studied. This study led to the following conclusions:
I- Date fruits: a- Physical characteristics:
1- The number of fruits/kg were 47, 86 and 154 for Samany (Soft variety), Saidy (Semi-dry variety) and Sakkoty (dry variety), respectively. Consequently, the mean fruit weight of Samany date was the highest (21.27g) followed by Saidy (11.62g) and Sakkoty (6.49g).
2- The mean weights of flesh, pit and calyx in Samany, Saidy and Sakkoty were (18.84, 10.02, 5.52g), (2.33, 1.48, 0.94g) and (0.10, 0.12, 0.03g), respectively. Samany fruits recorded the highest mean flesh weight value (18.84g) followed by Saidy fruits. While, Sakkoty date pit had the lowest weight.
3- Samany date had the highest percentage of fruit pulp followed by Saidy and Sakkoty (88.61, 86.28 and 85.15%, respectively). Beside, Samany fruits recorded the highest flesh/pit ratio (8.08). However, Saidy fruits had higher percentage of fruit calyx (0.95).
4- The highest fruit length mean was 4.87cm of Sakkoty followed by Samany (4.18cm) and Saidy (3.66cm). Besides, the geometric mean diameter was 1.55, 1.90 and 2.72cm of Sakkoty, Saidy and Samany date fruits, respectively.
5- The mite infestation percentage was highest in Sakkoty fruits (4.54%) followed by Saidy (3.48%) and Samany (2%) fruits.
6- The total soluble solids (TSS) were 94.28, 88.38 and 87.14% for the Samany, Saidy and Sakkoty date fruits, respectively on dry weight basis.
7- The pH values of Samany, Saidy and Sakkoty were 7.06, 6.72 and 6.06, respectively.
8- Sakkoty date fruits recorded the highest color intensity (1.48) followed by Saidy (0.45) and Samany (0.27) fruits.