Judean date palm 2005, before knowing the gender of the palm tree, Dr. Solowey was hoping that it would turn out to be female, for which there was a 50% chance, because that would have allowed it to give fruit; on the contrary, "if it's a male, it will just be a curiosity." Methuselah flowered in March 2011 and is male. As of 2012, there were tentative plans to crossbreed the palm with what was considered its closest extant relative, the Hayani date from Egypt, to generate fruit by 2022. By 2015 Methuselah had produced pollen that has been used successfully to pollinate
Palm sugar is made from the sugar-rich sap. The sugar palm ("Arenga pinnata") is native to the coastal and tropical regions of Asia, mainly China and Indonesia. The sap used to produce palm sugar is known in India as "gur" and in Indonesia as "gula aren". The coconut palm ("Cocos nucifera") yields coconut palm sugar from the sap of its flowers. It grows in coastal areas of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Major suppliers are Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Palm sugar is produced by boiling collected sap until it thickens. The boiled sap can be sold as palm syrup. It is