One of the major diseases that attack date palm in Oman since long time is what is known as the dubas bug (Ommatissus lybicus Deberg), locally known as 'mataq'. This insect feeds from the tree and produce a thick liquid like honey on the Leafs and crops.

The ministry of agriculture is trying for long time now to eliminate this disease by spraying chemicals either using planes or from the ground, but utill now the disease still in place and comes from time to time. Recentely after the rains the date palm heavely attacked again by this bug, and I heard many farmers complaning about it.

Do you think this disease imported from outside?

What is the ministry plans to control this problem, knowing that the harvest season for date palm is in the summer (June to August)?

And how does this disease affect us?

I love dates! I have it everyday for breakfast!

This disease will affact the tree and the crop will be less and with poor quality. And dates should be washed alot to remove that honey liquid from it.

This disease will affact the tree and the crop will be less and with poor quality. And dates should be washed alot to remove that honey liquid from it.
...or chemicals thrown onto them by farmers...

I don't understand how they could have been "brought into Oman"... Oman has the same basic climate where these parasites live in other places in the ME and Africa..

this disease is very old... its almost gone from years!
maybe it appeared again!?

in our farm, several palm trees were hit by this disease but we used chemicals and got over it finally. Another disease also hit our farm which was even worse! it was like... a small black bug that grows from under the palm tree, digs upwards and goes all the way up from inside the palm tree's firm until it reaches the dates and spoils them. it was very disasterous, it took us long time to get over it.

however i think the worst disease is the... salty water :s

...or chemicals thrown onto them by farmers...
Brava
Exactly H.M. point

On the agriculture issue, His Majesty the Sultan said we should seek the experts’ advice; some people don’t take such advice and they give their land to others who spill water, heavily use chemical fertilisers in order to make maximum production at a shortest possible time.

http://www.timesofoman.com/search_detail.asp?cat=&detail=2983&rand=LpHavtNVYR9g1rsRshFPwt2hIg

amo, what is the chemical fertilisers to do with date palm?

Well , this problem have been there for years and we still could not find
a solution for it .. Even the Chemicals can not get rid of it .. May be
for weeks but it comes back..

amo, what is the chemical fertilisers to do with date palm?exactly
people are ignorant, just give their lands out to other people who know nothing and spray here spray there, they spray also on date palms
and they die
i mainly eat them in Ramdan, not sure is going so bad now
i recently discovered the syrup but is bitter la

Do we Export "Dates" ?
I mean how much does it effect the country economy?

oman is the world's fifth largest producer of dates,
such diseases are... big strike,
but just a notice, this disease is not spread enough to make threat, i believe things will go fine within little time!