Agricultural, Economical and Ecological Importance of Phoenix pusilla (Ceylon Date Palm) and Its Future Research Perspectives

Phoenix pusilla, is an underutilised fruit crop, and an untouched genetic resource, facing a severe genetic loss due to the negligence of the public and lack of scientific research. The aim of the review was to study the existing knowledge on agricultural, economical and ecological importance of P.pusilla. An extensive literature search was carried out in “Google scholar” search engine, “NCBI” and “AGRIS” databases using search terms “Ceylon date palm” and “P.pusilla” which resulted total of seven research articles. Most of the studies conducted, depicted its fruit’s therapeutic benefits and use of its leaflets in preparing household items. Some of the studies have been carried out to find out the ecological benefits of P.pusilla in soil conservation and its ability to hybridise with P.dactylifera to produce commercially valuable hybrids. In conclusion, further studies are essential to understand its physiological and ecological adaptations, nutritional and medicinal properties and phylogenetic relationships with other Phoenix species.