In order to multiply the number of fruit-bearing trees traditional offshoot propagation is practised all along the Nile in Sudan. Lower offshoots called Shatla (شتلا) develop from axillary buds at the lower trunk of a parent palm and are cut off during early spring season. A well chosen offshoot will not only guarantee a female fruit bearing palm tree but also inherit the same qualities of its mother plant.[5] The date trees in the region of the Fourth Cataract attain an age of up to 150 years and consist most often of multiple shoots from a single clump called Bu'rah or Hufrah (بؤرة or حفرة).[6] Satisfactory date production ceases with an age of 90 to 100 years.