Skoura Palm Grove

Skoura is a palmeraie of several thousand hectares on the Dades river east of Ouarzazate, and it works the way these oases have always worked: water is taken from the river into a network of seguia, open channels distributed by agreement between families, and under the date palms are two more layers - olive, fig, almond and pomegranate below the palms, and barley, alfalfa and vegetables below those. It is a three-storey farming system built to hold moisture. Scattered through it are kasbahs, fortified earth houses of the families that held the land, including Amerhidil, one of the largest in the south and open to visit, along with Dar Aït Sidi el Mati and others in various conditions. Tracks run through the grove and getting lost is normal; several kasbahs are now guesthouses. The palms suffer from bayoud disease and from drought, and the grove is thinner than it was.

What you actually see

• Three-storey farming - dates above, fruit below, crops beneath, all on channel irrigation.
• Seguia channels - water shared by long-standing agreement between families.
• Kasbahs in the palms - Amerhidil among them, open to visit.
• A thinning grove - palms lost to bayoud disease and to drought.

When to go

Spring and autumn. A day. October for the date harvest.

Honest expectations

Tracks through the grove are unmarked and easy to lose - a guide helps. Kasbah entry is charged and guides expect payment. Summer heat is severe. The grove is visibly affected by drought and disease.

Nearby

Ouarzazate is west; the Rose Valley and Dades gorge are east.