Debila

Debila lies among the oases of the Souf, a region of dunes in the Grand Erg Oriental. Here cultivators developed the ghout: a hollow dug into the sand so that date palms can reach groundwater with their roots. The surrounding banks shelter the trees from desert winds. This distinctive way of planting palms has been practised in the Souf since at least the fifteenth century, making cultivation possible amid the sand.