An altered drilling fluid having a drilling fluid and a date tree waste-based lost circulation material (LCM). The date tree waste LCM may include includes date tree waste fibers produced from one or more of the following: date tree trunks, date tree rachis, date tree leaflets, date tree panicles, and date tree roots. The date tree waste LCM may include fibers having lengths in the range of 5 millimeters (5 mm) to 15 mm, diameters in the range of 0.5 mm to 0.8 mm, and having an aspect ratio range of 6 to 30. Methods of manufacture of a date tree waste LCM are also provided.