Baobab tree
Have you ever heard how much water is in a tree? Otherwise
the name of the tree which is visible in it. A tree named Baobab can store 120000
liters of water. which only Madagascar, Africa,
The name of this tree is Baobab. People also call it by the
name of Boab, Boaboa, Bottle tree and Ulta tree. Although in Arabic it is
called 'bu-hibab' which means 'tree with many seeds'. For your information, let
us tell you that Africa has also given it the title of 'The World Tree'.
Baobab's bark contains up to 40 percent moisture, due to
which it is not useful for burning, but the inner part of the stem is fibrous,
from which items like paper, cloth, rope, fishing net, blanket etc. can be
made.
baobab, (genus Adansonia), genus of nine species of
deciduous trees of the hibiscus, or mallow, family (Malvaceae). Six of the
species (Adansonia grandidieri, A. madagascariensis, A. perrieri, A.
rubrostipa, A. suarezensis, and A. za) are endemic to Madagascar, two (A.
digitata and A. kilima) are native to mainland Africa and the Arabian
Peninsula, and one (A. gregorii) is native to northwestern Australia. They have
unusual barrel-like trunks and are known for their extraordinary longevity and
ethnobotanical importance. Given their peculiar shape, an Arabian legend has it
that “the devil plucked up the baobab, thrust its branches into the earth, and
left its roots in the air.”
The African baobab (A. digitata) boasts the oldest known
angiosperm tree: carbon-14 dating places the age of a specimen in Namibia at
about 1,275 years. Known as the “Tree of Life,” the species is found throughout
the drier regions of Africa and features a water-storing trunk that may reach a
diameter of 9 metres (30 feet) and a height of 18 metres (59 feet). Older
individuals often have huge hollow trunks that are formed by the fusion of
multiple stems over time. The tree’s unique pendulous flowers are pollinated by
bats and bush babies. Its young leaves are edible, and the large gourdlike
woody fruit contains a tasty mucilaginous pulp from which a refreshing drink
can be made. Since 2005, 9 of the 13 oldest African baobab specimens and 5 of
the 6 largest trees have died or suffered the collapse and death of their
largest or oldest stems, a statistically unlikely phenomenon that scientists
suggested may have been caused by the effects of climate change.
0 Comments