Baobab
Family Bombacaceae
Adansonia digitata, baobab (A. digitata 1), is a bottle-shaped tree that can live to a great age and occurs widely in the drier parts of tropical Africa. The comparatively short trunk bears short thick branches resembling roots, giving the impression of the tree standing upside down. The leaves are palmate; the flowers are large, up to 15 cm in diameter, white and with numerous stamens (A. digitata 2) and are bat-pollinated. The oblong fruits (A. digitata 3) are 15-20 cm long, pendulous on long stalks, have a woody shell and contain an acid pulp and large seeds.
The genus is named after Michel Adanson (1725-1806), a French botanist who gave the first description of the tree.
Use
Young baobab leaves are used as a vegetable; the fruit pulp is made into a drink; the inner bark yields a strong fibre that is made into rope. Various parts of the tree are used in traditional medicine.