Baobab Tree

The baobab tree is an iconic tree in Africa and loved dearly by any who live near where they grow. In South Africa this is in the far north on the Zimbabwe bourder. They only grow north of the tropic of capricorn. The fruit is cream of tarter in Afrikaans the tree is called a "Kremetart boom".

I see in a book* that baobabs can only grow in area with not more than 1 day frost per year! I guess that's why we don't see them in Canada much! All baobabs in South Africa have now been declared protected.

I took this photograph on the way to Tshipise, in the Northwest Province of South Africa.

This is my favourite tree, I love the shape and most of all the Africanness of it! It is huge, rugged and instead of dying when conditions are less than ideal it simply gets more character and its shape becomes more interesting.


* Making the most of indigenous trees - Fanie & Julye-Ann Venter.