The baobab tree is native to Africa, Madagascar, and northern Australia. It has an enormous trunk that can reach 60 feet in diameter and live over 2,000 years. All parts of the baobab tree are useful to African people - the trunks provide shelter, storage, and water reservoirs, the bark makes nets and clothing, the leaves are used as vegetables, the fruits and seeds are edible, and products like soap, necklaces, and medicine can be derived from other parts.

1. The baobabs,
totaling about a dozen species, are native to the hot dry savannas in Africa, Madagascar and northern
Australia. The baobab tree is also known as the monkey bread tree, cream of tartar tree, lemonade tree and
sour gourd tree. The baobab tree has an enormous trunk with tapering branches and can attain a maximum
height of 75 feet and maximum diameter of 60 feet around the trunk. It is also one of the longest lived trees
in the world; radio-carbon dating has measured ages of over 2,000 years. The leaves are about 5 inches long
and have three to seven glossy leaflets. It produces 5 to 7 inch flowers with five white petals and numerous
purplish stamen.
The baobab is highly regarded by African people because all of its parts can be utilized in some
capacity. In addition to being an important source of timber, the trunks are often hollowed out by people who
use them for shelter, grain storage or as water reservoirs. The hollowed trunks also serve as burial sites.
Some of the most important products come from the bark of the tree, which contains a fiber that is used to
make fishnets, cords, sacks and clothing. The bark can also be ground into a powder for flavoring food. The
leaves of the baobab were traditionally used for leaven but are also used as a vegetable. Its fruits and seeds
are also edible for humans and animals. The pulp of the fruit, when dried and mixed with water, makes a
beverage that tastes similar to lemonade. The seeds, which taste like cream of tartar and are a valuable source
of vitamin C, were traditionally pounded into meal when other food was scarce. Other products such as soap,
necklaces, glue, rubber, medicine and cloth can be produced from the various parts of the baobab tree.