"Baobab" Pohon yang Memiliki Bentuk yang Aneh

Digitata Adansonia, atau pohon Baobab adalah pohon tampak aneh yang tumbuh di dataran rendah di Afrika dan Australia. The Baobab juga disebut pohon yang terbalik karena saat telanjang daun, cabang-cabang penyebaran terlihat Baobab seperti akar mencuat ke udara, seolah-olah telah ditanam terbalik. Legenda menyatakan bahwa Thora dewa mengambil tidak menyukai ke Baobab tumbuh di kebunnya, sehingga ia melemparkannya di atas dinding surga ke bumi di bawah, dan meskipun pohon itu mendarat terbalik itu terus tumbuh. Cerita lain pergi bahwa ketika Baobab ditanam oleh Allah, itu terus berjalan, sehingga Tuhan menarik itu dan reboisasi terbalik untuk menghentikannya bergerak.

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The Baobab can grow to enormous sizes reaching heights of 5 to 30 meters and have trunk diameters of 7 to 11 meters. One African Baobab specimen in Limpopo Province, South Africa, is often considered the largest example alive. Up to recent times the tree had a circumference of 47 meters - its diameter is estimated at about 15.9 meters. Recently the tree split up into two parts and it is possible that the stoutest tree now is Sunland Baobab, also in South Africa with a diameter of 10.64 m and approximate circumference of 33.4 meters. Baobabs are also reputed to be many thousands of years old.

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 surce 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.