Baobab trees can grow to a height of 5 to 30 meters, with a trunk diameter of 7 to 11 meters. An African baobab specimen in South Africa's Limpopo province is believed to be the largest living example. The tree's circumference is 47 meters - its diameter is estimated to be approximately 15.9 metres. The tree is divided into two parts. The strongest tree now is probably the Sunland Baobab, also in South Africa, with a diameter of 10.64 meters and a circumference of about 33.4 meters.
The baobab tree is a warm tropical tree species that can tolerate the highest average temperature of 40°C and above and the extreme lowest temperature of 0°C. The tree is highly drought-tolerant and can live as long as 10 years even in the harsh arid environment of the savanna. Around 5000 years ago.
The root system is shallow and widely extended. The rainwater collected and saved in the rainy season can be used during the eight-month drought and leafless period. With its flexible body, it can shrink the trunk and lock in water in the dry season, and absorb and store a large amount of water in the rainy season. The tree of life can improve the ecological environment of 1000 square meters.
A tree of life can store up to 120,000 liters of water, which is equivalent to 240,000 500ml bottles of drinking water, which is enough for a family's domestic water consumption for more than half a year. It not only provides precious water resources for local residents, animals and plants in Africa, but also increases soil moisture content and prevents water loss. Therefore, it is called Africa's "Water Storage Tower".
During the African summer from October to December, the baobab trees bloom with masses of sweet white flowers that bloom only at night. As the flowers emerge from large round buds on night-long drooping stems, they are pollinated by noctuid insects such as bats and armyworms. Within 24 hours, the flowers turn dark brown and begin to smell musky. The flower stalks then grow into baobab fruits, which ripen during the dry season and fall from the tree when ready for harvest. People living in rural areas collect fruits from under the trees.
The seeds in the baobab fruit can also be used to extract oil. There are many seeds in a baobab fruit, and the oil content of the seeds is 15%. Baobab oil is made through a cold pressing process. After pressing, it becomes light yellow vegetable oil, which is a high-quality edible oil. 500 baobab fruits (20KG of baobab seeds) can only extract 1KG of baobab oil.
Baobab oil cold pressing process:
baobab seeds - pressureless steam pot - hydraulic press - filtration - refining
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