The Baobab (Adansonia) is named after Michel Adanson, a French naturalist who first documented the tree in 1750. It can grow to gargantuan size, from 5 to 30 meters in height and 7 to 11 meters in width, and can live 2,000 years or more. 

In the past, the hollows of ancient Baobab tree trunks have served several purposes,  housing small villages,  jails, grain storage, water reservoirs, post offices, garages, and even burial sites. The Baobab tree is a gathering place where community matters are discussed. It’s known as the Tree of Life by many African cultures. Highly regarded for its multiple uses, its fibrous bark is used to make fishnets, clothing, rope, and even food seasoning. You can create soap, jewellery, glue, rubber, and medicine from it, and its thick leaves, fruits, and seeds can be eaten.

The Baobab's long life and ability to withstand droughts, and other natural disasters, has gained it much status in many myths throughout Africa. Some believe that if you pick a Baobab flower, you will be devoured by a lion, while others believe if you drink the water in which a Baobab's seeds have been soaked, you’ll be safe from a crocodile’s attack. When baobabs die, they rot from the inside and suddenly collapse, leaving a heap of fibres. Perhaps this is the reason for the popular myth that Baobab trees do not die at all, they simply disappear. 

A Baobab tree also creates its own ecosystem, supporting the life of countless creatures such as birds nesting in its branches, and insects pollinating its sweet smelling flowers, to baboons devouring its fruit, and bush babies and fruit bats drinking its nectar.

Just like the tree, we at Baobab Expeditions strive to support the world’s ecosystem, making sure we’re mindful of communities and creatures, while striving to share our years of experience with explorers of all types. 

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