Wiki Entry taken by Ferdinand Reus
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| Baobob Tree taken from Wikipedia and winner of many prize photo competitions - Bernard Gagnon Isn't it magnificent, yesterday my wallpaper was the Avenue of Baobabs in Madagascar. Strangely alien, the gold sleek bark and a flurry of branches at the top. Like the camel it has to store its water and so the great trunk is the water tank. It is the Africa Tree of Life and reminded me of a song that was once a favourite. 'Shakin The Tree' sung by Peter Gabriel and Youssou N'Dour a Senegalese singer. A young naive Peter Gabriel and another favourite, Youssou. It is wonderful that the thing we call a brain connects facts together so sweetly. Trees of Life are part of our cultural history as well as in our churches. Anyway you will find the great baobob tree in their background, a rather fat untidy tree but then the storms of life gets us all whether tree or human. Now I shall go back and find more Youssou songs on the net, my CDs of the music need some sort of attachment to my computer I suppose, I rather miss playing them. My son recorded most of them for me and I haven't really worked out Spotify but then why should I? |
They are amazing trees. The first photo is like a tree that can be found in Australia. Many of our boab trees bulge hugely at their bases. I think of the trees surviving in dry climates by storing water, but your second photo shows one almost sitting in water.
ReplyDeleteThere is an enormous trunked one in Western Australia which was supposedly used as a prison Andrew. It is called the Baob Prison Tree, near Derby. 1500 years old, it must be hollowed out inside a bit like some of our old yews.
ReplyDeleteI remember seeing that video before and enjoying that song. Those trees are beautiful, aren't they.
ReplyDeleteYes Ellen I like to bring my music forward so I don't forget it.
DeleteWhen I went to West Africa many years ago, I was mesmerized by the baobab trees. They were the most obvious daily reminder that I really WAS in Africa! Several times we were served a "sauce" made from their leaves -- I really liked it. Very "green" tasting.
ReplyDeleteThey look old, rather like dinosaurs. Not many leaves on them though.
DeleteBaobabs are wonderful trees carefully designed by nature to survive hardship.
ReplyDeleteI did read Janice of some Baobabs dying though due to dehydration and they will not obviously be helped by the climate change.
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