BAOBAB

(Adansonia digitata), tree of the bombax family (Bombacaceae) of the order Malvales, native to Africa. The barrel-like trunk may reach a diameter of 9 metres (30 feet) and a height of 18 m. The large, gourdlike, woody fruit contains a tasty mucilaginous pulp. A strong fibre from the bark is used locally for rope and cloth. The trunks are often excavated to serve as water reserves or temporary shelters. So extraordinarily shaped is the baobab that an Arabian legend has it that the devil plucked up the baobab, thrust its branches into the earth, and left its roots in the air. It is grown as a curiosity in areas of warm climate, such as Florida. A related species, A. gregorii, occurs in Australia, where it is called baobab or bottle tree (the latter name being more correctly applied to the family Sterculiaceae).