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'''The Baobab tree grows in different regions of Madagascar and comes in many shapes and sizes in different areas of Madagascar. Out Six out of the nine existing Baobab species in the world, six exist only on in Madagascar, making the baobab tree symbolic to the Big Islandcountry. Apart from being a tasty fruit, the baobab has The tree and its fruits have many uses from practical and nutritional to medicinal to and spiritual.'''
[[File:Morondava_0030.jpg|600px]]
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The dry powder from the fruits are is used to produce delicious and nutritious drinks, while the seeds are used to produce cooking and massage oils.
[[File:Baobab_011.jpg|600px]]
The Baobab name originates from the Arabic phrase ''bu hibab'' meaning fruit with many seeds. The fruit can contain several hundred seeds. Baobab belong to the Bombacaceae family of trees which includes the [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntV9vEWa1iw Kapok tree].
The first botanical description of the baobab was made by French botanist Michel Adanson and a species was
later named Adansonia. The sixth and the last Malagasy species was discovered and described in 1960.
Baobabs are found in dry and semi-arid areas which receive less than
The baobab only bear leaves in the rainy season and are leafless during
the dry season which limits their water loss.
[[File:Andavadoaka_001.jpg|600px]]
The large flowers of baobab live only for one night and open almost
sometimes gives them astonishing forms.
The fruit contain contains a dry
and chalky pulp with many
nutritional qualities. Pulp,
which when mixed with water and
sugar, makes a refreshing and
vitamin-rich drink.
The baobab fruit has many nutritional properties:
* High natural Vitamin C content (at least 150mg/100g)
* Strong antioxidant properties: Integral Antioxidant Capacity (IAC) - 11.1 mmol/g. This value is significantly higher than that of an orange pulp (IAC = 0.103 mmol/g), and grape seed Oligomers (IAC = 10.25 mmol/g).
* A natural source of minerals including Calcium (293 mg/100g), Phosphorus (96-118 mg/100g), Iron (7-8.6 mg/100g) and Potassium (2.31 mg/100g).
* Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) and Vitamin B3 (niacin).
* Vegetal source of amino acids.
* Soluble and insoluble dietary fibers with prebiotic effects (44.6g/100g)
* The acidulous taste is attributed to the presence of organic acids, such as citric acid, malic acid and succinic acid
The Baobab fruit has twice as much Calcium as milk and six times the Vitamin C of an orange. According to the International Centre for Underutilized Crops at the University of Southampton (UK), the Baobab is "a fruit of the future", rich also in vitamin B1, B2. It also contains
high levels of iron and potassium.
Baobab dried fruit pulp contains powerful antioxidants. Ranking of ORAC values (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity, method of measuring antioxidant capacities in biological samples) shows Baobab dried fruit pulp to have double the capacity of pomegranate and cranberries, and even more than fruits such as blueberries, raspberries and blackberries.
The flavour of the pulp is somewhere between marshmallow and tamarind.
[[File:Baobab_004.jpg|600px]]
In the South, women prepare beauty masks from the bark.
On the Mahafaly plateau, the trunk is
are used as cisterns. In the
rainy season, they are filled with
water. These reserves allowmen to survive in for the dry season ina particularly dry environment.
For the [[Sakalava ]] ethnic group, the
baobab is sacred. The species (A.
grandidieri) is called "reniala", meaning
"mother of the forest".
The [[Mikea]], an ethnic
group from the southwest of Madagascar, use Baobab wood
to make coffins.
In the bay of [[Diego-Suarez]], several baobab species gathered
on an islet serve as graves for stillborn children. Their
bodies wrapped in shrouds are abandoned in
the forks of the branches.
The Sakalava associate the
baobab 's wild nature and feminine symbolism.
Sacred baobabs are places of worship dedicated to women
which take place at their foot, focus
on the fertility of women, the
good health of children andthe
fertility of the land, particularly
during a symbolic ritual called
A Malagasy legend says that Imbelo, the first man,
created the woman by carving her from baobab wood. Many
other legends are dedicated to baobab.
legend explains that the baobab was once a very beautiful tree but
that was a little too pretentious. One day, this angered
God who tore it up to punish him and replanted it upside down. Another legend is that it was the devil who pulled out the tree and planted it upside down.
The fruits of baobabs
coated in a white, chalky pulp.
It is likely that giant tortoises, the elephant bird (aepyornis[[Aepyornis maximus]]) and large lemurs,
were good seed dispersers. This role is probably ensured today
by animals introduced by man (zebus, goats, bush pigs) or
by water which can sometimes transport the fruits and their
valuable cargoes of seeds over long distances.
The appearance of the unopened fruit pods do not degrade for many
years and can be used for decoration.
The pulp is very
to the ground.
Baobab fruit seeds are bean -shaped.Their size and color colour vary depending on the
species.
Almost all parts of the tree are used, with the exception of except the
trunk. The fruits are picked
from the ground or from the tree several
tens of meters high using
rudimentary ladders.
There are numerous sites for observing
baobabs. The most famous of
them is the[[Baobab Aavenue Avenue]] 20 kilometers north of[[Morondava]].
22 meters in circumference. It is
represented on the city's coat
of arms and is one of its
main todurist tourist attractions.
In Madagascar, many natural
because they are difficult to
access.
== Additional information ==
* [[Baobab Avenue]]
* [[Baobab tree]]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pe1W1UGK8j4 Baobab coffee]