Boab Tree # 11

Exciting New Product - Landmark Landscape Feature Trees

The Australian boab tree (Adansonia gregorii) is related to the Madagascan and African Adansonia species known as baobabs. Baobab trees are ideal for semi desert conditions to equatorial climates and are drought hardy semi-succulents.

Large mature semi-succulent trees of Adansonia gregorii, Boab or Baobab trees are ideal for Semi Desert and also for Equatorial climates. These water storing trees come from our harsh dry sub-tropical area in The Kimberley Region of Western Australia.

They grow to the very edge of the Tanami Desert (which is one of the hottest and driest regions of Australia) to the Kimberley Coast and Gorges extending up the coast almost as far as Darwin in the Northern Territory experiencing regular inundation of rain for extended periods during the Monsoonal Wet season when metres of rain can fall during up to 8 - 9 months of the year.

The habitat climate is a Monsoonal wet and dry season with 5 to 7+ months of wet season depending on geographic location. The temperatures range from highs of 48°c+ in the wet build-up season with humidity levels in the high 90% for months on end. They can also experience the occasional low temperatures of just above freezing at times in the dry season.

The extreme growing conditions experienced by these amazing Boab trees:-

• They grow in a wide range of soils from deep sandy to clay soils, in rocky habitats in valleys and rocky hills to 1500m+
• In and around freshwater swamps, streams and rivers sometimes with their root systems being submersed in deep water for months on end without any ill effect
• On the edge of brackish water bodies and salt marshes and tidal salt flats just above high tide mark - in some cases receiving salt water inundation during tropical storms and extra high king tides and Cyclones
• They also grow in soils with salt contents higher that most plants can withstand

Boab trees are also hardy to seasonal fires, when the bark is scorched by fire. On occasion it will produce a woody scab-like bark thus insulating the tree from future fires. This woody bark will be seasonally shed and the characteristic greyish smooth skin becomes more evident. The waxy feeling skin/bark of the Boab will also adapt to extremely hot sunlight conditions in the dry season when it may shed all of its leaves (depending on whether the tree is growing in dry or moist situation). A reddish pigment to the skin or bark acts as a sun blocking function. This skin/bark is a real survival feature of the Boab.

If the Boab tree is damaged by mechanical force the tree will overgrow any wound or tear in relatively short time with the visual effect like liquid wax being poured on the wound and setting.

The Baobab also has the ability to store thousands of litres of water inside the trunk of very old specimens with circumferences to sometimes well over 20 meters and a thousand+ of years in age, this water is stored in the wet season to ensure that the tree can survive sometimes years without any rain or water.

Our trees will also adapt to their new climate and will grow in girth as they age to possibly 1 thousand years+.

Our stock trees weigh up to 18 tons each with up to 4 metres girth maximum.

They are semi succulents, allowing for them to be bare rooted for a year or more without ill effect, this makes them ideal to bare root for export in open top sea containers to destinations worldwide.

Branches of the Boabs are trimmed to fit into 40ft and 20ft open top sea containers, much care is put into this trimming process in order to keep as much balance and appeal to tree when new growth appears in its new landscape.

The trees will produce leaves and roots in the growing season, they also produce beautiful large white flowers and unique woody fruits containing seeds suspended in a white substance which is edible, the leaves are also edible.

Every Boab tree has its own Character and shape; they are a fantastic Landmark tree that will catch the eye of everyone passing by.