Adansonia gregorii, commonly known as the boab, is a tree in the family Malvaceae.
“Drink plenty of water. Stand tall”
“Wisdom is like a Baobab Tree- no one individual can embrace it” Old African Proverb.
Be dormant in Cold Weather Time.
Iconic is the mighty Boab tree in the Kimberly, again and again they catch my eye.
Sometimes their bulbous thick trunks are hidden by the dense long grass and scrub, but they stand out majestically on the burnt or cleared ground.
Some have a shape so feminine that reminds me of the curves of a sensuous ripe mango.
I can’t wait to see them dressing themselves in tender new leaves, as Hot Weather Time -Parranga- and the season merges into Raining Time -Yatilal -then bursting into bloom.
Leaves begin to yellow and fall so coming out of Cold Weather Time-Makurra, most of the Boabs are quite bare, except for the ones with grapefruit sized nuts.
Their dry leaves dance and swirl along the ground when a breeze ruffles them- they rattle, whispering, chattering like a horde of kids let out of school swarming down the steps and of! The trees become dormant until raining time begins.
Those trees that have accessed underground water have green leaves through all seasons.
For the last couple of months, Boabs have been lying beside the Vic Highway, out in the sun as the days have gradually grown hotter.
It is reassuring to read the following and to understand that even large trees can be transplanted:
“The Shire of Wyndham East Kimberley would like to advise that the Boab Trees, laying beside the Victoria Highway, will be planted next week.
They were due to be planted today, however, resources were deferred to Lake Argyle for an emergency fire situation with DFES.
Boab Trees can live for quite a long a time unplanted, due to the amount of water the trees store inside their trunks.
The Shire recognizes the significance of the Boab Tree for our region and look forward to planting and caring for the trees for years to come.”
Gija Jumula The most famous transplant was Gija Jumula -a massive 36 tonne 750 year old boab from Warmun -Telegraph Creek relocated 3200 km on a truck bed to Kings Park in Perth.
The grandfather or mother tree was gifted by the Giga people when construction of a creek crossing left it under threat.
Have a look here for the detail:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gija_Jumulu
http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2014/09/19/4090908.htm
"The size and height of the tree determines how heavily the ground will shake when it falls…..The boab tree falls and the whole forest looks empty! Such is human life!" : Israelmore Ayivor
We found a massive boab that had collapsed -not from a lightening strike which is common, but from a fungal disease destroying the structure just above the base.
Probably this fungus had entered the tree from vandals carving their name into its trunk.
The tree was not dead -small green shoots were emerging – it will be a strange sight in years to come.
The blackfellas have always eaten the fruit of the Boab – the pith can be eaten ripe or cooked, or cooked while it is green into a kind of porridge.
Roots of seedlings are eaten like a carrot, young leaves are edible and water can be extracted from the fibrous wood.
Blackfellas also carve Boab nuts for the tourist trade – prices and quality of carving vary. This one was carved by Gilbert Alberts -not sure where his country is but he was in Wyndham-and shows a goanna, paperbark trees, cliff edge, waterholes, roos and a bush turkey.
After rain the ground under the boab trees is littered with the nuts that loosen as the branches and twigs soften and absorb water.
Blossom buds form when the leaf buds to but remain dormant until the end of the rainy season.
When the large, creamy, fragrant flowers open early in the evening, and are pollinated that night, each flower lasts for only a day or two before falling.
Pollinators are case and hawk moths, flying fruit bats, sugar gliders.
Perhaps there are just not enough of these in Kings Park in Perth for although Gija Jumula had many, many nuts when transported but now only produces a few each year.
There are two schools of thought as to how Boabs arrived in Australia – Africa and Madagasca also have a species which they call Baobabs.
You can see 8 varieties of Boabs in Darwin in the George Brown botanic Gardens.
This is Gardening Australia’s fact sheet about them
https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/the-baobab-collection/9429920
Lots of more reading is available:
Artist Nadeen Lovell’s book is currently being published.
‘The Boab” Pat Lowe
“Pachyauls of Africa, Madagasca, and Australia” Gerald E Wicken and Pat Lowe.
This is the link re the origins article:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-07/boabs-come-africa-baobabs-evolution/10060946