Tanzania, June 14 -- Baobabs are the mainstay of rural communities in some parts of Africa - they provide food in the form of leaves that are cooked like spinach, and large oval fruit which are rich in vitamin C. Oils are extracted from the crushed seeds (used in the cosmetic industry), and bark may be used for making rope.
Recently the trees have provided a source of income as local people collect the fruits and sell them to companies that extract the white fruit powder for the food industry and crush the seeds for their oils.
In southern Africa, some baobab trees are known for consistently producing large amounts of fruit, while others produce only a few fruits every year, despite flowering profusely. These trees are sometimes referred ...