Adansonia digitata

A house or tub plant that grows into an immense tree in the wild (Africa). They can live for at least 2000 years and the trunk sometimes has a diameter of 12 meters! Even in a pot, the trunk quickly develops the characteristic bottle shape. The elongated leaves are fresh and shiny. The plant can be regularly pruned (simply cut off the stems) to create a full plant. After a few years, the hanging, white flowers with purple stamens appear. The elongated, woody fruits give the tree a gruesome nickname: dead rat tree. The plant will not readily bear fruit here, but in Africa, these are eaten fresh or first dried and later soaked in water or milk. The tree has an enormously important function; I will mention a few applications: the seeds are sugared and eaten as a delicacy, tasting like almond. The leaves, young shoots, and roots can be eaten as vegetables. The fruit peels make good fuel. Ground fruit peel is used as tobacco. Soap can be made from the ash. Fibers can be extracted from the bark. These can be used for ropes, baskets, and textiles. The bark also contains tannin, which can be used as a tanning agent.

Names:
Latin: Adansonia digitata
Dutch: Baobab
Also known as: Dode rattenboom (Dead rat tree)
English: Bottle Tree