Introducing the amazing self-pollarding trees

[Graham]

I like goat curry.

 

Curried goat as it is in Jamaica:smokin:

[Sciadopitys]

Is the tree in the pic Argania spinosa?? from northern Africa? Looks like it

[gibbon]

Adansonia digitata is what I had them down as. They were on some land being acquired by a reserve in Senegal.

 

I am interested in the different forms taken by the tree in different environments and was hoping someone would have a bit of (sensible) input into why this happens?

[Mark Bolam]

Crazy tree behaviour! Maybe something to do with water availability?

 

Or maybe the trees have emigrated from Kent where people seem incapable of leaving them alone. They need a good lopping....

[Highland Forestry]

All these pics are of the same species of Boabab tree. The first 2 are in open grass land and have a form similar to trees which have been repeatedly pollared. The last pic is a Boabab growing about 2 miles away in a more foreseted area where these trees developed a different form.

 

Does anyone know why these trees would develop such a different growth habits in different growing conditions?

 

My initial thoughts were that the teees in the open grassland will be more bushy and stunted owing to the fact that they have not had to compete for light whilst growing and if they are in grassland then you can bet that they will have suffered for some sort of grazing as they grow which may account for such stunted growth and a lack of decent limbs..

The trees in the woodland setting will have grown faster as they will have been competing for light from an early age and will have become more leggy, once over grazing height they will have developed well and big...

 

Might be wrong but that's what it reminds me of anyway, have sene similar in scots pine..

[LSD]

seen some baobabs in Western Australia, looked wicked, like they’d just fallen out of the sky. aren’t some supposed to be ancient?

[gibbon]

Crazy tree behaviour! Maybe something to do with water availability?

 

QUOTE]

 

I think your right about the water availability. Most trees in tropical dry forests have compound leaves to help reduce the trees surface area in dry periods. The growth of the small diameter branches may be behaving in a similar fashion here. The forested area is close to a mangrove delta so would be closer to moisture.

 

These trees can be ancient, and especially in Africa groves of Boababs are a sign of ancient settlements. Some of the oldest villages are located around big Boababs. The fruit is delicous.

[nuggsy]

think ive seen the fruit before on a tv programme ? quite dry but really nice was what it said ?