Baobab

saint

I have recently come into possession of a number of Baobab seeds. Does anyone have any experience in the germination and development of this species?

Thanks for any help.

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Best Regards,

Leslie St. John
Barbados
West Indies


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Adam_MA

Some great info HERE


Adam

Jow

I am the one who intiated that thread, and I am proud to say that I planted 5 seeds and so far 4 have sprouted, they have large leaves and are already about 2 inches tall. They took about 2 weeks and then literally all sprouted to full height overnight. I just soaked them over night in warm water then put tiny nicks in the seeds and planted them into everyday succuluent mix from a nursery, (i used this due to its sandy nature). i kept them in my centrally heated apartment under a regular floor lamp to keep them warm. 3 have been repotted in to training pots and are showing signs that they are ready to take off, i plan to trim them back a little bit around 2010. hope this helps.

Jow

If you want to see what can be accomplished from growing baobab from seed check out this website and click on Sales, Then Hennies Bonsai, it should give you a rough time frame of what to expect and what can be achieved. http://www.sabonsai.co.za

Cheers

Travesty34

Wow, I am amazed at the 7 yr. old even. I actually just put an order in last week on some seeds.

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Travesty34 - GW - Profile

Jow

I agree, before I planted my seedlings I heard a lot about them being extremely slow growers and that it almost isn't worth growing them unless your in your young 20's and they will be for your grandkids someday. But if that is really only 7 years old that trunk isn't half bad. I am only 22 and perhaps I will give my baobab to a grandchild someday but I expect to have a nice looking bonsai for several decades before i am signing over possession on this tree.

Jow

More Baobab info for those interested, of course this isn't going to be useful for a number of years but it it is interesting none the less. This was given to me by Charles Ceronio through e-mail, he is from south africa and wrote a book called "Bonsai Styles of the World" which is currently out of print but will be available later this year and it contains info on african trees as well as a host of others, he will also be doing a demo at World Bonsai Convention in Washington in May 2005. Enough chit-chat here's the goods,


"You can start trimming the tree once you decided on the thickness and height of your tree. To get a fat trunk, one should plant it in a big container and let it grow until you are satisfied with the trunks circumference. It might mean the tree might be 6 feet tall. Then you can cut it off at about 30 inches or as high as you want. I found that a tree with a trunk length of 30 inches is an ideal height.[ you can cut the top section in lengths of 30 inches and let it dry out as described lower down.] On top of the trunk you can now start to developed your main [primary] branches. Go the same way as with the trunk until you are satisfied with their thickness. Cut back again in proportion with your trunk and start to developed the tertiary branches. Again plant the cuttings] That will take you a few seasons but it is the only way to gain a massive trunk. The baobab respond very well to pruning and the large cuts sealed naturally. As the Baobab have thick tuber-like roots [like sweet potatoes], you can cut them down as soon as the trunk has reached its full potential. When you cut the roots in early Spring, just before the tree starts budding, you can leave it in full sun for a day to seal the wounds. It will form a film and that will ensure that the tree will not rot when planted. You should never and that is never water the trees in winter. As they are closely related to succulents and will rot if watered in winter. You can only start watering as soon as the buds started to open and you must stop watering as soon as the tree drops its leaves in Autumn. One should try and keep them in a dry area away from your other bonsai to the rotting problem."

He gave this to me in response to some questions I posed to him because all the info on baobabs I had was on simply keeping them alive and I wanted to hear from someone who had successfully bonsaid some so that I could learn about root pruning and trunk chopping etc. You know the things that make us bonsai enthusiasts not just gardeners. I now think we have suitable info on this sight alone for any potential baobab growers. NEXT TREE.

nichole

http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/agpc/doc/...na/botswana.htm BOTSWANA now, this is an interesting article all about Botswana, which happens to be the home of the Baobab tree. I happened upon it while hunting for info on the natural seasonal cycles that the Baobab endures in nature....so if you scroll down about half way to the part about climate, then remember to convert degrees C to F (for us in the USA) then you get a glimpse into the life of a Baobab tree. I am going to presume that the tree will not know it's currently in the wrong hemisphere, and I have no plans on telling it....so as long as you can reproduce these seasons within the limitations of your own actual surroundings, then maybe you can fool the tree well enough for it to prosper...at least that's MY current plan, since my baby baobab just sprouted!