Baobab Flower research in Ghana

A flower of a Baobab in Ghana, West Africa

In August last year Dr Sarah Venter visited Ghana to see if there are any significant variations between the North-West African baobabs versus our Southern African Baobabs.

“The journey took me from Accra, the capital on the Atlantic coast of West Africa about 800km right up to the northern-most part of the country.  Here Baobab trees are scattered throughout the landscape and, as in most parts of Africa, they are protected by the local people and cultures,” she reports.

Collecting data from Ghanian Baobabs in West Africa

“I was specifically looking at baobab flowering to assess the variation across Africa.  This will help us get a wider understanding of the ecology of baobab population biology and support sustainable utilization of its resources. We haven’t got any clear-cut answers yet, more work still needs to be done in other areas of Africa for all the puzzle-pieces to fit together.”

“What is quite different in the South, is that North-West Africans love to eat the Baobab fruit and leaves,” she says. Dr Venter also visited and met Dr Kenneth Egbadzor from the Ho Technological University who have a program to look at the development of baobabs in the Volta region, about 200km from Accra, south-east of the enormous Lake Volta.

Visiting with dr Egbadzor at Ho Technological University in Ghana

Visiting with dr Egbadzor at Ho Technological University in Ghana

“The Ho Technological University’s researchers are trying to develop a baobab that can produce fruit faster than in the wild so that they can commercialize the crop. They hope that Baobabs will be able to match coco in the Ghanian economy and feel that because baobab is native to Ghana, it would be better suited than coco,” she explains.

Continue reading....

Find more interesting articles below

Who pollinates South African Baobabs?

Who pollinates South African Baobabs?

The African Baobab (Adansonia digitata) is a truly trans-continental species.  It is found right across Africa, from West Africa through to East Africa and down to Southern Africa.  They have an unusual life-history in that they are physically larger and live longer than most flowering plants on earth. Pollinators more vulnerable than Baobabs Although some […]

Read more
2013 Dec: 50 new baobab babies!

2013 Dec: 50 new baobab babies!

Last month,  50 rural women harvesters attended a  baobab growing and sustainable harvesting course.  I had such fun with this, taking 50 rural women baobab fruit harvesters on a field trip from Zigodini village to Pafuri River Camp Nursery, on the banks of the Mutale River. The course was done with a mixture of practical […]

Read more
we all need a livelihood strategy: what’s yours?

we all need a livelihood strategy: what’s yours?

This is Sani Mudau. When I was visiting the village last week she was busy with an embroidery while she was waiting for her turn to be paid for the fruit she had collected. Since it's Women's Day today I thought I would celebrate the local Venda women. Many rural women have something called a […]

Read more