Sunland Baobab (also Platland Baobab, Mooketsi Baobab, Tree Bar, Big Baobab or Pub Tree) is a well-known enormous baobab (''
Adansonia digitata
''Adansonia digitata'', the African baobab, is the most widespread tree species of the genus '' Adansonia'', the baobabs, and is native to the African continent and the southern Arabian Peninsula (Yemen, Oman). These are long-lived pachycauls; ra ...
'') in
Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number ...
. The tree is located on Sunland Farm (Platland Farm), near
Modjadjiskloof
Modjadjiskloof, formerly Duiwelskloof, is a small town situated at the foot of the escarpment in the Limpopo province of South Africa.
The village is 18 km north of Tzaneen. Surveyed in 1919 and proclaimed in 1920, it was administered by ...
(previously known as Duiwelskloof),
Limpopo Province
Limpopo is the northernmost province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The capital and largest city in the province is Polokwane, while the provincial legislature is ...
. In one study the tree was
carbon-dated
Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of radiocarbon, a radioactive isotope of carbon.
The method was dev ...
and found to be an estimated 1,060 years old, plus or minus 75 years. Results of other studies have however suggested much higher ages.
The tree bloomed profusely in spring and provided a refuge to two pairs of owls, and other bird species. Most of the tree died in 2016 and 2017.
Structure
It is 22 metres high and 47 metres in circumference. The trunk diameter was 10.64 metres (the
Glencoe Baobab
Glencoe Baobab is the stoutest and second largest baobab (''Adansonia digitata'' L.) in South Africa, and possibly the stoutest tree in the world. The Champion Tree is located in Glencoe Farm, near Hoedspruit, Limpopo and had a trunk diameter o ...
up to its 2009 split was larger, and also
Árbol del Tule
El Árbol del Tule (Spanish for The Tree of Tule) is a tree located in the church grounds in the town center of Santa María del Tule in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, approximately east of the city of Oaxaca on the road to Mitla. It is a Montezum ...
is larger with a diameter of 14.05 m), and the crown diameter is 30.2 metres. The trunk consists of two connected sections, each with its own enormous hollow, and these are connected by a narrow passage. One third of the Boabab tree collapsed in August 2016. This was ascribed to age and the natural hollowing of the trunk with time. The property owners intend to leave the fallen trunk section as it fell, allowing natural processes to reshape and assimilate the feature.
History
When the internal hollows were cleared of
compost
Compost is a mixture of ingredients used as plant fertilizer and to improve soil's physical, chemical and biological properties. It is commonly prepared by decomposing plant, food waste, recycling organic materials and manure. The resulting ...
in 1993, evidence of
Bushmen
The San peoples (also Saan), or Bushmen, are members of various Khoe, Tuu, or Kxʼa-speaking indigenous hunter-gatherer cultures that are the first cultures of Southern Africa, and whose territories span Botswana, Namibia, Angola, Zambia ...
and
Voortrekker
The Great Trek ( af, Die Groot Trek; nl, De Grote Trek) was a Northward migration of Dutch-speaking settlers who travelled by wagon trains from the Cape Colony into the interior of modern South Africa from 1836 onwards, seeking to live beyon ...
visitors was found. Carbon investigations inside the hollows testified to fires in 1650 AD, 1750–1780, 1900, 1955 and 1990.
Tourist attraction
The Sunland Big Baobab became a popular tourist attraction after 1993 when the owners of Sunland farm established a bar and wine cellar in its hollow trunk. The hollow centre of the tree was cleared of a substantial compost layer to uncover the floor at about a meter below the present ground level. A door was placed in a squared off natural vent in the trunk, and a railway sleeper pub was constructed inside, complete with draft beer, seats and a music system. 60 people once attended a party inside this tree bar. A wine cellar was installed in the second hollow, which remains at a constant 22 °C temperature thanks to the tree's natural vents.
The bar was destroyed in 2017 when the tree split, the second major break in 2 years. According to a study published in 2018, not only the Sunland Baobab, but "the majority of the oldest and largest African baobabs
ave diedover the past 12 years".
See also
*
List of oldest trees
This is a list of the oldest-known trees, as reported in reliable sources. Definitions of what constitutes an individual tree vary. In addition, tree ages are derived from a variety of sources, including documented "tree-ring" (dendrochronologica ...
*
List of individual trees
The following is a list of notable trees. Trees listed here are regarded as important or specific by their historical, national, locational, natural or mythological context. The list includes actual trees located throughout the world, as well as ...
References
{{Reflist, 33em
Individual baobab trees
Geography of Limpopo
Individual trees in South Africa