Have you ever wondered what would be the most valuable gift given by the nature to entire humanity? In my opinion, it will be ‘the trees’ without any doubt. Those are the silent amazing wonders which exist all around the world with different shapes and sizes. They provide oxygen, shelter as well as food to all living things in the world which are vital for survival. Can you imagine a world without trees? They are the ones who clean air, protect water sources in our world.
Around 30 million years ago, trees have appeared on the earth. According to studies, there are more than 3 trillion trees around the world in more than 60,000 different species. And specially, all of those trees have different roles to play! Some trees are very huge, some trees are very old, some of them have flowers but overall, all of them are beautiful! When I gather information about unusual trees around the world to include in this article, I found a number of different species which have very unusual facts. But it would be boring to read a huge list of trees at once. So I carefully selected some of those trees which are famous and have lots of weird facts. Hope you’ll gather some knowledge from this article while enjoy the reading!
# Baobab Tree
Baobab is a giant pillar-like tree that can be found in Madagascar, Africa, Arabia, and Australia. Baobabs in central southern Africa are one of the best-known unique and wired trees. Sometimes when you see them in a long-distance for the first time, you’ll see them like flung into the earth upside down! That’s because these trees have small branches when compared to huge girth and they have leaves only for three months in a year! At that time period, baobabs bloom white flowers on their tips at night spreading a sour milk scent. Bats and bushbabies are attracted to baobab flowers because of this scent and come to drink copious nectar. They also help to increase the baobab population by spreading baobab pollen far in the forest at the same time. Baobabs also grow a 1-foot long egg-shaped fruit. Locals call it a ‘super food’ because it consists with rich calcium, magnesium, and potassium.
Some people call baobab ‘the tree of life’. The reason for that is their ability to absorb water and store them. In the rainy season, baobabs absorb water and store it in their huge trunks and branches which work like sponges. Because of their giant trunks, they can conserve and store more water than any other tree. According to researches, a well-grown healthy baobab tree can store around 120,000 liters of water in its trunk!
Baobabs also have many other benefits. For example, the pounded bark of baobab is used to make waterproof hats, ropes, cloth, and mats. And also baobabs contain a medical value. They are used as medicines for insects bites as well as kidney-related diseases.
# Dragon Blood Tree
When you see a dragon blood tree for the first time it will create an idea of seeing a giant upside-down umbrella. It may also look like some kind of a plant from an alien world. But it is not! If you ever travel to Yeman, there is an island called Socotra, two hundred miles away from the coast of Yemen. It is also known as the jewel of Arabia. The Dragon Blood tree is a native plant for this Socotra. They live in a forest called ‘Dragonsblood’ on granite mountains of the island.
I know, you may wonder why this tree got the name ‘Dragon Blood Tree’. It looks like the tree is related to ‘Dragons’ or ‘Blood’. But actually, there is no relationship between them and the tree. The actual reason is the red color of the sap of this tree which comes out from its bark when cut or damaged. This red sap also works as the defense system of this tree. They protect the tree by working against various diseases and attacks of pests. In 17th century, people in Europe regarded that sap has a magical cure. Recently some researches have proven that there are medicinal properties in the sap of the dragon blood tree. So the resin is used for various medicines and air fresheners!
# Kauri Tree
Kauri tree is one of the mightiest trees in the world. It grows over 50m tall and can live for more than 2000 years. Kauri trees have gray trunks which have griths up to 16 meters. You can see the oldest Kauri trees on the north island of New Zealand. The biggest kauri tree is situated in Waipoua forest in New Zealand. It is named ‘Tane Mahuta’ which means the god of the forest. Kauri trees have very valuable resin. In 19th century, people discovered that it is a perfect ingredient for outdoor varnish.
# Traveller’s tree
Madagascar is a dream paradise for many naturalists who wish to travel. It is hived from the rest of Africa and has many unique plants and animals. If you ever go there, you’ll see a tree which has leaves like in the banana plant. Those leaves are long for about 4-5 meters. The attractive factor about this plant is the way those leaves are assembled. They look like the spread feathers of a peacock. And also it looks like a giant fan made from leaves!
This plant is also called as traveler’s palm. Do you know why this tree got that name? Here’s the answer. The base of each leaf in this tree has a shape like a huge cup and it can hold around 1 liter of rainwater. For centuries people used to drink this water in emergencies.
The other interesting factor in this treveler’s tree is its light blue seeds. There is also a reason for that. In Madagascar, there is an animal called rudded lemur. It helps to the growth of traveler’s tree. Lemures only have green and blue receptors in their eyes. So they cannot see any yellow or red seeds. So with the light blue color, lemures can easily grab traveler’s tree seeds and swallow and distribute them around the forest together with some fertilizer!
