Variation in baobab (Adansonia digitata L.) leaf morphology and its relation to drought tolerance

Abstract

The baobab tree (Adansonia digitata L.) is a valued savannah tree. Although variation in fruit characteristics of this tree have been studied, no studies to our knowledge have been carried out on variation of leaf morphology which can be linked to drought adaptation mechanisms. Accessions of baobab from different ecosystems in Benin were characterised for leaf size and thickness, stomata size and density on the abaxial surface of leaves. Significant variation was found in leaf size and stomata characteristics. Trees from northern study sites had higher stomata density and smaller guard cell length than those from southern study sites. The results show that pruning has a significant effect on leaf size, but not on stomatal characteristics. Trees from northern study sites showed more xerophytic characteristics than those from the south. It seems that genetic and physiological effects may play a role in baobab drought adaptation.

Comparison of East and West African populations of baobab (Adansonia digitata L.)

“…Leaflet number decreased with increased annual rainfall while leaf size increased with increased annual rainfall at the provenance sites. The finding supports the observed variation by Cuni Sanchez et al (2010a) who report a North-South pattern. In Mali, a study reported that long petioles and large leaves were observed in the Southern region (wetter zones) while smaller leaf sizes were more typical for Baobab trees from Northern and Eastern regions (drier zones) (Sanou et al unpublished data).…”

Comparative study on baobab fruit morphological variation between western and south-eastern Africa: opportunities for domestication

“…Differences in fruit size and chemical composition of the pulp have been reported from Senegal and Mali (Sidibé et al 1996;Soloviev et al 2004;De Smedt et al 2010). Differences in tree morphology and productivity, fruit morphology, leaf size and stomatal characteristics have been observed in Benin (Assogbadjo et al 2005a, b;Cuni Sanchez et al 2010a).…”

“…No HWSD soil type information was available from Likoma Island. Similar variables have been used to study the effect of the environment on baobab leaf morphology (CuniSanchez et al 2010a) …”

Baobab (Adansonia digitata L.) fruit production in communal and conservation land-use types in Southern Africa

“…In Zimbabwe, for instance, the sale of baobab fruit has increased the income of rural people by 250% (Gruenwald and Galizia, 2005). It is Whilst baobab demographic studies have been done in various parts of Africa (Kelly, 2000;Hofmeyer, 2001;Dhillion and Gustad, 2004;Assogbadjo et al, 2006;Chirwa et al, 2006;Edkins et al, 2007;Venter and Witkowski, 2010), few have assessed the amount of fruit produced by trees and the factors that influence fruit production (Dhillion and Gustad, 2004;Assogbadjo et al, 2005;Cuni Sanchez et al, 2009). Hence, the aim of this study was to determine differences in fruit production between land-use types, between tree life-stages, size-classes and between successive years.…”