Baobab trees of Martur

February last week a comment on Martur fort and Mithakshara inscription brought a surprise. The comment owner Amit Kumar revealed his discovery of Baobab trees at Martur. The discovery of another Baobab site was a pleasant surprise, more so because I'd missed them during my visit. If I remember correctly, the few hours I spent at Martur was mostly at Deshmukh Waade and Vijnaneshwara Bhavan. Probably no one mentioned about the Baobabs. Probably I hadn't paid attention to what people were telling. Anyway, I heard of them from a Baaobab enthusiast based out of Kalburgi. The pictures of the two Baobab trees were shot by Amit during his visit. They have been posted here with his permission.

The two Baobabs are situated in Mahalakshmi Gudi which is adjacent to Shankaralingeshwara Gudi also called Mahalingeshwara Gudi. This is the bigger tree of the two. Baobabs are bare half the time i.e. they have leaves only for six months. Apparently they flower during the leafy time. The fruits mature slowly and ready for picking well after the leaves are shed.

Look at the branches at the top, there are many fruits. Probably they are not ready for picking yet. The Shikhara seen here must be Mahalaxmi Gudi's.

Going by the size of the trunk, the tree could be 150 to 200 years old.

The tree trunk's base is packed by stone slabs.. this prevents the soil breathing around the trunk. Soil needs to be in contact with air and also it allows rain water to flow in. Wish people remove new slabs and water the trees once a week or fortnight.

One of the fruits which has grown out from the main trunk. It seems to be a 9" long, has a velvet like skin which might turn leathery as it matures. The fruit's pulp and seeds are nutritious and said to possess healing properties. I've heard that even its leaves and flowers could be eaten raw. Amit says the tree is called as Kalpavriksha. I knew coconut tree is called Kalpavriksha. Now we have two trees which qualify as Kalpavriksha.

This is the smaller Baobab, it looks younger too, probably 50 years old. This tree must've grown naturally i.e. not planted intentionally. This plant definitely needs space to grow. Its almost touching the platform. The tree cannot be moved so would be better to tear down the platform and make space around the trunk base.

Another view of the tree. It has a bent gracefully. However the tree seems to be asking for care. Martur people must be proud to have living heritage besides other monuments. I beg the people of Martur to take care of their Baobabs along with the temples. They must create awareness about the trees through out the village, especially the youngsters. They must plant boards near the trees with a message to respect them and not to harm them.

Amit's passion for plant life is deep. He has a collection of rare plants which includes Baobab and Krihnae Ficus. He's researched and gained knowledge about rare plants. Baobabs don't reproduce as easily as other varieties because its seeds requires certain conditions to germinate. So to mass produce saplings some level of human intervention is required. Amit has learned the art & science of creating conditions favorable to convert the seeds to saplings. Here are few saplings from his little nursery in his kitchen garden.

Thanks to Amit for discovering the Baobabs of Martur and sharing his knowledge about them. Also thanks for Shamrao for offering to help if we need any further information.

Besides Martur, I learned about a Baobab which stands right besides Kurnool-Srisailam highway, and another one at the Cuddapah town municipal office premises. Hoping to see them some time.

Baobab is a native of Africa. In the XV or XVI Centuries, the Sufi ascetics who traveled from Africa & Middle East to India had carried seeds & saplings with them and planted them where ever that camped. Hundreds of them were planted on the Indian soil, mostly in Maharastra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. A few made their way into Goa, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. A few of the them have survived to this day.

Here is a list of known Baobab trees of India-

1. Hilltop Nightclub, Vagator, Goa
2. Cabo Raj Bhavan, Dona Paula, Goa
3. Quepem, Goa
4. Bamboo Motels, Goa
5. next to Yogapur mosque, Bijapur
6. near Ibrahim Roza, Bijapur, Karnataka (this tree died a few years ago)
7. Dodda Hunashe Matha, Savanur, Karnataka
8. Near the aquarium in Lalbagh Botanical Garden, Bengaluru
9. Purana Qilla, Golconda Fort, Hyderabad, Telangana
10. Attapur, Hyderabad
11. Vansthalipuram, Hyderabad, Telangana
12. near Chappel Road, Hyderabad, Telangana
13. Ranganath temple at Nanakramguda, Hyderabad, Telangana
14. Uppal in Chengicherla Reserve Forests, Hyderabad, Telangana
15. Nellore, Andhrapradesh
16. Theosophist Society Gardens, Chennai, Tamil Nadu
17. The American College campus, Madurai, Tamil Nadu
18. Chinmaya Vidyalaya's campus at Ilanthope, Rajapalayam, Tamil Nadu
19. Mangaliawas near Ajmer, Rajasthan
20. Vadodara, Gujarat
21. Dayapur, Gujarat
22. Kutch, Gujarat
23. Bhanagar, Gujarat
24. Baroda, Gujarat
25. near Gujarat College / Victoria Garden / Sukharamnagar, Ahmedabad, Gujarat
26. Mulund, Mumbai, Maharashtra
27. Byculla zoo, Mumbai, Maharashtra
28. Outside the Vasai fort, Maharashtra
29. Tilak road and Ghole road, Pune, Maharashtra
30. near Aurangabad, Maharashtra
31. inside Shirala fort, Sangli district, Maharashtra
32. Mandavgad or Mandu, Madhya Pradesh
33. near Sangam, left bank of the Ganga, Prayag, Uttar Pradesh 
34. Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park, Bihar

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