Why is the camel thorn tree important?
Rhino, eland, kudu and elephants collect pods of camel thorn from the ground. Pods are also important source of food for the livestock. Giraffes eat fruit and leaves directly from camel thorn tree. Dense crown of camel thorn provides shade and serves as a shelter for birds, spiders, rodents, insects and lizards.
What is camel tree?
Vachellia erioloba (Camel Thorn) is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae. They have a self-supporting growth form. They have compound, broad leaves.
What does camelthorn look like?
The camel thorn ranges from a 2 m spiny shrub to a 16 m robust tree. The stem is shiny reddish brown when young. The bark of a mature tree is grey to blackish brown and is deeply furrowed; bearing pairs of almost straight, whitish or brown spines. Spines often have swollen bases and appear at the bases of the leaves.
What mean camel thorn?
1a : a low spiny shrub (Alhagi camelorum) of the Arabian desert that yields manna. b : a related shrub (A. maurorum) 2 : an East Indian spiny shrub (Zizyphus nummularius) used as fodder for sheep and goats.
What is Kameeldoring tree and its special history in southern Africa region?
It is also native to Angola, south-west Mozambique, Zambia and Swaziland. The tree was first described by Ernst Heinrich Friedrich Meyer and Johann Franz Drège in 1836. The camel thorn is a protected tree in South Africa….
| Vachellia erioloba | |
|---|---|
| Clade: | Mimosoideae |
| Genus: | Vachellia |
| Species: | V. erioloba |
| Binomial name |
How do you plant a camel thorn tree?
It grows easily in sandy, well drained soil to about 6 to 8m tall. This drought hardy tree loves to grow in full sun and is easily propagated by seeds. The seeds have a protective waterproof seed coating and are placed in boiling water to soak for a couple of days, until the seed swells, before sowing.
What eats a camel thorn tree?
The Camelthorn is easily identified by large, grey, kidney-shaped, seed-carrying pods. During the dry season fallen flowers and pods are eaten by livestock and game, especially elephant, giraffe and eland.
What is the genus name of the camel thorn tree?
Thorn trees
Vachellia erioloba/Genus
Is camelthorn a hardwood?
Camel thorn, known locally as kameeldoring, is a dense hardwood with a beautiful reddish to purple colour. The wood is very strong and easy to turn. It is popular with knife makers in South Africa, and has been well accepted by our international distributors for a range of wood turning applications.
What is Kameeldoring wood?
Kameeldoring is often referred to as ‘The Rolls Royce’ of braai wood. It has the lowest moisture levels of any of the hard wood, forms extremely hot coals in approximately 1 hour and can be used inside and outside for cooking and grilling for many hours thereafter.
Where does Kameeldoring grow?
Vachellia erioloba, the camel thorn, giraffe thorn, or Kameeldoring in Afrikaans, still more commonly known as Acacia erioloba, is a tree of southern Africa in the family Fabaceae. Its preferred habitat is the deep dry sandy soils in parts of South Africa, Botswana, the western areas of Zimbabwe and Namibia.
What is the genus name for camelthorn?
Where does the camel thorn tree grow in South Africa?
The Camel thorn tree has a rather large area that it inhabits. It grows from the Northern Cape to the Limpopo province in South Africa. Other countries where the Camel thorn tree grows is Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Northern Mozambique and Swaziland. The only sizable tree grows in the South African deserts.
Is the Namibrand nature reserve a camel thorn forest?
A wide-open plain in the NamibRand Nature Reserve boasts a forest of camel-thorns, but not in the usual sense of a “forest”. There is nothing “dense”, “dark” or “green” about this forest – it is a red and brownish dune-coloured canvas speckled with acacias.
How does a camel thorn tree keep animals away?
As soon as animals start munching on the leaves, the tree goes into self-defence mode by secreting a sharp garlic-like odour that turns animals off. Disclaimer: do not try to secrete any odd smelling substances, but never underestimate intelligence, even if it is simply to know when to hold your tongue or when you need “me-time”.
How did the Camel Thorn get its name?
In Afrikaans language, giraffe is also known as “camel-horse”, hence the name “camel thorn”. Seed of camel thorn is covered with tough, protective membrane. It passes through intestines of herbivores undamaged and often germinates from their dung. Seed retain ability to germinate even after 50 years of dormancy.