BAOBAB, Adansonia digitata (family Bombacaceae), a native of tropical Africa, one of the largest trees known, its stem reach ing 3oft. in diameter, though the height is not great. It has a large woody fruit, containing a mucilaginous pulp, with a pleasant cool taste, in which the seeds are buried. The bark yields a strong fibre used for ropes and cloth. The wood is light and soft, and the trunks of living trees are often excavated to form houses.