African tree names. African plants

Africa is one of the largest continents on the planet, second in size only to Eurasia. It is equally divided by the equator, stretching from the tropics in the north to the tropics in the south. Only on the outskirts of the mainland are the subtropics slightly “clung”.

Africa is probably the last continent on the planet where wild nature remains untouched by man. It's tough here harsh conditions survival, strong, dangerous animals live here. Here a large number of unusual plants that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

Today we will talk to you about plants growing in Africa, interesting African plants and unusual ones. We will learn about plants that benefit humans, as well as those that are no less dangerous than predatory animals:

Plants with unusual properties

Bottle tree:

The name of this tree speaks for itself. It very much resembles a pot-bellied bottle. A large volume of rainwater accumulates between the bark and wood of the lower part of the trunk. middle part plays the role of a reservoir containing healthy, nutritious sweetish juice. It is thick and very jelly-like.

Water bottle tree They are actively used by local residents, and the sweetish juice is one of their favorite delicacies. Well, the leaves of this tree themselves are excellent food for livestock. Residents make fibers from the bark and weave fabrics.

Sinsepalum:

This plant is native to West Africa. Synsepalum berries have an amazing property. Eating them before meals adds flavor sweet food bitter, and makes bitter or sour food sweet. Therefore, before drinking palm wine, which has a sour taste, the natives eat several sinsepalum berries to improve the taste.

Carnivorous plants

Nepenthes:

This unusual liana grows in Madagascar. Its long flexible branches reach a length of 10-15 meters and are covered with leaves. The appearance of these leaves resembles pitchers, which serve as a live trap for small animals. Inside the jugs, a sticky liquid is produced that traps a mouse, lizard or frog that gets inside.

Genlisey:

This is a low, modest-looking grass on which large, unusually shaped, yellow flowers bloom. This spectacle is overshadowed only by the fact that long flowers are nothing more than a trap for insects. In addition, Genlisea has underground leaves, with the help of which the carnivorous plant lures and then digests insects and small animals living in the soil.

Pemphigus:

This plant loves water very much. Therefore, it grows in moist soils or directly in fresh water. This predatory plant is interesting because it has a bubble trap. In most species of this plant, the traps are very small and only catch small, protozoa. However, some species have traps of larger diameter (0.2 to 1.2 cm). They can already catch even water fleas and tadpoles that get there along with the water.

“Peaceful” plants that are useful to people

Dish pumpkin:

When talking about interesting and unusual plants growing in Africa, one cannot fail to mention the gourd or gourd. When it ripens, the flesh of the vegetable dries out greatly, and the dense peel becomes hard as a stone. Local residents use these ripened pumpkins as hollow vessels for water or bulk products. At the same time, people have learned to change their shape using special clamps where the developing ovary is placed.

As a result, you can get deep dishes, jugs, as well as flat plates and trays. Spoons, toys, smoking pipes, snuff boxes and various souvenirs are carved from the hard shell of the dish gourd.

Pumpkin - luffa:

Wonderful washcloths are made from the fruits of another type of pumpkin - luffa. Fiber is woven from fruit fibers, and then hats, swimming shoes, and other products needed by people are made.

Madagascar liana:

The vines of this plant play a large role in the economy of some tribes that use them in their farming. The branches of the plant are very flexible, elastic and durable. Therefore, they are used as ropes, weaving baskets and mats.

The Madagascar vine secretes a substance that repels ants and insects, which damage everything made of wood. Therefore, the branches of this plant are used in the construction of houses. Well, and the large vine pods, if their halves are opened, better than any tiles will protect the building from rain.

Africa is an amazing continent where you can find many interesting and unusual plants. All of them, useful and not so useful, play an important role in the lives of people and nature. It is impossible to talk about everyone at once, and we will definitely return to our conversation next time.

African fruits offer an inexhaustible palette of flavors and shapes. Tourists visiting this continent are delighted with their diversity and quantity. After all, sometimes it happens that already ripe fruits do not find a market and rot, never reaching the inhabitants of the northern continent.

So what are they, the fruits of Africa? You will find photos and descriptions of overseas delicacies in this article.

What grows in Africa?

What fruits can a tourist who chooses this exotic continent for his vacation try? Their list is very extensive. So what fruits grow in Africa?

There are extensive fruit orchards in specially designated irrigated areas. Apricots and peaches hang in clusters on their trees. But these African fruits are different from those that we are used to seeing on the shelves of our stores. Thus, there are several types of peaches on this continent. The first of them is selection. Its fruits are different large size, but do not have enough sweetness. The second type of peaches is a local variety. Its fruits are small in size, unprepossessing in shape, but very sweet. The third one is one of the last to catch up. Its fruits have almost White color, which slightly gives off raspberry shades. This type of peaches is also very sweet.

We are all well aware of fruits from Africa such as tangerines, pomegranates and oranges. Trees hung with these fruits are also very common on this continent.

The most famous African fruit for Europeans is bananas. Here they ripen all year round, bearing sweet and aromatic fruits.

What other fruits in Africa will not surprise our tourists? These are pears. Although, unlike those that grow in our country, they are tough. But local apples, which can only be tasted in summer, have a pleasant sour taste. As a rule, they are small in size and elongated in shape.

What other African fruits do we know? This is a pineapple. Although its historical homeland is considered South America, it is also native to Africa.

We are all familiar with South African fruits such as watermelons. Here you can still find this herbaceous plant in wildlife. Watermelons were known back in Ancient Egypt. These fruits were even placed in the tomb of the pharaoh so that they would serve as food for him in afterlife. Today, watermelons are grown on five continents. Extensive plantations of this plant can be found in China and Turkey. They are found in the Russian Volga region, as well as in the southern regions of our country.

Indian fig

Of course, we can find fruits from Africa on the shelves of our stores. But still, we will never see many of them in their homeland. And although it is not easy to list all the exotic fruits, photos and names, we will still introduce you to most of them.

Thus, Indian figs are found everywhere on the African continent. But the traveler should not pay attention to its name. After all, these exotic fruits of Africa (and their photos prove this) have nothing in common with the figs we are used to. wild cacti called prickly pear.

Indian figs are pear-shaped. Its fruits are red, green or yellow, reaching a length of 5 to 7.5 cm, covered with small sharp spines. Under the skin there is translucent pulp with large seeds, very sweet in taste.

Mango

It is believed that this is Africa. His homeland is western territories continent. These exotic fruits of Africa, photos and descriptions of which are given below, grow on tropical tree Irvingia.

Mango fruits are ovoid in shape. Moreover, their sizes range from the size of a pear to a coconut. Mangoes have tough green or yellow skin. There is a large seed inside the fruit.

Mangoes are characterized by yellow-orange flesh. Its piquant sweetish taste, somewhat reminiscent of our raspberries, turns this fruit into one of the most wonderful fruits in the world.

Since ancient times, the local population has used mangoes as remedy. And its seeds, called Dikka nuts, are used in modern cosmetology and pharmaceuticals. Mango is especially famous among those who decide to lose overweight. After all, the plant substance that is found in Dikka nuts is an excellent means for losing weight.

Eshta

What other exotic fruits of Africa exist whose photos with names are interesting to look at? One of the subspecies of the annon tree grows in Egypt. It is called cream, or Another name for this exotic plant is eshta.

In October-November, the fruits of the scaly annona trees ripen. They look like a massive, prickly apple and resemble a green cone. The eshta fruit is quite large. Sometimes its weight can approach 2.5 kg.

The white pulp of the fruit is eaten. In this case, it is recommended to throw away the black seeds contained in it. You only need to eat those fruits that have a dark shade. It is also desirable that the fruit be soft and slightly pressed with slight pressure on the peel. It’s not worth buying a completely black ashta. This color indicates that the fruit is overripe and has an unpleasant taste. The green color of the peel is evidence of the unripeness of the “sugar apple”.

The exotic ashta fruit, which you can try while traveling around the African continent, has a very interesting taste. It is similar to a mixture of ingredients such as melon and apple, yogurt and strawberries. No wonder with Arabic The name of this fruit is translated as “cream”.

The white pulp is not only tasty, but also healthy. It contains a lot of fructose and vitamins B1, 2 and C. Eshta also contains easily digestible carbohydrates.

Kiwano

Many exotic fruits of Africa arouse the delight and curiosity of tourists who see them for the first time. Kiwano is no exception. This fruit is called horned melon or African cucumber.

Kiwano fruits are unusual. They look like orange hedgehogs the size of an orange. At the same time, the skin of the fruit with soft thick cones has amazing marble stains. Cutting the kiwano, you can see the pulp, which contains snow-white seeds, “packed” in ampoules of dark emerald jelly.

The taste of the exotic African fruit is as unusual as its appearance. It simultaneously resembles melon and cucumber, banana and lime. Some even detect notes of avocado in it. Due to such a wide palette of flavors, kiwano is used in the preparation of not only sweet, but also spicy dishes. It is also consumed fresh, salted and pickled. From assorted kiwano with various fruits and berries it turns out delicious jam and compote.

The exotic African fruit is rich in alkaline mineral salts, vitamin C and P-active substances. In this regard, it is recommended for the prevention of gastrointestinal diseases, as well as vascular and heart pathologies. In its homeland, kiwano is used by local residents to heal burns and wounds. This fruit is especially attractive for those who are on a diet. After all, African horned melon has virtually no calories.

Magic fruit

What else can surprise a traveler on the sunny continent? All exotic fruits, photos and names of which are posted in this article, are unusual in appearance and taste qualities. But in Africa there grows a small tree belonging to the Sapotaceae family. Its fruits are miracle fruits. These are bright red small berries, the length of which is only 2-3 cm. In appearance, they resemble barberry.

The magic fruit is sweet and very pleasant to the taste. But you need to eat it almost immediately after harvesting. After all, during storage, the fruits lose all their qualities.

It was named so for a reason. It has truly magical properties. It contains the protein miraculin (glycoprotein), which affects the body. After eating the magic fruit, the sour taste in the mouth is replaced with a sweet one. It is noteworthy that at the same time they remain unchanged aromatic properties products. For example, after eating a miracle fruit, lemon will seem sweet. At the same time, the citrus fruit will completely retain its taste and aroma. This effect lasts for two hours.

The magic fruit is used as a natural sweetener. It is recommended for those who wish to adhere to dietary nutrition, but at the same time experiences an irresistible craving for everything sweet. It is also recommended for patients with diabetes.

The beneficial properties of this amazing African fruit do not end there. After all, it contains many microelements that support the normal functioning of the human body. The miracle fruit also contains a lot of fiber and plant acids that improve the health of the digestive system.

Aki

It is unlikely that a European in his homeland was able to taste the rarest exotic fruits of Africa. These include aki. This plant is from the Sapindaceae family, native to West Africa. Its immature for humans. This is why ackee is a banned fruit in some countries. However, only those fruits that have been subjected to improper heat treatment or did not open on their own.

The ackee fruit is pear-shaped. Its peel is bright orange-red. These exotic fruits grow up to 9 cm in length. After ripening, the fruits open on their own. At the same time, they expose the white juicy pulp under the skin, containing large black seeds. Tastes like ackee Walnut. It is worth remembering that you should only eat the pulp of this exotic fruit. To avoid poisoning, you just need to cook it by immersing it in boiling water for at least 10 minutes.

The ackee fruit is popular in Jamaican cuisine. Here they make it into a side dish. To do this, the pulp is first boiled and then fried in oil. The resulting dish is reminiscent of the familiar omelette in its taste.

This fruit is widely used in its homeland. The peoples of West Africa make drugs from it that can relieve people from many diseases.

Marula

This exotic fruit also native to Africa. It grows on trees of the same name, found in many tropical countries. The marula plant belongs to the pistachio family. In March, small fruits appear on its branches, similar in appearance to plums. They have thick skin and very sweet flesh. Inside the fruit there is a hard, large seed.

Marula is rich in vitamin C. This makes it very beneficial for the human body. Moreover, the valuable vitamin is found not only in the pulp of the fruit. There is a lot of it in the pit. In addition to vitamin C, marula contains all the minerals and nutrients involved in the processes of development and construction of the cellular structure of the body.

The peoples of Africa use the fruit for culinary purposes. Moreover, not only the fruits, but also the leaves of the plant are eaten. This tree is a wonderful source of food for people and animals. Thus, the local population extracts oil from the core of the seeds, which contains many proteins. And in the peel and pulp there are natural antioxidants and oleic acid in large quantities. That is why marula is one of the essential ingredients in many African dishes. Thus, from the peel of an exotic fruit, drinks are obtained that resemble coffee and tea in their taste.

Marula fruits contain a lot of sugar. Having fallen to the ground, they begin to wander. The result is a real natural bar that animals love to visit.

African pear

This plant, also called Dacryodes edibles, belongs to the Burzer family. Its homeland is the equatorial territories of Africa. Here, evergreen African pear trees can be found in forest areas with wet soils. The height of this tree sometimes reaches 40 m.

The fruits of the edible dacryodes have an elongated elliptical shape. They grow up to 12 cm in length. The peel of this exotic fruit has a purple or blue tint. This is why the African pear looks like an eggplant.

The pulp of the fruit is soft and oily. It has a dark green color. Local residents consume African pear fruits raw, boiled, fried and stewed.

This amazing fruit contains many trace elements, amino acids, vitamins, fats and triglycerides. African pear is very nutritious and high in calories. After all, even when boiled, its pulp contains up to forty-eight percent fat.

Kigelia

In the forests you can find a beautiful tree with a wide, dense crown and fancy fruits. This is Kigelia pinnata, belonging to the Bignoniaceae family. Another name for the plant is sausage tree. Of course, it seems a little strange. But the fact is that the fruits of this tree have an amazing shape, reminiscent of loaves due to their brownish-gray color. Moreover, they hang on long stalks like on ropes. This whole picture resembles sausages hung immediately after production. The pedicels are so strong that a person can swing on them if desired.

Kigelia fruits hang on their strings for several months, gradually increasing in size. Once ripe, their skins burst.

It is worth keeping in mind that, despite the appetizing name, sausages African tree inedible. The local population eats only the seeds of these fruits, and even then only after preliminary roasting. Raw seeds are poisonous. The fruits of the sausage tree are eaten only by giraffes, monkeys and hippos. Kigelia seeds are an excellent treat for parrots. These amazing fruits are used by people as fuel, and also for making red dye.

There are a huge number of all kinds of plants on our planet, and when you see them, you can only wonder how nature could come up with something like that. An incredible number of species and subspecies of plants, many of which are striking in their qualities - from survival and adaptability, to color and size. In this rating of the most unusual plants, we will show the full scope of natural creativity.

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Romanesco is one of the cultivated varieties of cabbage, belonging to the same varietal group as cauliflower. According to some reports, it is a hybrid of cauliflower and broccoli. This type of cabbage has long been grown in the vicinity of Rome. According to some sources, it was first mentioned in historical documents in Italy in the sixteenth century. The vegetable appeared on international markets in the 90s of the 20th century. Compared to cauliflower and broccoli, Romanesco is more delicate in texture and has a milder, creamier, nuttier flavor without a bitter note.

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Euphorbia obese is a perennial succulent plant in the family Euphorbiaceae that resembles a rock or green-brown football in appearance, without spines or leaves, but sometimes forms “branches” or suckers in the form of strange-looking sets of spheres. It can grow up to 20-30 cm in height and up to 9-10 cm in diameter. Milkweed is a bisexual plant, with male flowers on one plant and female flowers on the other. For fruit set, cross-pollination is necessary, which is usually done.

The fruit looks like a slightly triangular three-nut, up to 7 mm in diameter, containing one seed in each nest. When ripe, it explodes and scatters small, round, speckled-gray seeds 2 millimeters in diameter, the pedicels fall off after scattering the seeds. They grow at an altitude of 300-900 meters above sea level in the small region of Kendreu, in the Great Karoo, in rocky and hilly terrain , in bright sun or partial shade. The plants are very well hidden among the stones, their colors blend with environment so good that sometimes they are hard to notice.

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Takka is a plant of the Takkov family, growing in a wide variety of environmental conditions and numbering 10 species. They live in open and heavily shaded areas, in savannas, bush thickets and rain forests. Young parts of plants, as a rule, are covered with tiny hairs, which disappear as they grow older. The size of the plants is usually small, from 40 to 100 centimeters, but some species sometimes reach a height of 3 meters. Although takka is becoming increasingly widespread as a houseplant, it should be borne in mind that it is not easy to successfully maintain takka in rooms due to the plant’s special demands on the conditions of its maintenance. The Tacaceae family is represented by one genus, Takka, which has about 10 plant species.

— Takka pinnately grows in tropical Asia, Australia, and the tropics of Africa. Leaves are up to 40-60 cm wide, from 70 cm to 3 meters long. A flower with two spathes, large, reaching 20 cm in width; the color of the spathe is light green.

— Takka Chantrier grows in the tropical forests of southeast Asia. An evergreen tropical herbaceous plant reaching 90-120 cm in height. The flowers are framed by dark burgundy, almost black, bracts similar to the wingspan of a bat or butterfly with long, thread-like antennae.

— Takka allifolia grows in India. The leaves are wide, glossy, up to 35 cm wide, up to 70 cm long. A flower with two spathes, large, reaching 20 cm in width, the color of the spathe is white, purple strokes are scattered across the white tone. The flowers are black, purple or dark purple, located under the covers.

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The Venus flytrap is a species of carnivorous plants from the monotypic genus Dionaea of ​​the Sundew family. It is a small herbaceous plant with a rosette of 4-7 leaves that grow from a short underground stem. Leaves range in size from three to seven centimeters, depending on the time of year, long trap leaves usually form after flowering. It feeds on insects and spiders. Grows in humid temperate climates Atlantic coast USA. It is a species cultivated in ornamental gardening. Can be grown as a houseplant. Grows in soils lacking nitrogen, such as swamps. Lack of nitrogen causes traps to appear: insects serve as a source of nitrogen necessary for protein synthesis. The Venus flytrap belongs to a small group of plants capable of rapid movements.

Once the prey is trapped, the edges of the sheets close together, forming a “stomach” in which the digestion process takes place. Digestion is catalyzed by enzymes secreted by glands in the lobes. Digestion takes approximately 10 days, after which all that remains of the prey is an empty chitinous shell. After this, the trap opens and is ready to catch new prey. During the life of the trap, an average of three insects fall into it.

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Dragon tree is a plant of the genus Dracaena, native to the tropics and subtropics of Africa and the islands of Southeast Asia. Grown as an ornamental plant. Old Indian legend says that a long time ago in the Arabian Sea on the island of Socotra, there lived a bloodthirsty dragon who attacked elephants and drank their blood. But one day an old and strong elephant fell on the dragon and crushed it. Their blood mixed and wet the ground around them. In this place, trees grew called dracaenas, which means “female dragon.” Indigenous people The Canary Islands considered the tree sacred, and its resin was used for medicinal purposes. The resin was discovered in prehistoric burial caves and was used for embalming at the time.

Bunches of very sharp leaves grow on its thick branches. A thick branched trunk up to 20 meters high, a diameter at the base up to 4 m, and has secondary growth in thickness. Each branching branch ends in a dense bunch of densely arranged grayish-green, leathery, linear-xiphoid leaves 45-60 centimeters long and 2-4 centimeters wide in the middle of the plate, somewhat tapering towards the base and pointed towards the apex, with prominent veins. The flowers are large, bisexual, with a corolla-shaped, separate-leaved perianth, in bunches of 4-8 pieces. Some trees live up to 7-9 thousand years.

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The Gidnor genus includes 5 species growing in the tropical regions of Africa, Arabia and Madagascar, it is not very common, so you won’t find it just walking through the desert. This plant looks more like a mushroom until its unusual flower opens. In fact, the flower is named after the mushroom hydnor, which means mushroom in Greek. Hydnoraceae flowers are quite large, solitary, almost sessile, bisexual, petalless. And what we usually see on the surface of the soil is what we call a flower.

These features of color and structure, as well as the putrid smell of flowers, serve to attract beetles that feed on carrion. Beetles, climbing into flowers, crawl into them, especially in their lower part, where the reproductive organs are located, contributing to their pollination. Often, female beetles not only find food in flowers, but also lay eggs there.

Residents of Africa willingly use the fruits of Hydnora for food, as do some animals. In Madagascar, Hydnora fruits are considered one of the best local fruits. Thus, humans are the carriers of Hydnora seeds. In Madagascar, locals use Hydnora flowers and roots to treat heart disease.

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Baobab is a species of tree from the genus Adansonia of the Malvaceae family, characteristic of the dry savannas of tropical Africa. The lifespan of baobabs is controversial - they do not have growth rings from which age can be reliably calculated. Calculations carried out using radiocarbon dating showed more than 5,500 years for a tree with a diameter of 4.5 meters, although according to more conservative estimates, baobabs live about 1,000 years.

In winter and during dry periods, the tree begins to use up its moisture reserves, decreasing in volume, and shedding its leaves. From October to December the baobab tree blooms. The baobab flowers are large - up to 20 cm in diameter, white with five petals and purple stamens, on hanging pedicels. They open in the late afternoon and live only one night, attracting the scent of those who pollinate them. bats. In the morning, the flowers wither, acquiring an unpleasant putrid odor, and fall off.

Next, oblong edible fruits develop, which resemble cucumbers or melons, covered with a thick, hairy peel. Inside the fruits are filled with sourish mealy pulp with black seeds. The baobab dies in a peculiar way: it seems to crumble and gradually settles, leaving behind only a pile of fiber. However, baobabs are extremely tenacious. They quickly restore stripped bark; continue to bloom and bear fruit. A cut down or felled tree is capable of putting out new roots.

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Victoria Amazonica is a large herbaceous tropical plant of the water lily family, the largest water lily in the world and one of the world's most popular greenhouse plants. Victoria amazonica was named after Queen Victoria of England. Victoria Amazonis is common in the Amazon River basin in Brazil and Bolivia, and is also found in the rivers of Guyana that flow into the Caribbean Sea.

The huge leaves of the water lily reach 2.5 meters and, with an evenly distributed load, can support a weight of up to 50 kilograms. The tuberous rhizome is usually deeply recessed into the muddy bottom. The top surface is green with a waxy layer that repels excess water, and also has small holes for removing water. The lower part is purple-red in color with a network of ribs studded with spines for protection from herbivorous fish; air bubbles accumulate between the ribs, helping the leaf to float. In one season, each tuber can produce up to 50 leaves, which, growing, cover a large surface of the reservoir, blocking sunlight and thereby limiting the growth of other plants.

Victoria Amazonian flowers are underwater and bloom only once a year for 2-3 days. Flowers bloom only at night, and with the onset of dawn they sink under water. During flowering, the flowers placed above the water have a diameter of 20-30 centimeters when opened. On the first day the petals are white, on the second they turn pinkish, and on the third they become purple or dark crimson. In the wild, the plant can live up to 5 years.

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Sequoia is a monotypic genus of woody plants in the Cypress family. Grows on the Pacific Coast North America. Individual specimens of sequoia reach a height of more than 110 meters - these are the tallest trees on Earth. The maximum age is more than three and a half thousand years. This tree is better known as the “mahogany tree,” while the related species Sequoiadendron is known as the “giant sequoia.”

Their diameter at the level of the human chest is about 10 meters. The most a big tree in the world of “General Sherman”. Its height is 83.8 meters. In 2002, the volume of wood was 1487 m³. It is believed to be 2300-2700 years old. The most tall tree in the world - “Hyperion”, its height is 115 meters.

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Nepenthes - singular gender plants of the monotypic family Nepentaceae, which includes about 120 species. Most species are native to tropical Asia, especially on the island of Kalimantan. Named after the herb of oblivion from ancient Greek mythology - nepenthes. Species of the genus are mostly shrubby or subshrub vines growing in humid habitats. Their long thin herbaceous or slightly woody stems climb the trunks and large branches of neighboring trees tens of meters in height, bringing their narrow terminal racemes or paniculate inflorescences to the sunlight.

U different types Nepenthes pitchers vary in size, shape and color. Their length varies from 2.5 to 30 centimeters, and in some species it can reach up to 50 cm. More often, the pitchers are painted in bright colors: red, matte white with a spotted pattern, or light green with spots. The flowers are small and inconspicuous, actinomorphic and petalless, with four imbricated sepals. The fruit is in the form of a leathery capsule, divided by internal partitions into separate chambers, in each of which seeds with a fleshy endosperm and a straight cylindrical small embryo are attached to a column.

It is curious that large nepenthes, in addition to eating insects, also use the droppings of tupaya animals, which climb onto the plant like a toilet to feast on sweet nectar. In this way, the plant forms a symbiotic relationship with the animal, using its droppings as fertilizer.

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This mushroom, a member of the Agaricus mushrooms, looks like chewed gum, oozing blood and smelling like strawberries. However, you should not eat it, because it is one of the most poisonous mushrooms on the ground, and even just licking it can guarantee serious poisoning. The mushroom became famous in 1812, and it was then that it was considered inedible. The surface of the fruiting bodies is white, velvety, with small depressions, becoming beige or brown with age. On the surface of young specimens, drops of poisonous blood-red liquid protrude through the pores. The word “tooth” in the name is for a reason. The fungus has sharp formations along the edges that appear with age.

Except their own external qualities, this mushroom has good antibacterial properties and contains chemical substances which thin the blood. It is quite possible that this mushroom will soon become a replacement for penicillin. The main feature of this mushroom is that it can feed on both soil sap and insects, which are attracted by the red liquid of the fungus. The diameter of the cap of the bloody tooth is 5-10 centimeters, the length of the stem is 2-3 centimeters. Bloody tooth growing in coniferous forests Australia, Europe and North America.

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The top three among the most unusual plants in the world is closed by a large tropical plant of the genus Amorphophallus of the Araceae family, discovered in 1878 in Sumatra. One of the most known species genus, has one of the largest inflorescences in the world. The aerial part of this plant is a short and thick stem; at the base there is a single large leaf, with smaller ones higher up. The leaf is up to 3 meters long and up to 1 meter in diameter. Petiole length 2-5 meters, thickness 10 cm. Matte green, with white transverse stripes. The underground part of the plant is a giant tuber weighing up to 50 kilograms.

The aroma of the flower resembles a mixture of the smells of rotten eggs and rotten fish, and in appearance the flower resembles a decaying piece of meat. It is this smell that attracts pollinating insects to the plant in the wild. Flowering continues for two weeks. Interestingly, the cob heats up to 40°C. During this time, the tuber is severely depleted due to excessive consumption of nutrients. Therefore, it needs another rest period of up to 4 weeks to accumulate strength for leaf development. If there are few nutrients, then the tuber “sleeps” after flowering until next spring. The lifespan of this plant is 40 years, but it blooms only three or four times during this time.

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Velvichia amazing - a relict tree - is one species, one genus, one family, one order of Velvichiev. Velvichia grows in the south of Angola and Namibia. The plant is rarely found further than a hundred kilometers from the coast; this approximately corresponds to the limit reached by fogs, which are the main source of moisture for Velvichia. Its appearance cannot be called grass, bush, or tree. The scientific world learned about Velvichia in the 19th century.

From a distance it seems that Velvichia has a lot of long leaves, but in fact there are only two of them, and they grow throughout its plant life, adding 8-15 centimeters per year. IN scientific works a giant was described with leaves more than 6 meters long and about 2 meters wide. And its life expectancy is so long that it’s hard to believe. Although Velvichia is considered a tree, it does not have annual rings, like those on tree trunks. Scientists determined the age of the largest Velvichia using radiocarbon dating - it turned out that some specimens are about 2000 years old!

Instead of social plant life, Velvichia prefers a solitary existence, that is, it does not grow in a group. Velvichia's flowers look like small cones, and each female cone contains only one seed, and each seed is equipped with wide wings. As for pollination, botanists have differing opinions. Some believe that pollination is carried out by insects, while others are more inclined to the action of the wind. Welwitschia is protected by the Namibian Nature Conservation Act. Collecting its seeds is prohibited without special permission. The entire territory where Velvichia grows was turned into a National Park.

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The flora of Africa amazes with its diversity and unusual appearance. Due to the different climatic zones in which the continent is located, certain regions grow plants that are not found anywhere else in the world. Most of them have a bizarre shape, this is due to the hot climate and constant lack of water. All African plants can be divided into two large groups: those growing near water and those surviving in the hellish conditions of deserts.

Breadfruit

Many flowers and trees on the hottest continent have very unusual and even edible names at first glance. This includes breadfruit, which is so named not because bread is made from it, but because its fruits taste like baked goods. People do not use them for food, but monkeys feast on them with great pleasure.

mango tree

Some African plants are familiar to us, such as mango, the fruits of which are imported to our country. It is worth noting that African fruits differ very much in taste. Local residents keep their secrets for preparing this product. They fry mangoes along with potatoes, resulting in a very tasty and original dish.

Baobab

Plants and animals of Africa are accustomed to surviving in the harshest conditions; due to the constant lack of water and hot sun, many trees take on bizarre shapes. So the baobab is compared either to an upside-down carrot, or to a large nest, or even to a crab. This tree cannot be called beautiful, since its height, reaching 20 m, is absolutely disproportionate to the thickness of the trunk, reaching 10 m in diameter. The crown is small, gnarled, branches with openwork leaves are scattered in different sides. The largest and oldest baobab grows in the area of ​​Lake Tanganyika, its approximate age is about 5000 years, height - 22 m, crown circumference - 145 m, trunk circumference - 47 m.

Kalanchoe Degremona

Plants in Africa try to adapt to the most severe survival conditions. So, for example, Kalanchoe on each leaf has a huge number of embryos with a ready-made root system; when they fall off, they immediately fall to the ground, where they take root. This plant is not only beautiful, but also useful; its juice is used to treat many diseases.

Palm trees

The most common plants in Africa are palm trees; they grow in almost every country on this continent. They are quite flexible thanks to the balsa wood; even in the most terrible storms, when the wind bends them to the ground, the palm trees do not break. Their fruits - coconuts - are very difficult for an inexperienced tourist to get and clean. If you knock it off a tree with a stick, the coconut will simply fall and break, and the milk will spill out, so you have to climb the tree. Visitors are also not very good at peeling the fruit with a machete, but locals remove the hard fibrous layer with their teeth.

African exotica

African plants, despite their bizarre shapes, are very beautiful. The local exoticism attracts many tourists, because some types of trees and flowers can no longer be found on any continent. Thanks to the different climatic zones, you can see lush greenery here tropical forests, and inconspicuous, gnarled trees with minimum quantity leaves. It is this contrast that arouses great interest in local nature.

The second largest continent on planet Earth is the continent of Africa. The first in size is the continent of Eurasia. There is another part of the world that is also called Africa. This article will look at Africa as the continent of the planet.

In terms of area, Africa is 29.2 million km2 (with islands - 30.3 million km2), which is about 20% of the planet's total land surface. The continent of Africa is washed Mediterranean Sea on the northern coast, the western coast is washed by the Atlantic Ocean, in the south and east the continent is washed by the Indian Ocean, and the north-eastern coast is washed by the Red Sea. There are 62 states in Africa, of which 54 independent states, and the population of the entire continent is about 1 billion people. By following the link you can see full list African countries in the table.

The size of Africa from north to south is 8,000 kilometers, and when viewed from east to west, it is approximately 7,500 kilometers.

Extreme points on mainland Africa:

1) The most eastern point The mainland is Cape Ras Hafun, which is located on the territory of the state of Somalia.

2) The northernmost point of this continent is Cape Blanco, which is located in the Tunisian Republic.

3) The westernmost point of the continent is Cape Almadi, which is located on the territory of the Republic of Senegal.

4) And finally, the most southern point mainland Africa is Cape Agulhas, which is located in the territory Republic of South Africa(SOUTH AFRICA).

Relief of Africa

Most of the continent is made up of plains. The following landforms predominate: highlands, plateaus, stepped plains and plateaus. The continent is conventionally divided into High Africa (where the heights of the continent reach a size of over 1000 meters - the southeast of the continent) and Low Africa (where the heights reach a size mainly less than 1000 meters - the northwestern part).

The highest point of the mainland is Mount Kilimanjaro, which reaches a height of 5895 meters above sea level. Also in the south of the continent there are the Drakensberg and Cape Mountains, in the east of Africa there is the Ethiopian Highlands, and to the south of it there is the East African Plateau, in the northwest of the continent there are the Atlas Mountains.

In the north of the continent there is the largest desert on the planet - the Sahara, in the south there is the Kalahari Desert, and in the southwest of the continent there is the Namib Desert.

At the same time, the lowest point of the mainland is the bottom of the salt lake Assal, the depth of which reaches 157 meters below sea level.

African climate

The climate of Africa can be ranked first among all continents in terms of warmth. This is the hottest continent, as it is completely in the hottest climatic zones planet Earth and is intersected by the equator line.

Central Africa is located in the equatorial belt. This belt is characterized by high precipitation and a complete absence of seasons. South and north of equatorial belt There are subequatorial belts, which are characterized by a rainy season in summer and a dry season in winter. high temperatures air. If you follow further south and north after subequatorial belts, then the northern and southern ones follow respectively tropical zones. Such belts are characterized by low precipitation at fairly high air temperatures, which leads to the formation of deserts.

African inland waters

The inland waters of Africa are uneven in structure, but at the same time vast and extended. On the mainland the most long river is the Nile River (the length of its system reaches 6852 km), and the full-flowing river The Congo River is considered (the length of its system reaches 4374 km), which is famous for being the only river that crosses the equator twice.

There are also lakes on the mainland. The largest lake is Lake Victoria. The area of ​​this lake is 68 thousand km2. Greatest depth reaches 80 m in this lake. The lake itself is the second largest freshwater lake on planet Earth in terms of area.

30% of the landmass of continent Africa is deserts, in which bodies of water can be temporary, that is, at times they dry up completely. But at the same time, usually in such desert regions groundwater can be observed, which is located in artesian basins.

Flora and fauna of Africa

The continent of Africa is famous for its diversity as flora, and the animal. Wet ones grow on the continent rainforests, which give way to open forests and savannas. IN subtropical zone Mixed forests can also be found.

The most common plants in the forests of Africa are palms, ceiba, sundew and many others. But in savannas you can most often find thorny bushes and small trees. The desert is characterized by a small variety of plants growing in it. Most often these are herbs, shrubs or trees in oases. Many desert areas have no vegetation at all. A special plant in the desert is considered to be the Velvichia amazing plant, which can live for more than 1000 years, it produces 2 leaves that grow throughout the life of the plant and can reach a length of 3 meters.

The fauna in Africa is also diverse. In areas of the savannah, grass grows very quickly and well, which attracts many herbivorous animals (rodents, hares, gazelles, zebras, etc.), and, accordingly, predators that feed on herbivorous animals (leopards, lions, etc.).

The desert may seem uninhabited at first glance, but in fact there live many reptiles, insects, and birds that hunt mainly at night.

Africa is famous for such animals as the elephant, giraffe, hippopotamus, a wide variety of monkeys, zebras, leopards, sand cats, gazelles, crocodiles, parrots, antelopes, rhinoceroses and much more. This continent is amazing and unique in its own way.

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