Socotra Island is a treasure of most unusual plants that can be found in the world.
Dracaena cinnabari, known also as
Dragoon's Blood Tree became the symbol of Socotra Island.
Nevertheless, personally I just love the succulent tree, forming the most bizarre shapes, growing on most bizarre places, knows as
Desert Rose, or
Bottle Tree, while it's Latin name is
Adenium Obesum Socotranum and is a part of
Adenium family.
So, it came just naturally, that when we created our company in 2006, which was 2 years after my first visit to Socotra Island, I've choose this beauty as our sign.
For all those that are attracted by this bizarre tree, I'm offering a detailed description, first of the Adenium family and then of the specific Socotrian type:
Adenium Obesum Socotranum.
For all those that would like to come to Socotra Island and experience Adenium Obesum Socotranum in vivo, please, contact us:
Adenium is a genus
of flowering plants, known from dry climates in sub-Saharan Africa and the very southern part of
the Arabian Peninsula. Scientists debate how
many wild species there are of Adenium. The most conservative view is
that there is only one species (Adenium obesum) and a handful of
subspecies or varieties. But wild adeniums vary dramatically from location to
location, from short fat trees that resemble a small baobab to quite small
shrubs arising from huge tuberous roots. One thing that they all have in common
is that they live in relatively dry climates (or at least areas that have
extended annual dry seasons) and therefore they have adopted the succulent way
of life. That is, they store water in their soft, swollen roots and stems to
allow them to survive through periods of drought.
The most spread species is Adenium obesum, also known as Sabi Star, Kudu or Desert rose. It is an evergreen succulent shrub
in tropical climates. In different environments, Adenium
obesum is quite variable but can grow to 1-3 m in height and form a small,
thick-trunked tree or large shrub. The leaves are spirally
arranged, clustered toward the tips of the shoots, simple entire, leathery in
texture, 5-15 cm long and 1-8 cm broad. The flowers are
tubular, 2-5 cm long, with five petals. Flower colors range through various
shades of pink and red, to bicolor flowers with white, and, recently, pure
white forms. Some have yellow throats. True Adenium obesum normally blooms in
spring and summer continuously for many weeks.
There are several
subspecies identified:
Adenium obesum subsp. boehmianum.
Namibia, Angola.
Adenium
obesum subsp. obesum. Arabia.
Adenium
obesum subsp. oleifolium. South Africa, Botswana.
Adenium
obesum subsp. socotranum. Socotra, Yemen.
Adenium
obesum subsp. somalense. Eastern Africa.
Adenium
obesum subsp. swazicum. Eastern South Africa.
Adenium
Arabicum subsp. Arabicum. Thailand.
Adenium
Arabicum subsp. Thai Socotranum Thailand.
The species Adenium obesum subsp. socotranum
is endemic to the island of Socotra,
belonging to Yemen, in the
Indian Ocean south of the Arabian Peninsula. It
is the giant of the genus, forming a swollen, bottle-shaped trunk (caudex) several meters tall and
up to 2.4 m in diameter. It resembles a miniature baobab. Its trunk and well developed roots, keep the tree supplied with water during
the summer droughts. The thick, well developed roots allow growth in crevices
and on loose rocks largely devoid of moisture. The particular plants can be
several hundreds years old.
The stems
are strongly vertical and distinctly striated, a unique character in the genus.
The leaves are about 12 cm long, are widest (4 cm) near the tip, and are dark
green with a white midrib and light major veins. The flowers are bright pink
and twice the size of those from the Yemeni mainland A. multiflorum",
which could reach 10-13 cm in diameter. The
tree produces
a potent poison, making it inedible to livestock or humans. Local fishermen
occasionally use its bark to stun small fish, although Euphorbia latex is
preferred; while herders tie strips of the bark around the necks of young
livestock to keep away wild cats.
The wood of the tree is as soft as a sponge. The tree has two Socotri names: tirymo (in the
eastern areas) and isfid (central and western areas), the latter one meaning
useless or valueless. Locals
traditionally used to treat the wounds with its latex.
During
summer, it drops its leaves before flowering, being one of the few plants that
doesn't require rain to flower.
