By Sarah Venter

Weaver nests in baobabs

Every year I do an annual fruit count on 70 trees across the communal lands in north Limpopo province close the Pafrui area.  I always enjoy doing our annual fruit count as it gets me out to the trees and I often find interesting new things.  The usual weavers that use baobabs as nesting trees are Red-billed Buffalo Weavers which [...] Continue Reading
By Sarah Venter

Next batch of baobabs growing well for rewilding

This year our April 2026 baobab growth measurements of trees in Mabvete village showed promising results.  Many trees have passed the 2.5 meter mark and may be ready for rewilding in November 2026. Many of the number tags on the trees had faded or broken off, so we replaced all of them. Rainfall since October 2025 has been exceptionally high [...] Continue Reading
By Sarah Venter

Rewilding baobabs and learning as we go…

In 2024 we planted 50 baobab trees into the wild at Nthakeni Camp.  We chose this place as it has very few antelope and no domestic animals, such as goats and donkeys, that like to eat baobab seedlings. The trees were planted in a variety of habitats such as closed forests, open woodlands and grasslands.  We do not interfere with [...] Continue Reading
By Sarah Venter

Planning to plant baobabs in Giyani

Mr Ramaano lives in Giyani and is passionate about baobab trees. He has established a Foundation that aims to plant baobab trees around South Africa.  In 2024 his Foundation donated 10 trees to the University of Venda and in 2025 he donated 14 trees to Mopani District and 10 trees to the University of Limpopo. Mr Ramaano’s Foundation is planning [...] Continue Reading
By Sarah Venter

Baobabs in Oman and the Mango-stem borer (Batocera rufomaculata)

In 2021, an adult tree in Wadi Hinna, a semi-arid valley in the country’s Dhofar Mountains, collapsed and died.  In May 2024 Mr Ali Akaak in Oman sent an urgent message to Dr Venter asking her to visit and see the destruction.  One year later, in May 2025, she flew to Oman to see what it was all about.   [...] Continue Reading
By Dr Sarah Venter

Baobab Wilding at Mabvete Village

After 2 years of growing baobabs for transplanting into the wild we planted out 30 young trees.  In January 2023 baobab growers in Mabvete village received baobab seedlings to grow. They were to plant the trees in the ground in their homesteads, water them, look after them and protect them from goats until they reached a hight of at least [...] Continue Reading
By Dr Sarah Venter

After good rain wild Planted baobabs need to survive overgrowth

Wild planted baobab trees at Nthakeni were assessed with the help of Nathan Clemes and Amber Numamoto from Unrooted in the UK.  We found that the high rainfall had caused a lot of vegetation growth around the seedlings which were suffocating the plants.  The plants were left as they were so that we can learn how young seedlings grow and [...] Continue Reading
By Dr Sarah Venter

Working with the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT)

Sarah Venter spent a few days in the field with John Davies from the Endangered Wildlife Trust working together on a vulture conservation and tree meshing project along the Western Limpopo River.  The collaborative project will help protect vulnerable bird species such as Pels Fishing Owls and White Backed Vultures and protect the integrity of the riverine forest along the [...] Continue Reading
By Dr Sarah Venter

Why is meshing baobabs so important?

In this video Dr Sarah Venter explains how important baobabs are in our landscapes. Baobabs are hotspots of biodiversity hosting dozens of bird, animal and reptile species. She explains how to mesh baobabs to protect them from elephant damage. Tswehe Wildlife Reserve offers an opportunity for visitors to mesh their own baobab. Dr Sarah Venter explains how important it is [...] Continue Reading
By Dr Sarah Venter

Baobab Guardian program comes to a successful end

Ten years ago (2014) the Baobab Foundation established the Baobab Guardians program.  Women from different villages in Niyani volunteered to be Guardians of young baobab trees to protect them from browsing goats.  The program planted 101 baobab trees and successfully brought them up the height that they would flourish for the next few centuries. This week the last nine Guardians [...] Continue Reading