Ficus watkinsiana
Plant Number: 42
Common Name: Strangler Fig
Scientific Name: Ficus watkinsiana
Derivation of name
Ficus- is derived from the Latin name 'Ficus' for the common edible fig
watkinsiana – is named after the plant collector George Watkins
Description
- There are approximately 40 Australian species of Ficus in Australia with most found in tropical areas of Queensland and New South Wales
Flowers develop inside a hollow in the fruit (syconium), and are pollinated by a particular species of 'fig wasp' (Family Agaonidae)
The seeds of these plants germinate high on the branches of other rainforest trees, starting life as an epiphyte, sending down cable like aerial roots to the forest floor. When these roots reach the ground, they thicken and gradually enclose the original tree which dies and rots away, eventually a fig tree with a hollow trunk is formed which is 30-45 metres high with buttressed roots.
The leaves are large, oval-shaped about 200mm long and has a milky sap with purple, rounded fruits with small off-white dots which are 40mm long and are edible
The tree can be propagated from seed and cuttings but is not suitable for suburban gardens
Human uses
The leaves of this species contain a secondary compound called aesculin, which was exploited as an ingredient in sunscreens in the 1940s and is used in medical research today.
Aboriginal people traditionally would eat the fruit either ripe or raw from September to April.
Fauna usage
The ripe fruit are eaten by a number of bird species, possums, and rodents. The animals that feed on the fruit pass the indigestible seeds in their scats, to germinate in new locations in the forest.
Acknowledgment: Australian Native Plants Society (Australia)
ANPSA, Bush Heritage
Photo Credit: Tatiana Gerus, Natasha de Vere and Col Ford