Ficus trichopoda (100 seeds)

Ficus trichopoda (100 seeds)

Family: Moraceae

Common names: swamp fig, hippo fig, moerasvy

It may grow as either a medium-sized tree or a shrub. The height is recorded as being between 12 and 25 m. It has a rounded, spreading crown and may spread further sideways (creating a grove) by sending down aerial roots which become new stems. The bark is mostly pale and smooth with some mottling. It becomes darker in older trees. A characteristic of all figs (and the family) is their milky sap. The leaves are dark green, oval in shape and leathery in texture. The veins are conspicuous, yellowish white above and red below. The sheaths enfolding the apical buds and the leaf stalks are also red. As with all figs, the inflorescence is a syconium. The syconium is a unique feature of the fig: essentially it is a flowerhead that has closed in on itself to make a hollow sphere, lined by tiny flowers. The figs appear predominantly in spring, although they may be found all year round, and ripen to a brilliant red (first turning orange) in summer, a most attractive feature. The figs are slightly more flattened top and bottom than the common domestic fig, Ficus carica. The seeds are contained within the fig. It is quite similar in appearance to the giant-leaved fig, F. lutea, but the latter has yellow figs, the veins and leaf stalks are yellow, and the apical bud has a silvery-coloured sheath.

Sowing instructions: Sow seeds in summer in a well drained medium.

Locality: Kosi Bay. Harvest: January 2024