Ficus palmata

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Ficus palmata
Ficus palmata 01 by Line1.JPG
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Moraceae
Genus: Ficus
Subgenus: F. subg. Ficus
Species:
F. palmata
Binomial name
Ficus palmata
Synonyms [1]
  • Ficus forskalaei Vahl
  • Ficus malabarica Miq.
  • Ficus morifolia Forssk.
  • Ficus petitiana A.Rich.
  • Ficus pseudosycomorus Decne.

Ficus palmata, the Punjab fig, [2] or "Bedu" is a plant in the family Moraceae. It is native to southern Egypt across to north-eastern tropical Africa and also the Arabian Peninsula. It is a shrub/tree with edible fruit.

Contents

Description

Ficus palmata grows as a shrub, [1] or tree, [3] growing up to 10 metres (30 ft) tall. The fruits, which turn purplish on maturing, measure up to 2 cm (1 in) long. [1] The flowers are greenish white. [3]

Taxonomy

It was first published by Peter Forsskål in Fl. Aegypt.-Arab. on page 179 in 1775. [1]

It is also known as the Wild Himalayan fig. [4]

Subspecies

There are 2 known subspecies;

Which has the synonyms of; Ficus virgataRoxb., Ficus caricoidesRoxb., Ficus pseudocaricaMiq. and Ficus urticifoliaRoxb.

Distribution and habitat

Ficus palmata is native to north-eastern Africa: from Egypt south to Somalia, and to the Arabian Peninsula and Syria (the typical subspecies) [1] and to Asia: from the Arabian Peninsula and Iran east to India and the Himalayas, [4] (subspecies virgata). [6]

Its habitat, desert or dry shrubland including near villages in the Himalayas, [3] is at altitudes of 1,000–1,500 m (3,000–5,000 ft). [1]

Uses

In the Himalayan region, its fruit is widely sold and consumed. [3] The whole fruit, including the seeds are edible. The fruits are used in folk medicine to treat inflammation, pathogenic bacterial ailments and be used as an analgesic (Shi et al. 2014). [7]

Related Research Articles

<i>Ficus</i> Genus of flowering plants in the mulberry family Moraceae

Ficus is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending into the semi-warm temperate zone. The common fig (F. carica) is a temperate species native to southwest Asia and the Mediterranean region, which has been widely cultivated from ancient times for its fruit, also referred to as figs. The fruit of most other species are also edible though they are usually of only local economic importance or eaten as bushfood. However, they are extremely important food resources for wildlife. Figs are also of considerable cultural importance throughout the tropics, both as objects of worship and for their many practical uses.

<i>Ficus benghalensis</i> Species of fig tree

Ficus benghalensis, commonly known as the banyan, banyan fig and Indian banyan, is a tree native to the Indian Subcontinent. Specimens in India are among the largest trees in the world by canopy coverage. It is also known as the "strangler fig" because it starts out as epiphyte, that is, leaning on another tree that it ends up suffocating.

<i>Coriaria</i> Genus of flowering plants

Coriaria is the sole genus in the family Coriariaceae, which was described by Linnaeus in 1753. It includes 14 species of small trees, shrubs and subshrubs, with a widespread but disjunct distribution across warm temperate regions of the world, occurring as far apart as the Mediterranean region, southern and eastern Asia, New Zealand, the Pacific Ocean islands, and Central and South America.

<i>Musa</i> (genus) Genus of flowering plants in the banana and plantain family Musaceae

Musa is one of three genera in the family Musaceae. The genus includes 83 species of flowering plants producing edible bananas and plantains. Though they grow as high as trees, banana and plantain plants are not woody and their apparent "stem" is made up of the bases of the huge leaf stalks. Thus, they are technically gigantic herbaceous plants. Musa species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species, including the giant leopard moth and other Hypercompe species, including H. albescens, H. eridanus, and H. icasia.

<i>Maianthemum racemosum</i> Species of flowering plant

Maianthemum racemosum, the treacleberry, feathery false lily of the valley, false Solomon's seal, Solomon's plume or false spikenard, is a species of flowering plant native to North America. It is a common, widespread plant with numerous common names and synonyms, known from every US state except Hawaii, and from every Canadian province and territory, as well as from Mexico.

<i>Frangula californica</i> Species of tree

Frangula californica is a species of flowering plant in the buckthorn family native to western North America. It produces edible fruits and seeds. It is commonly known as California coffeeberry and California buckthorn.

<i>Heracleum sphondylium</i> Species of flowering plant in the celery family Apiaceae

Heracleum sphondylium, commonly known as hogweed or common hogweed, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the carrot family Apiaceae, which includes fennel, cow parsley, ground elder and giant hogweed. It is native to most of Europe, western Asia and northern Africa, but is introduced in North America and elsewhere. Other common names include cow parsnip or eltrot. The flowers provide a great deal of nectar for pollinators.

<i>Vaccinium uliginosum</i> Berry and plant

Vaccinium uliginosum is a Eurasian and North American flowering plant in the genus Vaccinium within the heath family.

<i>Olea europaea <span style="font-style:normal;">subsp.</span> cuspidata</i> Subspecies of the olive tree

Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata is a subspecies of the well-known olive tree, which until recently was considered a separate species and is still mentioned as such in many sources. Native to northeast of Africa and the drier parts of subtropical Asia, it has various common names, including wild olive, African olive, brown olive and Indian olive.

<i>Uvaria</i> Genus of plants in the Annonaceae family

Uvaria is a genus of flowering plants in the family Annonaceae. The generic name uvaria is derived from the Latin uva meaning grape, likely because the edible fruit of some species in the genus resemble grapes.

<i>Ficus americana</i> Species of fig tree native to the Neotropics

Ficus americana, commonly known as the West Indian laurel fig or Jamaican cherry fig, is a tree in the family Moraceae which is native to the Caribbean, Mexico in the north, through Central and South America south to southern Brazil. It is an introduced species in Florida, USA. The species is variable; the five recognised subspecies were previously placed in a large number of other species.

<i>Barleria prionitis</i> Species of flowering plant

Barleria prionitis is a shrub in the family Acanthaceae, native to Island and Mainland Southeast Asia, China, the Indian Subcontinent, the Arabian Peninsula and northeastern Africa. It is widely spread as an ornamental and weed, occurring in naturalised populations around the world. It used not only as an ornamental but also as a hedge and extensively as a component of folk medicines. As a weed it is regarded as problematic in many areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fig</span> Species of flowering plant known as the common fig

The fig is the edible fruit of Ficus carica, a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae, native to the Mediterranean region, together with western and southern Asia. It has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world. Ficus carica is the type species of the genus Ficus, containing over 800 tropical and subtropical plant species.

<i>Rhamnus lycioides</i> Species of shrub

Rhamnus lycioides, the black hawthorn, European buckthorn, or Mediterranean buckthorn, is a shrub up to about 1 metre tall in the buckthorn family, Rhamnaceae. It is found in the Mediterranean region, in southern Europe and northern Africa. Its scientific name lycioides refers to its resemblance to the botanical genus Lycium.

<i>Elaeocarpus lanceifolius</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Elaeocarpaceae

Elaeocarpus lanceifolius is a tree species in the family Elaeocarpaceae. It is found across tropical Asia from Thailand to Yunnan to Nepal to Karnataka, India. It is used for its wood, fruit, and nuts.

<i>Ficus auriculata</i> Species of fig

Ficus auriculata is a type of fig tree, native to subtropical parts of Asia. It is noted for its big and round leaves and edible fruit.

Daphne mucronata is a shrub, of the family Thymelaeaceae. It is native to western Asia, ranging from eastern Turkey to the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the western Himalayas.

<i>Terminalia hadleyana</i> Species of tree

Terminalia hadleyana is a tree of the family Combretaceae native to northern Australia.

<i>Tilia caroliniana</i> Species of tree

Tilia carolinianaMill. is a species of tree in the family Malvaceae native to the southern and south-eastern states of the U.S., and Mexico.

<i>Grewia tenax</i> Species of plant in the genus Grewia

Grewia tenax, called the phalsa cherry, white crossberry, raisin bush, gangara, gangu, or kanger, is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae. It is native to Africa, from the Sahara to Tanzania and parts of southern Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and on to the Indian Subcontinent. The ripe fruit is edible and is consumed by local peoples either fresh, dried, or powered in drinks.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Ficus palmata". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  2. USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Ficus palmata". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Ficus palmata". Parmar, C. and Kaushal, M. K. 1982. Wild Fruits. Kalyani Publishers, New Delhi, India.
  4. 1 2 Bachheti, Archana; Deepti; Bachheti, Rakesh Kumar; Singh, Anjita; Zebeaman, Meseret; Hunde, Yilma; Husen, Azamal (2023). "Bioactive constituents and health promoting compounds of underutilized fruits of the northern Himalayas of India: a review". Food Production, Processing and Nutrition. 5 (24).
  5. "Ficus palmata subsp. palmata | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  6. 1 2 "Ficus palmata subsp. virgata". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  7. Shi, Y.; Hu, H.; Xu, Y.; Liu, A. (2014). "An ethnobotanical study of the less known wild edible figs (genus Ficus) native to Xishuangbanna, Southwest China". Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 10 (1): 1–11.