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Useful Tropical Plants

Ficus altissima

Blume

Moraceae

+ Synonyms

Ficus laccifera Roxb.

Ficus latifolia Oken

Common Name:

Ficus altissima
Tree growing in Lisbon, Portugal
Photograph by: jakub303
Creative Commons License
Ficus altissima Ficus altissima Ficus altissima Ficus altissima

General Information

Ficus altissima is a massive, evergreen tree with a large, spreading crown; it can grow 30 metres or more tall. The bole can be 40 - 90cm in diameter, with low buttresses[
266
Title
Flora of China
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/
Publisher
Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis.
Year
1994
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
,
443
Title
Biotik, Laos
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://biotik.org/species_list_laos.html
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Information on more than 100 species of Laotian trees.
]. The plant usually begins life as an epiphyte, growing in the branch of another tree; as it grows older it sends down aerial roots which, when they reach the ground quickly form roots and become much thicker and more vigorous. They supply nutrients to the fig, allowing it to grow faster than the host tree. The aerial roots gradually encircle the host tree, preventing its main trunk from expanding, whilst at the same time the foliage smothers the foliage of the host. Eventually the host dies, leaving the fig to carry on growing without competition.
The tree is harvested from the wild for local use as a source of fibre and latex. It is planted as a pioneer species in reforestation projects in Thailand[
998
Title
Forest Restoration Planting in Northern Thailand
Publication
Proceedings of the Southeast Asian Moving Workshop on Conservation, Management and Utilization of Forest Genetic Resources No. 31/2002
Author
Pakkad G.; Elliott S.; Anusarnsunthorn V. Et al
Website
http://www.fao.org/
Publisher
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; Bangkok
Year
2002
ISBN
 
Description
A report on reforestation in northern Thailand by using specific pioneer species. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

266
Title
Flora of China
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/
Publisher
Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis.
Year
1994
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.

Range

E. Asia - southern China, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar, Andaman Islands, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines.

Habitat

Lowland and mountain forests at elevations from 100 - 2,000 metres[
266
Title
Flora of China
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/
Publisher
Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis.
Year
1994
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
,
451
Title
Flora Malesiana Series 1
Publication
 
Author
Various
Website
http://www.archive.org
Publisher
Nationaal Herbarium Nederiand, Universiteit Leiden branch
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A massive treatment of the plants of the Malaysian Archipelago. Much of it has been made available to download from the Internet
]. Often starting off life as an epiphyte in the branch of a tree, it can also establish itself on walls, buildings, bridges, etc[
305
Title
Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.hear.org/pier/scientificnames/index.html
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A very good website detailing weed species that have been introduced into the Pacific Islands.
].

Properties

Other Uses Rating *  *  *
HabitEvergreen Tree
Height25.00 m
Growth RateFast
PollinatorsWasps
Cultivation StatusOrnamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

This species seems to be confined mainly to the higher elevations in the cooler, northerly part of its range, yet it is found in both lowland and mountainous areas in the more tropical southern part of its range, such as in Java, where it is not uncommon[
451
Title
Flora Malesiana Series 1
Publication
 
Author
Various
Website
http://www.archive.org
Publisher
Nationaal Herbarium Nederiand, Universiteit Leiden branch
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A massive treatment of the plants of the Malaysian Archipelago. Much of it has been made available to download from the Internet
].

A fast-growing tree[
998
Title
Forest Restoration Planting in Northern Thailand
Publication
Proceedings of the Southeast Asian Moving Workshop on Conservation, Management and Utilization of Forest Genetic Resources No. 31/2002
Author
Pakkad G.; Elliott S.; Anusarnsunthorn V. Et al
Website
http://www.fao.org/
Publisher
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; Bangkok
Year
2002
ISBN
 
Description
A report on reforestation in northern Thailand by using specific pioneer species. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].
Fig trees have a unique form of fertilization, each species relying on a single, highly specialized species of wasp that is itself totaly dependant upon that fig species in order to breed. The trees produce three types of flower; male, a long-styled female and a short-styled female flower, often called the gall flower. All three types of flower are contained within the structure we usually think of as the fruit.
The female fig wasp enters a fig and lays its eggs on the short styled female flowers while pollinating the long styled female flowers. Wingless male fig wasps emerge first, inseminate the emerging females and then bore exit tunnels out of the fig for the winged females. Females emerge, collect pollen from the male flowers and fly off in search of figs whose female flowers are receptive. In order to support a population of its pollinator, individuals of a Ficus spp. Must flower asynchronously. A population must exceed a critical minimum size to ensure that at any time of the year at least some plants have overlap of emmission and reception of fig wasps. Without this temporal overlap the short-lived pollinator wasps will go locally extinct[
413
Title
Global Invasive Species Database
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.issg.org/database/welcome/
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
Very detailed information on almost 400 species (with more being added) of plants that have become weeds in areas outside their native range.
].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

None known

Agroforestry Uses:

The tree is planted as a pioneer species in northern Thailand in reforestation projects to restore native woodland - it is planted in degraded woodland and open areas in a mix with various other species that all have the ability to grow fast; produce dense, weed-suppressing crowns; and attract seed-dispersing wildlife, particularly birds and bats[
998
Title
Forest Restoration Planting in Northern Thailand
Publication
Proceedings of the Southeast Asian Moving Workshop on Conservation, Management and Utilization of Forest Genetic Resources No. 31/2002
Author
Pakkad G.; Elliott S.; Anusarnsunthorn V. Et al
Website
http://www.fao.org/
Publisher
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; Bangkok
Year
2002
ISBN
 
Description
A report on reforestation in northern Thailand by using specific pioneer species. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].

Other Uses

A latex is obtained from the trunk and stems. It can be used to make a rubber, but this is of lower quality than the rubber obtained from Ficus elastica[
146
Title
A Manual of Indian Timbers.
Publication
 
Author
Gamble. J. S.
Publisher
Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh
Year
1972
ISBN
-
Description
First written in the 19th century, but still a classic, giving a lot of information on the uses and habitats of Indian trees. Not for the casual reader.
].

The fibrous bark is used for cordage[
451
Title
Flora Malesiana Series 1
Publication
 
Author
Various
Website
http://www.archive.org
Publisher
Nationaal Herbarium Nederiand, Universiteit Leiden branch
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
A massive treatment of the plants of the Malaysian Archipelago. Much of it has been made available to download from the Internet
].

Propagation

Seed -
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-10-14. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Ficus+altissima>

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