Common Name: Strangler Fig

General Information

Strangler fig is an evergreen tree with a rounded to spreading, dense crown; it can grow 6 - 21 metres tall[]. The plant often 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. It eventually becomes a stilt-rooted, banyan-like tree with multiple ascending trunks and massive wide-spreading branches[].
The tree is harvested from the wild for its fruit, medicinal virtues and the various commodities it can supply. It is often planted to offer cover from the scorching sun in recreational areas, market centres and schoolyards. It can also be planted to provide shelter during the cold winter months[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Tropical Africa - Senegal to Ethiopia, south to S. Africa.

Habitat

The species is widely distributed in upland forest, open grassland, riverine and rocky areas and sometimes in savannah[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	15.00 m
Pollinators	Wasps
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the drier to moist tropics, where it is found at elevations from 1,000 - 2,500 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 22 - 28°c, but can tolerate 16 - 36°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 750 - 2,000mm, but tolerates 600 - 2,500mm[].
Prefers a position in full sun, tolerating some shade[]. Occurs on a wide variety of soils but favours light, deep and well-drained soils with neutral to acidic reaction and humus-rich or deep loamy soils[]. Prefers a pH in the range 5 - 7, tolerating 4.5 - 7.5[]. Trees are relatively drought resistant[].
Plants can flower and fruit nearly all year round in at least some parts of its range[].
This tree has an aggressive root system and should not be planted in a small garden or near buildings, swimming pools or paths[].
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[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - cooked[]. A good jam can be made from the ripe fruits[]. The fruits are 7 - 14mm in diameter[].

Leaves - cooked. They are occasionally eaten as a vegetable[].

Medicinal

The bark is important in local medicine, and it is used in treating colds, sore throat, dysentery, wounds, constipation, nosebleed and to stimulate lactation[, ].
Extracts of the bark are used in baths as a treatment of nervous illnesses, tuberculosis, paralysis and leprosy[].

The latex is used for wound fever[].
The milky latex is dropped into the eye to treat cataracts[].

An infusion of the root and fibre is taken orally to help prevent abortion[].
The powdered root is taken in porridge to stop nosebleed[].

Agroforestry Uses:

Large cuttings can be planted close to each other to form living fences and to help control erosion[, ]. The leaf litter helps in the improvement of the nutrient status and water-holding capacity of the soil[].
The tree has an aggressive root system and should not be planted in a small garden or near buildings, swimming pools or paths[].

Other Uses

Bark cloth is obtained by cutting out a strip or cylinder of bark, which causes the tree to produce a fine, matted covering of red, slender roots over the wound[]. An excellent cloth[].
Bark fibre is used for making mats[]. The twined bark produces a strong rope, which is mostly used for fastening bundles of firewood before they are carried to the homestead for fastening slates onto a roof[].

A considerable amount of useful latex is produced by the tree[].

The wood is creamy brown, has a fairly uniform structure, is light (510 kg/cubic m), soft to moderately hard, with a rough texture, tough, strong, easy to work; it finishes smoothly and holds nails firmly. Its durability is low, and it is easily attacked by termites[].
Branches are used for firewood[, ].

Propagation

Seed - germinates best at a temperature around 20°c[].
Air layering[].
Trees are commonly planted using 20 - 50 cm long cuttings from which most of the leaves have been removed. Rooted cuttings are planted in the nursery and kept moist; but inserting cuttings directly in the field is also feasible[].
Grows easily from large cuttings that are left in the shade for a few days to dry before planting[]. River sand should be placed at the bottom of the planting hole, to prevent the bottom of the truncheon from rotting[]. It grows quickly into a fair-sized tree but is sensitive to cold winds. In the colder regions, young plants must be protected for the first 2-3 years[].

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