Scientific Name:
Ficus benghalensis
Pronunciation:
FYE-kus ben-gal-EN-sis
Common Name:
banyan, Audrey fig
Family Name:
Moraceae
Plant Type:
Indoor foliage plant
Key ID Features:
Leaves ovate, veins lighter green and heavily veined undersides, most 16-25cm long x 8-12cm wide when mature.
Habit:
Upright
Form:
Oval - vertical
Texture:
Coarse
Mature Height:
1.3 - 2.0m
Mature Spread:
0.3 - 0.6m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
S.E. Asia / Japan / China, South Asia / India
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 10: (-1 to 4 °C)
Exposure:
Part sun/part shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Humus rich, Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate
Landscape Uses:
Indoor plant
Additional Info:
Google. Can grow over 30m tall x 100m wide in nature. Cultivars shown may include F. 'Audrey'.
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple
Arrangement:
Alternate
Texture/Venation:
Leathery
Surfaces:
Glabrous, Lustrous
Colour in Summer:
Green, Green-yellow
Shapes:
Elliptic, Ovate
Apices:
Cuspidate
Bases:
Obtuse, Rounded
Margins:
Entire
Inflorescence Type:
Flowers clustered
Flower Morphology:
Colour (petals):
No flowers, Green, Red
Flower Time at Peak:
Additional Info:
Florets in a syconium (rarely formed locally)
Fruit Type:
Multiple fruit
Fruit Colour:
Red
Fruiting Time:
Additional Info:
Showy, Accessory tissue, Fruit rarely forms on potted plants. Called a syconium, a fruit type only found in figs - formed by an enlarged, fleshy, hollow receptacle with multiple ovaries on the inside surface.
Bark Morphology:
Lightly fissured
Bark or Stem Colour:
Brown
Organ Modifications:
Aerial or climbing roots
Propagation:
Layering, Stem tip cuttings
Optimal Temp.:
Medium
Light Level:
High
Pest Susceptibility:
Fungal leaf spot, Mealybugs, Mites, Scale insects, Thrips
