74
Ficus
fergusonii (King) Worthington
Synonym : Ficus altissima Blume var.
fergusoni King
Family
: Moraceae
Flowering
and fruiting period:
July – December
Distribution: Native of Sri Lanka
Habitat: Introduced and getting naturalised
IUCN
status:
Data Deficient
Endemic: No
Uses: 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. The
fibrous bark is used for cordage.
Key
Characters:
Small trees with aerial roots on or
near the trunk. Young parts whitish puberulous, soon glabrous. Leaves spirally
arranged, elliptic or ovate-elliptic. Figs sessile, axillary, paired, ripening
orange-red; basal bracts 3, ovate, obtuse, broader than long, free; body
subglobose or obovoid, with 3 flat apical bracts in a small disc. Tepals 3.
