Ficus craterostoma - Blunt-leaved Forest Strangler Fig Bonsai Tree Seeds - Indigenous

Ficus craterostoma Bonsai Seeds

Blunt-leaved Forest Strangler Fig

Ficus is a pan-tropical genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family Moraceae. Ficus occupies a wide variety of ecological niches; most are evergreen, but some deciduous species are endemic to areas outside of the tropics and to higher elevations. Fig species are characterized by their unique inflorescence and distinctive pollination syndrome, which utilizes wasp species belonging to the Agaonidae family for pollination. The fruit of most species are 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. Ficus craterostoma commonly known as Bastard Natal Fig, Blunt-leaved Forest Fig, Forest Fig and Strangler Fig in English and Baster Natal-vy, Bos-touboom, Bosvy, Rankvy, Stompblaar-bosvy and Wurgvy in Afrikaans is a South African indigenous species with a provincial distribution which extends to Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Mpumalanga. There are probably two populations: one at low altitude in the Congo basin extending to Sierra Leone; the other at higher altitude extending from South Africa to Uganda and Kenya. The latter population may also occur at higher altitudes in the Congo basin, resulting in a sympatric Distribution separated by altitude and pollination biology. It is a favourite species among bonsai growers.