Category: F

Flacourtia montana Graham (FLACOURTIACEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Gajale, Hennu sampige, Nayibela.
Tulu: Tabluka.
Malayalam: Chalirin-pazham, Charal-maram.

Description: Towering up to 20 meters, these trees are frequently armed and dioecious. The leaves are broadly elliptic, oblong-elliptic, or ovate-lanceolate, measuring 7-6 x 4-7 cm, typically tapering at the base, and featuring an acute or acuminate apex with crenate margins. Flowers unisexual, in lax racemes or dense paniculate clusters, up to 2 cm long, creamy white. Sepals 4, minute, ovate. Petals 0. Male flowers: Stamens numerous. Female flowers: Ovary urceolate, sometimes surrounded by a few staminodes at base; styles 5(-6), bifid at apex. Berries globose, ca 1.7 cm across, obtusely ribbed, scarlet when ripe, fleshy. Seeds 6, in 2 rows, compressed, hard.

Flowering & Fruiting: November – April.

Distribution: India: In semi-evergreen and moist deciduous forests of Western Ghats, up to 1000 m (1800 m). Maharshtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Endemic.

Uses: Fruits are pleasantly acrid, eaten raw or made into jelly. Wood is heavy and is used for building purposes.

Flacourtia indica (Burm. F.) Merr.  (FLACOURTIACEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Hettari mulli.
Malayalam: Cherru-mullikka-chedi, Kuramullu, Kuramulli.
Tamil: Kattukalai, Kodumundi, Sottukalai.

Description: Shrubs or small trees that shed their leaves; in mature plants, the trunk is frequently equipped with branched thorns, while juvenile shoots and branches feature simple thorns. Leaves usually clusterd towards apices on older branches, variable, obovate, ovate, oblong or suborbicular, 1.5 – 7 x 1-4 cm, usually cuneate at base, acute, obtuse or emerginate at apex, membranous to sub coriaceous; petioles 3-10 mm long; secondary nerves 4-6 pairs. Flowers dioecious, solitary or few in axillary racemose clusters or terminating in short lateral 3-4-leaved thorny twigs or in tomentose panicles up to 3 cm long, bracteate, yellowish green. Sepals 4-5, slightly connate at base, ovate, obtuse, subglabrous outside, hairy inside. Male flowers: Stamens numerous; anthers versatile; disc lobed. Female flowers: Disc entire; ovary globular with 3-6 radiating styles; stigma bilobed, recurved. Fruit a berry, ellipsoid to subglobose, 5-10 mm across, with 6-7 pyrenes, dark purple or red when ripe. Seeds trigonous, pale yellow to brown.

Flowering : December- March.
Fruiting : May– August.

Distribution: India: Throughout in dry thickets, scrub jungles, dry deciduous and mixed forests, up to 1200 m. S.E. Asia and tropical Africa.

Uses: Fruits of some varieties are sweet and eaten raw. Twiggy forms are sometimes grown as impenctrable hedges. Root antidote for snakebite; bark astringent, diuretic, antiperiodic, used in dysentery and eczema, with sesame oil used as liniment in gout and rheumatism; gum anticholerin; fruit appetizer and digestive, used in jaundice and enlargement of spleen.

Ficus racemosa  L.  (MORACEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Athimara.
Tulu: Arthimara.
Malayalam: Atthi, Atthi-al.
Sanskrit: Udumbara.
Tamil: Vellai athi.
Telugu: Atti.
English: Cluster fig.

Description: Evergreen trees, 15-20 m tall without aerial roots; young shoots glabrous; pubescent or scaberulous. Leaves ovate-oblong or elliptic-lanceolate, 7-15 x 3-6.5 cm, acute or rounded at base, acute or shortly acuminate at apex, glabrous on both surfaces when mature; basal nerves 3; lateral nerves 4-6 pairs; petioles 1.5 – 3.0 cm long; stipules ovate-lanceolate, ca 2 cm long, pubescent. Receptacles shortly pedunculate, on short leafless warted branches, obovoid, tomentose when young; basal bracts 3. Perianth lobes 3-4, gamophyllous. Male flowers: sessile, forming a zone near the mouth of receptacle. Stamens 2; filaments connate. Gall flowers: pedicellate, ovary enclosed by the perianth; style laterally elongate; stigma clavate. Fertile flowers: subsessile, ovary 1-locular; style subterminal; stigma clavate. Clusters of figs, varying in shape from subglobose to pyriform or subturbinate, measure 1-3 cm in diameter and turn red when ripe. Numerous small seeds are present.

Flowering & Fruiting : Throughout the year.

Distribution: India: Throughout: Common in deciduous to semi-evergreen forests and along roadsides. Pakistan, Malesia to Australia.

Uses:

• Figs edible. They may be dehydrated, ground into flour and taken with milk and sugar or used for preparing cold jelly. The powder from roasted fig form a valuable breakfast food. The wood grey or greyish white, soft, not durable, used for well-curbs, outhouse doors, cross pieces for carts, rice mortars, planks and shutters and for making toys and effigies, cheap furniture, sides of carts, frames, ploughs, oars, yokes, bellows and fuse box fittings. It may be used also in cheap turnery work, e.g. bed legs, lacquer ware and cotton reels, and as light packing case wood. It is reported to be suitable for match-boxes. Leaves are used as fodder for cattle and elephants. A good shade tree for coffee.
• Often cultivated around village for its edible figs. The coagulum of the latex may be used in the manufacture of ground sheets and water-proof bonded paper. It may be added to the extent of 10% to Hevea rubber or latex as a plasticizer. Bird-lime is prepared from the juice of the stem. It is one of the recorded hosts of the Indian lac insect. Root used in diarrhoea and diabetes; bark tonic; latex used in diarrhoea and piles; leaf used in bilious affections; fig stomachic, carminative, used in haemoptysis; bark and fig astringent and used in menorrhagia. The bark is administered in cases of rinderpest diseases in cattle. Additionally, the bark, fig, and latex are employed for treating conditions such as edema, wounds, diarrhea, dysentery, uterine bleeding, leucorrhoea, and polyuria.

Ficus nervosa Heyne ex Roth (MORACEAE)

Common names
Malayalam: Echamaram.
Tamil: Nir-al.

Description: Towering trees, reaching heights of 20-25 meters, lack aerial roots and contain pearly-white milky sap. The cylindrical trunk has smooth, dark-colored bark, and young parts are finely pubescent. Leaves elliptic, oblong-lanceolate to obovate-lanceolate or oblanceolate, 8-20 x 3-7.5 cm, narrowed or rounded at base, abruptly acuminate at apex, the acumen 1.5 – 2.5 cm long, entire, shining on both surfaces, the lower minutely tuberculate; basal nerves 3-5; lateral nerves 7-10 pairs, prominent beneath; petioles 1.5 – 2.3 cm long; stipules lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, membranous, ca 1.5 cm long. Receptacles pedunculate in pairs, axillary slightly verrucose when young, puberulous; branch at the base of receptacle 0, base of peduncle 3. Perianth lobes 3 each in fertile and gall flowers, 2 in male. Male flowers: few only near the mouth of receptacle. Stamen 1; anther single. Gall flowers: sessile or pedicullate. Ovary ovoid, smooth; style short. Fertile flowers: usually sessile. Ovary 1-locular; style long; stigma clavate. Fig subglobose, ca 1.3 cm across, red when ripe; peduncle ca 1.5 cm long. Seeds numerous, minute.

Flowering & Fruiting: November – March.

Distribution: India: In the hills of most districts except the driest, up to 1500 m. Sikkim, Himalaya, Assam, Rampa Hills, Vizagapatnam. Occasional in deciduous to semi-evergreen forests of Western Ghats. Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Malaya peninsula andArchipelago, China.

Ficus microcarpa L. f. (MORACEAE)

Common name
Kannada: Kirugoli.

Description: Small trees up to 12 m high; latex yellow-white. Leaves alternate, coriaceous, elliptic, oblong or obovate, apex shortly blunt acuminate, base acute; nerves obscure; up to 5.5 – 10.5 x 2-4 cm; petiole 1- 1.5 cm long. The receptacles, measuring 1 cm in diameter, are without stalks and appear in pairs in the axils, turning yellow when ripe.

Flowering & Fruiting : June – October.

Distribution: India: In semi evergreen forests. Sri Lanka, South China.

Uses: Root-bark and leaves boiled in oil and applied to wounds and bruises; bark antibilious; adventitious roots fried and powdered, mixed with salt and applied to decayed or aching tooth; leaf in colic; leaf and bark used in rheumatic headache.

Ficus hispida L. f. (MORACEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Athi mara, Kadu athi.
Tulu: Paajovu.
Malayalam: Erumanakku, Parakan.
Sanskrit: Kaka dumbura.
Tamil: Pei atthi, Chona-atthi.
Telugu: Vetti-athi, Bedamamidi.

Description: Small trees, 8-12 m tall without aerial roots; all parts hispid; internodes hollow. Leaves opposite, ovate, oblong or subobovate, 10-20 x 10-15 cm, truncate-cordate at base, abruptly acuminate at apex, membranous, toothed or entire, upper surface hispid-scabrid, hispid-pubescent beneath; basal nerves 2-4; lateral nerves 4-7 pairs; fine reticulation; petioles 1.5 – 5 cm long, (in young shoots 7.5 – 9 cm long), densely hispid; stipules 2 to each leaf, ca 1.5 cm long, pubescent outside. Receptacles clustered on tubercules of the stem or on separate twigs borne on trunk and branches, globose, sessile or with short peduncles, hispid; basal bracts 3. Perianth lobes 3 in male flowers and 0 in gall and fertile flowers. Male flowers: numerous, near the apex of the receptacles containing galls. Stamen 1; anther broad; filament short. Gall flowers: pedicellate. Ovary smooth, globose; style short; stigma dialated. Fertile flowers: ovary 1-locular, style lateral, stigma cylindric. The figs are either obovoid or subpyriform, with a diameter ranging from 1.5 to 3.0 cm, and they take on a yellowish hue when they reach ripeness. Abundant small seeds are present.

Flowering & Fruiting: Throughout the year.

Distribution: India: Common in evergreen forests and elsewhere in damp localities, up to 1300 m. Sri Lanka, Malesia, Australia.

Uses: Figs edible and made into jams. Leaves and twigs lopped for fodder for cattle and elephants. Bark tonic, antiperiodic; fig tonic, galactogenic; seed and bark purgative, emetic, root, bark, fig and latex used in leprosy, leucoderma, anaemia, jaundice, piles, wounds, burning sensation and haemorrhage.

Ficus callosa Willd. (MORACEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Neeruvate, Thagadu golimara.
Tamil: Koli-al.

Description: Evergreen trees, 15-20 m tall, with pearly-white juice and without aerial root; branchlets hoary, warted. Leaves alternate, elliptic or ovate-lanceolate, 10-22 x 5-14 cm, acute or rounded at base, subacute or acuminate at apex, rigid, hard, coriaceous, smooth and shining above, pale beneath, pubescent when young; basal nerves 3-5, lateral nerves 6-7 pairs, thin, prominent below; distinct reticulations; petioles 3-5 cm long; stipules ca 1.5 cm long, pubescent. Receptacles pedunculate, solitary, axillary, subglobose; bracts 3, ovate, pubescent. Perianth lobes 3 in male flowers and 4 in female fertile and gall flowers, spathulate. Male flowers: numerous, stamens 1 or 2; filaments short; anthers small. Gall flowers: style elongate, stigma 2-fid. Productive flowers feature a single-chambered ovary, an elongated style, and a deeply divided stigma. The figs, subglobose or obovoid, measure 1.5 to 2.5 cm in diameter and turn yellow when ripe. Numerous small seeds are present.

Flowering : April – July.
Fruiting : June – July.

Distribution: India: Frequent in semi-evergreen forests of the Western Ghats, up to 800 m. Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Java.

Ficus benghalensis L. (MORACEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Alada mara.
Tulu: Goli Mara.
Malayalam: Vatam.
Sanskrit: Bahupada, Vata.
Tamil: Aal, Per aal,
Telugu: Pedda marri.
English: Banyan tree.

Description: Towering trees, reaching heights of up to 30 meters, produce abundant aerial roots descending from their branches and contain milky latex in their vegetative parts. Leaves alternate, ovate or elliptic-ovate, 10-20 x 5-13 cm, rounded or subcordate at base, obtuse at apex, entire, glabrescent above, minutely pubescent beneath; basal nerves 3-7, lateral nerves 5-7 pairs; distinct reticulation; petioles 3-5 cm long; stipules 2-2.5 cm long, coriaceous. Receptacle sessile, in pairs, axillary, subglobose; bracts 3. perianth lobes 4, lanceolate. Male flowers: numerous near the mouth of the receptacles. Stamen 1. Gall flowers: style short. Fertile flowers: ovary 1-locular; style elongate. Figs sessile, globular, ca 2 cm across, silky pubescent, red when ripe. Seeds many, minute.

Flowering : December – April.
Fruiting : March – June.

Distribution: India: Common throughout. Sri Lanka, Pakistan.

Uses:

• Wood greyish white, moderately hard, durable under water and used for well-curbs, also for tent poles, cart yokes and carrying shafts. A coarse rope is prepared from the bark and aerial roots of the tree. Trials have shown that the wood is suitable for the production of paper pulp.
• The leaves are regularly trimmed for use as fodder. Widely cultivated as a tree lining avenues and for providing shade. Young tips of hanging roots given for obstinate vomiting; latex externally applied for pains and bruises, used in rheumatism and lumbago and also used as a remedy for toothache; infusion of bark tonic, astringent, used in diarrhea, dysentery and diabetes; leaves tonic and cooling, heated and powdered to poultice to abscesses; infusion of young buds useful in diarrhoea and dysentery; seeds cooling and tonic.

Ficus arnottiana (Miq.) Miq. (MORACEAE)

Common names
Kannada: Bettadarali, Kallu ashwatha.
Malayalam: Ama kanniyan.
Tamil: Kal arasu.
Telugu: Kondaravi.

Description: Small deciduous trees with milky juice and without aerial roots. Leaves alternate, broadly ovate, 7-20 x 5-15 cm, cordate at base, finely caudate at apex, glabrous, chartaceous; margins subundulate; basal nerves 5-7, lateral nerves 8-10 pairs; reticulation fine; petioles 5-15 cm long; stipules ovate-lanceolate, 1.5 – 2.5 cm long, caducous, reddish-brown when dried. Receptacles mostly from the axils of fallen leaves, in pairs or clusters from tubercles, sessile or very shortly pedunculate, depressed globose; bracts 3. Perianth lobes 3, loose, inflated. Male flowers: few, near the mouth of the receptacles, sessile. Stamen 1. Gall and Fertile flowers: undistinguishable except by the contents of the ovary, sessile or pedicellate, the perianth gamophyllous, lax, completely investing the ovary. Ovary 1-locular; style elongate; stigma flat. When mature, the figs are roughly 1.5 cm in diameter, exhibit a depressed shape, and display a purple hue adorned with greenish dots. Numerous tiny seeds are present.

Flowering : December – February.
Fruiting : February – April.

Distribution: India: South India – Common in moist deciduous forests, open grassy slopes and in rock crevices of Western Ghats. Sri Lanka.

Uses: Leaves and twigs are lopped for fodder. Leaves and bark used in cutaneous affections.