Statue of Unity – Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat Rain Forest Ektanagar

Ficus microcarpa

Syn. Ficus regnans

IUCN Red List Least Concern (LC)

Local name

  • Laurel Fig (English)
  • Chilkan (Hindi)

Tree type

Evergreen Deciduous
Family: Moraceae
15m

Indicated uses

Medicinal Edible Ornamental Avenue Other

Flowering & fruiting

Flowering Fruiting

Key characters

Ficus microcarpa bark

Bark

Rounded dense crown, smooth gray bark, milky sap, and long, thin, dangling aerial roots.

Ficus microcarpa leaves

Leaves

Leaves alternate, simple, leathery, deep glossy green, oval-elliptic to diamond-shaped, to 5 in long, with short pointed, ridged tips.

Ficus microcarpa flower

Flower

Flowers tiny, unisexual, numerous, hidden within the “fig,” a fleshy, specialized receptacle that develops into a multiple fruit.

Ficus microcarpa fruit / seeds

Fruit / Seeds

Fruit is pale green, turning to yellow or dark red when ripe, stalkless, in pairs at leaf axils, small, to 1 cm in diameter.

Ficus microcarpa

Did you know?

In modern nurseries, this species is commonly sold as “Ficus Ginseng” because its thick, swollen roots resemble ginseng roots. However, it is a true fig and unrelated to ginseng.

Distribution

World map showing distribution

Sri Lanka to India, southern People’s Republic of China, the Malay Archipelago, the Ryukyu Islands, Australia, and New Caledonia.