FICUS SALICIFOLIA, NATAL FIG TREE, 10 SEED PACK, INDIGENOUS IN SOUTH AFRICA

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 salicifolia commonly known as the Wonderboom Fig, Wonderboom-vy, Narrow Leaf or Willow Leaf Fig has small, narrow leaves that produce excellent branch ramification. It is capable of producing good basal roots and excellent aerial root formation in humid conditions. It is an evergreen tree indigenous to South Africa with a provincial distribution that extends to Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North West. It grows especially on outcrops, rocky hillsides and along cliffs fringing water courses and may rarely grow up to 10 m tall, and acquire a leafy spreading crown. It is named after the Wonderboom grove in Pretoria, that has spread from a central bole that was carbon dated to about a 1,000 years old. The Wonderboom is an extraordinary specimen for its size and structure, and its drooping branches are continuing to root and form new trees. It makes a very attractive bonsai.