FICUS CARICA

FIG TREE
 

Family: Moraceae
Common name: Common fig, Fig, Ficus, Ficus carica
Origin: Mediterranean area and Asia Minor
Etymology: Ficus, acient name.. 
Minimum Temperature:  -2º C

The ficus carica has not just an only type of tree, but we can find more than 800 different types of ficus around the world. For this reason this tree is becoming each time more exclusive and different compared with others.

The common fig is usually a perennial tree. However, we can find some exceptions depending on the time of the year and the area of cultivation. In non-tropical latitude areas and places with a long season with dry weather, we can also find ficus carica “bald” or leafless. This is very common in Spain due to the climate variety in both the peninsula and the islands. One of the biggest advantages of the fig tree is that it is a tree specimen that doesn’t require a lot of care and has a fast growth. This means that you can purchase a young ficus carica tree in a plant nursery and get quickly fig fruits from its branches.

Moreover, it can stand different pruning ways, getting fanciful shapes. This is one of the attractive features when purchasing fig trees for garden decoration. The ficus carica is ideal as shadowing tree for walkways and avenues, but it has the disadvantage of pulling up the pavement. For this reason, it is usually bought to be planted in areas with adapted soils.