''Ficus exasperata'', also called the sandpaper tree, forest sandpaper fig, white fig, or sandpaper leaf tree, is a deciduous, and dioecious species of plant in the

mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of 19 species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 subordinat ...

family

Moraceae Moraceae is a family of flowering plants comprising about 48 genera and over 1100 species, and is commonly known as the mulberry or fig family. Most are widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, less so in temperate climates; however, their ...

, native to tropical Africa (an area from Senegal east to Ethiopia and south to Angola and Mozambique) and southern Asia (India, Sri Lanka, Yemen).

Description

Sandpaper tree is a small to medium-sized tree in the

banyan A banyan, also spelled banian ( ), is a fig that develops accessory trunks from adjacent prop roots, allowing the tree to spread outwards indefinitely. This distinguishes banyans from other trees with a strangler habit that begin life as ...

group of figs, growing to . The trunk develops aerial and buttressing roots to anchor it in the soil and help support heavy branches. It has almost distichous and alternate which are almost opposite, simple; blade ovate to elliptical or obovate; base acute to obtuse; apex shortly acuminate, acute or obtuse; and margin toothed to entire. Flowers are unisexual and are pink, purplish, or yellow, becomes orange or red at maturity.

Growth and Development

Fruit is a

syconium Syconium (: syconia) is the type of fruit borne by figs (genus ''Ficus''), formed by an enlarged, fleshy, hollow receptacle with multiple ovaries on the inside surface. In essence, it is really a fleshy stem with a number of flowers, so it is co ...

and trees may be either female or hermaphrodite. Hermaphrodite trees are functionally male. The tree is known to pollinated by the wasp '' Kradibia gestroi'', where the female lays eggs in female trees with only short-styles. Besides sexual reproduction, the tree may grow with vegetative means propagated by seed and cuttings.

References

External links

Antiarthritic and antioxidant effects of the leaf extract of ''Ficus exasperata'' P. Beauv. (Moraceae)
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15473516 exasperata Ornamental trees Trees of Africa Flora of India (region) Flora of Sri Lanka Flora of Yemen Dioecious plants