''Ficus palmata'', the Punjab fig, or "Bedu" is a plant in the family

Moraceae The Moraceae — often called the mulberry family or fig family — are a family of flowering plants comprising about 38 genera and over 1100 species. Most are widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, less so in temperate climates; however ...

Description

''Ficus palmata'' grows as a shrub or tree, measuring up to tall. The fruits, which turn purplish on maturing, measure up to long. The flowers are greenish white.

Subspecies

* ''Ficus palmata'' subsp. ''palmata'' * ''Ficus palmata'' subsp. ''virgata'' (Roxb.) Browicz ** = ''Ficus virgata'' Roxb. ** = ''Ficus caricoides'' Roxb. ** = ''Ficus pseudocarica'' Miq. ** = ''Ficus urticifolia'' Roxb.

Distribution and habitat

''Ficus palmata'' is native to Northeastern Africa: from Egypt south to Somalia, and to the Arabian Peninsula and Syria (the typical subspecies) and to Asia: from the Arabian Peninsula and

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

east to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...

(subspecies ''virgata''). Its habitat, including near villages in the Himalayas, is at altitudes of . In the Himalayan region, its fruit is widely sold and consumed.

References

palmata Flora of Egypt Flora of Northeast Tropical Africa Flora of the Arabian Peninsula Flora of Western Asia Flora of the Indian subcontinent Plants described in 1775 {{Moraceae-stub