Ficus calopilina (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Ficus calopilina Diels

Protologue: Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 67: 212 (1935).

Synonyms

• Ficus setistyla Warb. (1905).

Distribution

New Guinea.

Uses

In Papua New Guinea, the fruit latex is used to cover sores; the sores are subsequently covered by a leaf of the same plant. The figs are edible but tasteless. The bark is used for twine.

Observations

• A small tree up to 15 m tall.
• Leaves spirally arranged or decussate, elliptical to slightly obovate, 10-36 cm × 5.5-21 cm, base subcordate to subcuneate, apex acuminate, margin entire, with 6-9 pairs of lateral veins, hispid, stipules up to 30 mm long.
• Figs axillary and cauliflorous, subglobose to pyriform, 30-60 mm in diameter, densely hairy but glabrescent, ripening yellow to brown; male flowers in 2-3 rings, with 1(-2) stamens, female flowers sessile or stipitate.

F. calopilina is locally common in primary or secondary montane forest, at 1000-2400 m altitude, often along streams.

Selected sources

• [281] Corner, E.J.H., 1965. Check-list of Ficus in Asia and Australia. Gardens' Bulletin, Singapore 21: 1-186.
• [610] Holdsworth, D.K. & Rali, T., 1989. A survey of medicinal plants of the Southern Highlands, Papua New Guinea. International Journal of Crude Drug Research 27: 1-8.

Main genus page

• Ficus (Medicinal plants)

Authors

• J.P. Rojo, F.C. Pitargue & M.S.M. Sosef