FoI
Climbing Fig
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Climbing Fig
ntroduced Photo: Thingnam Sophia
Common name: Climbing Fig, Creeping Fig, Creeping Ficus • Arabic: تين قزمي • Assamese: লতা ডিমৰু lata dimaru • Bengali: লতা বট lata bata • Gujarati: નખીવેલ nakhivel, વડવેલ vadvel • Hindi: छिपकली बेल chipkali bel • Konkani: ओणती कम्बळि onntii kambali • Malayalam: മതിൽപ്പറ്റി mathilppati • Manipuri: ꯐꯛꯂꯥꯡ ꯍꯩꯕꯣꯡ Phaklang heibong • Marathi: वाघनखी vaghnakhi • Tamil: கொடி அத்தி koti atti, ஊர்ந்து செல்லும் அத்தி urntu cellum atti, தவழும் அத்தி tavalum atti • Urdu: چڑی پنجہ Source: Names of Plants in India
Botanical name: Ficus pumila    Family: Moraceae (Mulberry family)

Climbing Fig is an enthusiastic climber able to scramble up vertical surfaces 3-4 stories tall with the aid of a powerful adhesive. This vine coats surfaces with a tracery of fine stems that are densely covered with small heart shaped leaves that are 2.5 cm long by about 2 cm wide, they are held closely to the surface creating a mat of foliage that extends barely 1 in from the surface. These are the juvenile leaves. Once the vine has reach the top of its support if will begin to form horizontal branches on which adult foliage is borne. Adult leaves are held alternately in two rows along these branches. They are more leathery than the juveniles, and are dark green, and about 3 in long by 2 in wide. The fruit is a fig, obovoid top-shaped. These are borne only on the horizontal stems, they are pale green in color and about 3 in long by 2.5 in wide. Climbing Fig is native to China, Japan and Vietnam, cultivated in India.

Identification credit: Amit Kumar Photographed in Manipur, Maharashtra & Dehradun.

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