Ficus palmata

Ficus palmata
Conservation status
	; Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Moraceae
Genus:	Ficus
Subgenus:	F. subg. Ficus
Species:	F. palmata
Binomial name
	Ficus palmata; Forssk.
Subspecies
	Ficus palmata subsp. palmata; Ficus palmata subsp. virgata Browicz;
Synonyms
	synonyms of subsp. palmata: Ficus forskaolii Vahl, nom. illeg. superfl.; Ficus malabarica Miq.; Ficus morifolia Forssk.; Ficus palmata var. petitiana (A.Rich.) Fiori; Ficus petitiana A.Rich.; Ficus pseudocarica var. tomentosa A.Rich.; synonyms of subsp. virgata: Ficus caricoides Roxb.; Ficus pseudocarica Miq.; Ficus pseudosycomorus Decne.; Ficus urticifolia Roxb.; Ficus virgata Roxb., nom. illeg. homonym. post.;

Ficus palmata, commonly known as Punjab fig^[5] or "Bedu", is a species of flowering plant in the family Moraceae. It is a shrub or tree native to southern Egypt to north-eastern tropical Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, and southeastern Iran to Afghanistan, Pakistan, northern India, and Nepal.^[2] It has edible fruit.

Description

Ficus palmata grows as a shrub^[2] or tree,^[6] growing up to 10 metres (30 ft) tall. The fruits, which turn purplish on maturing, measure up to 2 cm (1 in) long. The flowers are greenish white.^[6]

Taxonomy

It was first published by Peter Forsskål in Fl. Aegypt.-Arab. on page 179 in 1775.^[2]

It is also known as the Wild Himalayan fig.^[7]

Subspecies

There are 2 known subspecies:^[2]

Ficus palmata subsp. palmata – southeastern Egypt to northeastern tropical Africa and the Arabian Peninsula^[3]
Ficus palmata subsp. virgata Browicz – Sinai to northwestern Saudi Arabia, and southeastern Iran to Nepal^[4]

Distribution and habitat

Ficus palmata is native to north-eastern Africa from southeastern Egypt south to Somalia, to the Sinai, southern Levant, and Arabian Peninsula, and from southeastern Iran to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India to Nepal.^[2]

It grows in tropical and subtropical desert and dry shrubland from 1,000–2,400 m (3,000–8,000 ft) elevation,^[1] including near villages in the Himalayas.^[6]

Uses

In the Himalayan region, its fruit is widely sold and consumed.^[6] The whole fruit, including the seeds are edible. The fruits are used in folk medicine to treat inflammation, pathogenic bacterial ailments and be used as an analgesic (Shi et al. 2014).^[8]

References

1 2 Rivers, M.C. (2022). "Ficus palmata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2022 e.T19218688A47600805. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T19218688A47600805.en. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Ficus palmata Forssk". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
1 2 "Ficus palmata subsp. palmata". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
1 2 "Ficus palmata subsp. virgata Browicz". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
↑ NRCS. "Ficus palmata". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 2 April 2021.
1 2 3 4 "Ficus palmata". Parmar, C. and Kaushal, M. K. 1982. Wild Fruits. Kalyani Publishers, New Delhi, India.
↑ Bachheti, Archana; Deepti; Bachheti, Rakesh Kumar; Singh, Anjita; Zebeaman, Meseret; Hunde, Yilma; Husen, Azamal (2023). "Bioactive constituents and health promoting compounds of underutilized fruits of the northern Himalayas of India: a review". Food Production, Processing and Nutrition. 5 (24). doi:10.1186/s43014-023-00140-5.
↑ Shi, Y.; Hu, H.; Xu, Y.; Liu, A. (2014). "An ethnobotanical study of the less known wild edible figs (genus Ficus) native to Xishuangbanna, Southwest China". Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 10 (1): 68. doi:10.1186/1746-4269-10-68. PMC 4246566. PMID 25252723.

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[iucn-1] 1 2 Rivers, M.C. (2022). "Ficus palmata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2022 e.T19218688A47600805. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T19218688A47600805.en. Retrieved 6 September 2026.

[powo-2] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Ficus palmata Forssk". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 6 September 2026.

[palmata-3] 1 2 "Ficus palmata subsp. palmata". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 6 September 2026.

[virgata-4] 1 2 "Ficus palmata subsp. virgata Browicz". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 6 September 2026.

[PLANTS-5] NRCS. "Ficus palmata". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 2 April 2021.

[Parmar-6] 1 2 3 4 "Ficus palmata". Parmar, C. and Kaushal, M. K. 1982. Wild Fruits. Kalyani Publishers, New Delhi, India.

[Bachheti2023-7] Bachheti, Archana; Deepti; Bachheti, Rakesh Kumar; Singh, Anjita; Zebeaman, Meseret; Hunde, Yilma; Husen, Azamal (2023). "Bioactive constituents and health promoting compounds of underutilized fruits of the northern Himalayas of India: a review". Food Production, Processing and Nutrition. 5 (24). doi:10.1186/s43014-023-00140-5.

[Shi2014-8] Shi, Y.; Hu, H.; Xu, Y.; Liu, A. (2014). "An ethnobotanical study of the less known wild edible figs (genus Ficus) native to Xishuangbanna, Southwest China". Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 10 (1): 68. doi:10.1186/1746-4269-10-68. PMC 4246566. PMID 25252723.

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