fig-tree

Dictionary of Australasian Words Phrases and Usages by Edward E. Morris

n.


The name is applied inAustralia to the following species: – – Blue Fig – – Elaeocarpus grandis, F. v. M., N.O. Tiliaceae.

Clustered F. – – Ficus glomerata, Willd., N.O. Urticaceae.

Moreton Bay F. – – P. macrophylla, Desf., N.O. Urticaciae //sic. check//.

Prickly F. – – Elaeocarpus holopetalus, F. v. M., N.O. Tiliaceae.

Purple F., or White F., or Rough-leaved F., or Flooded F. [Clarence River] – – Ficus scabra, G. Forst., N.O. Urticaciae.

Ribbed F. – – F. pleurocarpa, F. v. M., N.O. Urticaciae.

Rusty F., or Narrow-leaved F. [or Port Jackson] – – F. rubiginosa, Desf., N.O. Urticaciae;called also Native Banyan.

1862. H. C. Kendall, `Poems,' p.119:

«And I forget how lone we sit beneath this old fig-tree.»

1870. F. S. Wilson, `Australian Songs,' p. 115:

«The fig-tree casts a pleasant shade

On the straggling ferns below.»

1882. J. H. Maiden, `Useful Native Plants,' p. 537:

«Moreton Bay fig. This noble-looking tree has a wood whichis sometimes used, though it is very difficult to season.»

[It is a handsome evergreen with dark leaves, larger thanthose of a horse-chestnut, much used as an ornament in streetand gardens, especially in Sydney and Adelaide. The fig isnot edible.]

1890. Rolf Boldrewood, `Miner's Right, c. 44, p. 380:

«The . . . venerable church with its alleys of araucariaand Moreton Bay fig-trees.»

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