Ficus carica L.

Spice Leaves In the field

Family: MORACEAE

Genus: Ficus

Catalan common name: Figuera.

Spanish common name: Higuera.

Province distribution: Alacant. Balearic Islands. Barcelona. Castelló. Girona. Lleida. Tarragona. València.

Distribution in the islands: Mallorca. Menorca. Ibiza. Formentera.

General distribution (Phytogeography): Mediterranean

Uses and properties: Edible or foodstuffs. Furniture, construction and tools. Medicinal.

Flowering time: JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Life-forms: Macrophanerophyte.

Habitats: Cultivated fields, path and road sides, disturbed zones. Rocky coastlines. Cultivated species. Rock crevices and cliff faces. Cultivated specie and naturalizated.

Characteristics: The fig tree is a tree which lives naturalised in the cracks in cliff faces and at the feet of rocky crags, but is more commonly known as an agricultural plant from which the fruits, figs, are used. It is a tree which loses its leaves in winter and when it has lost them it shows its gnarled branches. The whole plant gives off white latex if cut, which is an irritant. The leaves are lobulate and palmate.