72-486: The fig is the edible fruit of Ficus carica , a species of small shrub in the flowering plant family Moraceae , native to the Mediterranean region, together with western and southern Asia. It has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world. Ficus carica is the type species of the genus Ficus , containing over 800 tropical and subtropical plant species. A fig plant
144-1836: A molecular phylogeny of plants placed the flowering plants in their evolutionary context: Bryophytes [REDACTED] Lycophytes [REDACTED] Ferns [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] The main groups of living angiosperms are: Amborellales [REDACTED] 1 sp. New Caledonia shrub Nymphaeales [REDACTED] c. 80 spp. water lilies & allies Austrobaileyales [REDACTED] c. 100 spp. woody plants Magnoliids [REDACTED] c. 10,000 spp. 3-part flowers, 1-pore pollen, usu. branch-veined leaves Chloranthales [REDACTED] 77 spp. Woody, apetalous Monocots [REDACTED] c. 70,000 spp. 3-part flowers, 1 cotyledon , 1-pore pollen, usu. parallel-veined leaves Ceratophyllales [REDACTED] c. 6 spp. aquatic plants Eudicots [REDACTED] c. 175,000 spp. 4- or 5-part flowers, 3-pore pollen, usu. branch-veined leaves Amborellales Melikyan, Bobrov & Zaytzeva 1999 Nymphaeales Salisbury ex von Berchtold & Presl 1820 Austrobaileyales Takhtajan ex Reveal 1992 Chloranthales Mart. 1835 Canellales Cronquist 1957 Piperales von Berchtold & Presl 1820 Magnoliales de Jussieu ex von Berchtold & Presl 1820 Laurales de Jussieu ex von Berchtold & Presl 1820 Acorales Link 1835 Alismatales Brown ex von Berchtold & Presl 1820 Petrosaviales Takhtajan 1997 Dioscoreales Brown 1835 Pandanales Brown ex von Berchtold & Presl 1820 Liliales Perleb 1826 Asparagales Link 1829 Arecales Bromhead 1840 Poales Small 1903 Zingiberales Grisebach 1854 Commelinales de Mirbel ex von Berchtold & Presl 1820 Fig wasp Fig wasps are wasps of
216-461: A polyphyletic group, including several unrelated lineages whose similarities are based upon their shared association with figs; efforts are underway to resolve the matter, and remove a number of constituent groups to other families, particularly the Pteromalidae and Torymidae . Thus, the number of genera in the family is in flux. The family Agaonidae has been recently updated to include all
288-442: A woody stem ), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of broad-leaved trees , shrubs and vines , and most aquatic plants . Angiosperms are distinguished from the other major seed plant clade, the gymnosperms , by having flowers , xylem consisting of vessel elements instead of tracheids , endosperm within their seeds, and fruits that completely envelop the seeds. The ancestors of flowering plants diverged from
360-742: A branch can be scratched to expose the bast (inner bark) and pinned to the ground to allow roots to develop. Two crops of figs can be produced each year. The first or breba crop develops in the spring on last year's shoot growth. The main fig crop develops on the current year's shoot growth and ripens in the late summer or fall. The main crop is generally superior in quantity and quality, but some cultivars such as 'Black Mission', 'Croisic', and 'Ventura' produce good breba crops. There are three types of edible figs: There are dozens of fig cultivars, including main and breba cropping varieties, and an edible caprifig (the Croisic). Varieties are often local, found in
432-710: A common food source for the Romans . Cato the Elder , in his c. 160 BC De Agri Cultura , lists several strains of figs grown at the time he wrote his handbook: the Mariscan, African, Herculanean, Saguntine, and the black Tellanian. The fruits were used, among other things, to fatten geese for the production of a precursor of foie gras . Rome's first emperor , Augustus , was reputed to have been poisoned with figs from his garden smeared with poison by his wife Livia . For this reason, or perhaps because of her horticultural expertise,
504-684: A commonwealth. In form it is new, but in purpose very ancient. Our aim is mentioned in the First Book of Kings: 'Judah and Israel shall dwell securely, each man under his own vine and fig tree, from Dan to Beersheba". United States President George Washington , writing in 1790 to the Touro Synagogue of Newport, Rhode Island , extended the metaphor to denote the equality of all Americans regardless of faith. Flowering plant Basal angiosperms Core angiosperms Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits , and form
576-657: A favorable habitat, mature specimens can grow to considerable size as large, dense, shade trees. Its aggressive root system precludes its cultivation in many urban locations, yet in nature this characteristic helps the plant to root in the most inhospitable locations. Having a great need of water, it is mostly a phreatophyte that extracts the needed water from sources in or on the ground. Consequently, it frequently grows in locations with standing or running water, e. g. in valleys of rivers and in ravines that collect water. The deeply rooted plant searches for groundwater in aquifers , ravines , or cracks in rocks. With access to this water,
648-569: A formal breeding program was not developed until the beginning of the 20th century. Ira Condit, "High Priest of the Fig," and William Storey tested some thousands of fig seedlings in the early 20th century based at University of California, Riverside . It was then continued at the University of California, Davis . However, the fig breeding program was ultimately closed in the 1980s. Due to insect and fungal disease pressure in both dried and fresh figs,
720-465: A fruit, the syconium is botanically an infructescence , a type of multiple fruit . The small fig flowers and later small single-seeded (true) fruits line its interior surface. A small opening or ostiole , visible on the middle of the fruit, is a narrow passage that allows the specialized fig wasp , Blastophaga psenes , to enter the inflorescence and pollinate the flowers, after which each fertilized ovule (one per flower, in its ovary ) develops into
792-510: A hole for the females to escape from the fig interior. This is the reverse of Strepsiptera and the bagworm , where the male is a normal insect and the female never leaves the host. The non-pollinating wasps have developed impressive morphological adaptations in order to oviposit eggs inside the fig but from the outside: an extremely long ovipositor . Most figs (more than 600 species) have syconia that contain three types of flowers : male, short female, and long female. Female fig wasps can reach
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#1732773303824864-494: A moderate source (14% of the Daily Value , DV) of dietary fiber and 310 kilojoules (74 kcal) of food energy per 100-gram serving, and do not supply essential micronutrients in significant contents (table). When dehydrated to 30% water, figs have a carbohydrate content of 64%, protein content of 3%, and fat content of 1%. In a 100-gram serving, providing 1,041 kJ (249 kcal) of food energy, dried figs are
936-898: A rich source (more than 20% DV) of dietary fiber and the essential mineral manganese (26% DV), while calcium , iron , magnesium , potassium , and vitamin K are in moderate amounts. In fig fruits, the levels of glucose and fructose are nearly identical, with glucose being slightly more prevalent overall, while the presence of sucrose is minimal. Still, in some varieties of figs, the fructose content can occasionally slightly surpass that of glucose. Figs contain diverse phytochemicals under basic research for their potential biological properties, including polyphenols , such as gallic acid , chlorogenic acid , syringic acid , (+)- catechin , (−)-epicatechin and rutin . Fig color may vary between cultivars due to various concentrations of anthocyanins , with cyanidin-3-O-rutinoside having particularly high content. In some old Mediterranean folk practices ,
1008-430: A seed. At maturity, these 'seeds' (actually single-seeded fruits) line the inside of each fig. The edible mature syconium develops into a fleshy false fruit bearing the numerous one-seeded fruits, which are technically drupelets . The whole fig fruit is 3–5 cm (1–2 in) long, with a green skin that sometimes ripens toward purple or brown. Ficus carica has milky sap, produced by laticifer cells. The sap of
1080-464: A single region of one country. People of the Italian diaspora who live in cold-winter climates have the practice of burying imported fig trees to overwinter them and protect the fruiting hard wood from cold. Italian immigrants to America in the 19th century introduced this common practice in cities such as New York , Philadelphia , Boston , and Toronto , where winters are normally too cold to leave
1152-479: A small natural opening (the ostiole ) and deposits her eggs in the cavity. Forcing her way through the ostiole, the mated mature female often loses her wings and most of her antennae . To facilitate her passage through the ostiole, the underside of the female's head is covered with short spines that provide purchase on the walls of the ostiole. In depositing her eggs, the female also deposits pollen she picked up from her original host fig. This pollinates some of
1224-610: A total of 64 angiosperm orders and 416 families. The diversity of flowering plants is not evenly distributed. Nearly all species belong to the eudicot (75%), monocot (23%), and magnoliid (2%) clades. The remaining five clades contain a little over 250 species in total; i.e. less than 0.1% of flowering plant diversity, divided among nine families. The 25 most species-rich of 443 families, containing over 166,000 species between them in their APG circumscriptions, are: The botanical term "angiosperm", from Greek words angeíon ( ἀγγεῖον 'bottle, vessel') and spérma ( σπέρμα 'seed'),
1296-778: A variety of fig known as the Liviana was cultivated in Roman gardens. It was cultivated from Afghanistan to Portugal , also grown in Pithoragarh in the Kumaon hills of India . From the 15th century onwards, it was grown in areas including Northern Europe and the New World . In the 16th century, Cardinal Reginald Pole introduced fig trees to Lambeth Palace in London. In 1769, Spanish missionaries led by Junipero Serra brought
1368-592: A wasp or from another tree, but can be pollinated by the fig wasp , Blastophaga psenes to produce seeds. Fig wasps are not present to pollinate in colder regions such as the British Isles. The species has become naturalized in scattered locations in Asia and North America. The plant tolerates seasonal drought, and the Middle Eastern and Mediterranean climates are especially suitable to it. Situated in
1440-579: Is Calimyrna , being a name that combines "California" and "Smyrna". The cultivar, however, is not one that was produced by a breeding program, and instead is from one of the cuttings brought to California in the latter part of the 19th century. It is identical to the cultivar Lob Injir that has been grown in Turkey for centuries. Figs can be found in continental climates with hot summers as far north as Hungary and Moravia . Thousands of cultivars, most named, have been developed as human migration brought
1512-858: Is starting to impact plants and is likely to cause many species to become extinct by 2100. Angiosperms are terrestrial vascular plants; like the gymnosperms, they have roots , stems , leaves , and seeds . They differ from other seed plants in several ways. The largest angiosperms are Eucalyptus gum trees of Australia, and Shorea faguetiana , dipterocarp rainforest trees of Southeast Asia, both of which can reach almost 100 metres (330 ft) in height. The smallest are Wolffia duckweeds which float on freshwater, each plant less than 2 millimetres (0.08 in) across. Considering their method of obtaining energy, some 99% of flowering plants are photosynthetic autotrophs , deriving their energy from sunlight and using it to create molecules such as sugars . The remainder are parasitic , whether on fungi like
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#17327733038241584-511: Is a gynodioecious , deciduous tree or large shrub that grows up to 7–10 m (23–33 ft) tall, with smooth white bark . Its fragrant leaves are 12–25 cm ( 4 + 1 ⁄ 2 –10 in) long and 10–18 cm (4–7 in) wide, and are deeply lobed (three or five lobes). The fig fruit develops as a hollow, fleshy structure called the syconium that is lined internally with numerous unisexual flowers. The tiny flowers bloom inside this cup-like structure. Although commonly called
1656-418: Is a small deciduous tree or large shrub growing up to 7–10 m (23–33 ft) tall, with smooth white bark. Its large leaves have three to five deep lobes . Its fruit (referred to as syconium , a type of multiple fruit ) is tear-shaped, 3–5 cm (1–2 in) long, with a green skin that may ripen toward purple or brown, and sweet soft reddish flesh containing numerous crunchy seeds. The milky sap of
1728-471: Is dispersed by birds and mammals that scatter their seeds in droppings. Fig fruit is an important food source for much of the fauna in some areas, and the tree owes its expansion to those that feed on its fruit. The common fig tree also sprouts from the root and stolon tissues. The edible fig is one of the first plants that were cultivated by humans. Nine subfossil figs of a parthenocarpic (and therefore sterile) type dating to about 9400–9200 BC were found in
1800-609: Is grown for its edible fruit throughout the temperate world. It is also grown as an ornamental tree, and in the UK the cultivars 'Brown Turkey' and 'Ice Crystal' (mainly grown for its unusual foliage) have gained the Royal Horticultural Society 's Award of Garden Merit . Figs are also grown in Germany , mainly in private gardens inside built up areas. There is no commercial fig growing. The Palatine region in
1872-403: Is in dried and processed forms. Raw figs contain roughly 80% water and 20% carbohydrates , with negligible protein, fat and micronutrient content. They are a moderate source of dietary fiber . In 2018, world production of raw figs was 1.14 million tonnes , led by Turkey and North African countries ( Egypt , Morocco , and Algeria ) as the largest producers, collectively accounting for 64% of
1944-475: Is organized by date of harvest, with the fig being fourth due to its main crop ripening during summer. The biblical quote "each man under his own vine and fig tree" (Micah 4:4) has been used to denote peace and prosperity. It was commonly quoted to refer to the life that would be led by settlers in the American West , and was used by Theodor Herzl in his depiction of the future Jewish Homeland : "We are
2016-409: Is placed on top to secure the tree. In borderline climates like New York City burying trees is no longer needed because low winter temperatures have increased. Often specimens are simply wrapped in plastic and other insulating material, or not protected if planted in a sheltered site against a wall that absorbs sunlight. While the fig contains more naturally occurring varieties than any other tree crop,
2088-491: The Alismatales grow in marine environments, spreading with rhizomes that grow through the mud in sheltered coastal waters. Some specialised angiosperms are able to flourish in extremely acid or alkaline habitats. The sundews , many of which live in nutrient-poor acid bogs , are carnivorous plants , able to derive nutrients such as nitrate from the bodies of trapped insects. Other flowers such as Gentiana verna ,
2160-584: The clade Angiospermae ( / ˌ æ n dʒ i ə ˈ s p ər m iː / ). The term 'angiosperm' is derived from the Greek words ἀγγεῖον / angeion ('container, vessel') and σπέρμα / sperma ('seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed within a fruit. The group was formerly called Magnoliophyta . Angiosperms are by far the most diverse group of land plants with 64 orders , 416 families , approximately 13,000 known genera and 300,000 known species . They include all forbs (flowering plants without
2232-689: The forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil . Likewise, fig leaves, or depictions of fig leaves, have long been used to cover the genitals of nude figures in painting and sculpture, for example in Masaccio 's The Expulsion from the Garden of Eden . Moreover, according to one opinion in the Talmud and the Jewish Biblical commentary, the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge in
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2304-551: The gold rush , a number of other cultivars were brought there by persons and nurserymen from the east coast of the US and from France and England. By the end of the 19th century, it became apparent that California had the potential for being an ideal fig producing state because of its Mediterranean-like climate and latitude of 38 degrees, lining up San Francisco with İzmir , Turkey. G. P. Rixford first brought true Smyrna figs to California in 1880. The most popular cultivar of Smyrna-type fig
2376-460: The orchids for part or all of their life-cycle, or on other plants , either wholly like the broomrapes, Orobanche , or partially like the witchweeds, Striga . In terms of their environment, flowering plants are cosmopolitan, occupying a wide range of habitats on land, in fresh water and in the sea. On land, they are the dominant plant group in every habitat except for frigid moss-lichen tundra and coniferous forest . The seagrasses in
2448-892: The "Big Five" extinction events in Earth's history, only the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event had occurred while angiosperms dominated plant life on the planet. Today, the Holocene extinction affects all kingdoms of complex life on Earth, and conservation measures are necessary to protect plants in their habitats in the wild ( in situ ), or failing that, ex situ in seed banks or artificial habitats like botanic gardens . Otherwise, around 40% of plant species may become extinct due to human actions such as habitat destruction , introduction of invasive species , unsustainable logging , land clearing and overharvesting of medicinal or ornamental plants . Further, climate change
2520-667: The Elder nor is it mentioned in Pliny's works. Also only 29 figs were recorded in his work; Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, English translation by John Bostock and H.T. Riley, Book XV, CHAP. 19. (18.)—TWENTY-NINE VARIETIES OF THE FIG. The Kadota name was created in the early 20th century in California, USA, to name a "sport" or genetic deviation from a Dotatto fig tree as documented in The Kadota Fig: A Treatise On Its Origin, Planting And Care by W. Sam Clark. The common fig
2592-597: The Garden of Eden could have been a fig. There is also a Christian tradition that the Tree of Knowledge was the same fig tree Christ withers in the Gospels. The Book of Deuteronomy specifies the fig as one of the Seven Species (Deuteronomy 8:7–8), describing the fertility of the land of Canaan . This is a set of seven plants indigenous to the Middle East that together can provide food all year round. The list
2664-494: The German South West has an estimated 80,000 fig trees. The variety Brown Turkey is the most widespread in the region. There are about a dozen quite widespread varieties hardy enough to survive winter outdoors mostly without special protection. There are even two local varieties, " Martinsfeige " and " Lussheim ", which may be the hardiest varieties in the region. As the population of California grew, especially after
2736-533: The Northern Hemisphere, fresh figs are in season from August through to early October. Fresh figs used in cooking should be plump and soft, and without bruising or splits. If they smell sour, the figs have become over-ripe. Slightly under-ripe figs can be kept at room temperature for 1–2 days to ripen before serving. Figs are most flavorful at room temperature. Freshly harvested figs underwent two distinct drying methods for preservation. The first method
2808-509: The breeding program was revived in 1989 by James Doyle and Louise Ferguson using the germplasm established at UC Riverside by Ira Condit and William Storey. Crosses were made and two new varieties are now in production in California: the public variety "Sierra", and the patented variety "Sequoia". In 2020, world production of raw figs was 1.26 million tonnes, led by Turkey (with 25% of the world total), Egypt , Morocco , and Algeria as
2880-560: The common ancestor of all living gymnosperms before the end of the Carboniferous , over 300 million years ago. In the Cretaceous , angiosperms diversified explosively , becoming the dominant group of plants across the planet. Agriculture is almost entirely dependent on angiosperms, and a small number of flowering plant families supply nearly all plant-based food and livestock feed. Rice , maize and wheat provide half of
2952-607: The early Neolithic village Gilgal I (in the Jordan Valley , 13 km north of Jericho). The find precedes the domestication of wheat , barley , and legumes , and may thus be the first known instance of agriculture. It is proposed that this sterile but desirable type was planted and cultivated intentionally, one thousand years before the next crops were domesticated (wheat and rye ). In ancient Palestine , fig-cakes were often produced from selected ripe figs. Figs were widespread in ancient Greece , and their cultivation
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3024-455: The female flowers on the inside surface of the fig and allows them to mature. After the female wasp lays her eggs and follows through with pollination, she dies. After pollination, there are several species of non-pollinating wasps that deposit their eggs before the figs harden. These wasps act as parasites to either the fig or possibly the pollinating wasps. As the fig develops, the wasp eggs hatch and develop into larvae . After going through
3096-480: The female principle." Gautama Buddha attained enlightenment ( bodhi ) after meditating underneath a Ficus religiosa , known as the bodhi tree , for seven weeks (49 days) around 500 BCE. The site of enlightenment is in present-day Bodh Gaya and its bodhi tree has been replaced several times. In the Biblical Book of Genesis , Adam and Eve clad themselves with fig leaves (Genesis 3:7) after eating
3168-481: The fig to find and enter a cultivated fig, saving it from dropping. Theophrastus observed that just as date palms have male and female flowers, and that farmers (from the East) help by scattering "dust" from the male onto the female, and as a male fish releases his milt over the female's eggs, so Greek farmers tie wild figs to cultivated trees. They do not say directly that figs reproduce sexually, however. Figs were also
3240-402: The fig to many places outside its natural range. Fig plants can be propagated by seed or by vegetative methods. Vegetative propagation is quicker and more reliable, as it does not yield the inedible caprifigs. Seeds germinate readily in moist conditions and grow rapidly once established. For vegetative propagation, shoots with buds can be planted in well-watered soil in the spring or summer, or
3312-415: The fig tree, while the non-pollinating wasps feed off the plant without benefiting it. The life cycles of the two groups, however, are very similar. Though the lives of individual species differ, a typical pollinating fig wasp life cycle is as follows. At the beginning of the cycle, a mated mature female pollinator wasp enters the immature "fruit" (actually a stem-like structure known as a syconium ) through
3384-414: The first figs to California. The Mission variety, which they cultivated, is still popular. The fact that it is parthenocarpic (self-pollinating) made it an ideal cultivar for introduction. The Kadota cultivar is even older, being mentioned by the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder in the 1st century A.D. Pliny recorded thirty varieties of figs. The name Kadota name did not exist in the era of Pliny
3456-659: The flowering plants as an unranked clade without a formal Latin name (angiosperms). A formal classification was published alongside the 2009 revision in which the flowering plants rank as the subclass Magnoliidae. From 1998, the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG) has reclassified the angiosperms, with updates in the APG II system in 2003, the APG III system in 2009, and the APG IV system in 2016. In 2019,
3528-425: The form of the divine fig tree Xikum, the "primeval mother at the central place of the earth", protectress of the saviour Tammuz . Moreover, figs and the fig tree were closely linked with female sexuality. According to Barbara Walker's encyclopedia on Goddess symbols, "This may account for the common use of the fig tree as a symbol of man's enlightenment, which was formerly supposed to come through his connection with
3600-431: The fruits of the wild fig (the caprifig ) contain psenes (fig wasps); these begin life as grubs (larvae), and the adult psen splits its "skin" (pupa) and flies out of the fig to find and enter a cultivated fig, saving it from dropping. He believed that the psen was generated spontaneously ; he did not recognise that the fig was reproducing sexually and that the psen was assisting in that process. The fig wasps are
3672-428: The green parts is an irritant to human skin. The common fig tree has been cultivated since ancient times and grows wild in dry and sunny locations with deep and fresh soil, and in rocky locations that are at sea level to 1,700 metres in elevation. It prefers relatively porous and freely draining soil, and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Unlike other fig species, Ficus carica does not always require pollination by
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#17327733038243744-412: The green parts is an irritant to human skin. In the Northern Hemisphere, fresh figs are in season from late summer to early autumn. They tolerate moderate seasonal frost and can be grown even in hot-summer continental climates. Figs can be eaten fresh or dried, or processed into jam, rolls, biscuits and other types of desserts. Since ripe fruit does not transport and keep well, most commercial production
3816-415: The largest producers collectively accounting for 62% of the total. Figs can be eaten fresh or dried, and used in jam -making. Most commercial production is in dried or otherwise processed forms, since the ripe fruit does not transport well, and once picked does not keep well. The widely produced fig roll (" Fig Newton " is a trademark of Nabisco) is a biscuit (or cookie) with a filling made from figs. In
3888-518: The manner of vines or lianas . The number of species of flowering plants is estimated to be in the range of 250,000 to 400,000. This compares to around 12,000 species of moss and 11,000 species of pteridophytes . The APG system seeks to determine the number of families , mostly by molecular phylogenetics . In the 2009 APG III there were 415 families. The 2016 APG IV added five new orders (Boraginales, Dilleniales, Icacinales, Metteniusales and Vahliales), along with some new families, for
3960-424: The milky sap of the fig plant was used to soften calluses , remove warts , and deter parasites . Since the late 1800s, syrup of figs combined with senna has been available as a laxative. Like other plant species in the family Moraceae , contact with the milky sap of Ficus carica followed by exposure to ultraviolet light can cause phytophotodermatitis , a potentially serious skin inflammation. Although
4032-537: The nutrients to create the ripe fruits and seeds. Several commercial and ornamental varieties of fig are parthenocarpic and do not require pollination to produce (sterile) fruits; these varieties need not be visited by fig wasps to bear fruit. The life cycle of the fig wasp is closely intertwined with that of the fig tree it inhabits. The wasps that inhabit a particular tree can be divided into two groups; pollinating and non-pollinating. The pollinating wasps are part of an obligate nursery pollination mutualism with
4104-404: The ovaries of short female flowers with their ovipositors, but not long female flowers. Thus, the short female flowers grow wasps, and the long flowers only seeds. Contrary to popular belief, ripe figs are not full of dead wasps and the "crunchy bits" in the fruit are only seeds. The fig actually produces an enzyme called ficain (also known as ficin) which digests the dead wasps and the fig absorbs
4176-536: The plant is not poisonous per se, F. carica is listed in the FDA Database of Poisonous Plants. Organic chemical compounds called furanocoumarins are known to cause phytophotodermatitis in humans. The common fig contains significant quantities of two furanocoumarins, psoralen and bergapten . The essential oil of fig leaves contains more than 10% psoralen, the highest concentration of any organic compound isolated from fig leaves. Psoralen appears to be
4248-528: The pollinating fig wasps and the subfamily Sycophaginae . The remaining taxa such as Epichrysomallinae , Sycoecinae , Otitesellinae , and Sycoryctinae should be included in the Pteromalidae. Among the Agaonidae, the female is a normal insect, while the males are mostly wingless. The males' only tasks are to mate with the females while still within the fig syconium (inverted flower) and to chew
4320-416: The primary furanocoumarin compound responsible for fig leaf-induced phytophotodermatitis. Psoralen and bergapten are found chiefly in the milky sap of the leaves and shoots of F. carica but not the fruits. Neither psoralen nor bergapten were detected in the essential oil of fig fruits. Thus there is no conclusive evidence that fig fruits cause phytophotodermatitis. Babylonian Ishtar for example took
4392-503: The pupal stage, the mature male’s first act is to mate with a female - before the female hatches. Consequently, the female will emerge pregnant. The males of many species lack wings and cannot survive outside the fig for a sustained period of time. After mating, a male wasp begins to dig out of the fig, creating a tunnel through which the females escape. Once out of the fig, the male wasps quickly die. The females find their way out, picking up pollen as they do. They then fly to another tree of
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#17327733038244464-525: The same species, where they deposit their eggs and allow the cycle to begin again. The fig–wasp mutualism originated between 70 and 90 million years ago as the product of a unique evolutionary event. Since then, cocladogenesis and coadaptation on a coarse scale between wasp genera and fig sections have been demonstrated by both morphological and molecular studies. This illustrates the tendency towards coradiation of figs and wasps. Such strict cospeciation should result in identical phylogenetic trees for
4536-568: The spring gentian, are adapted to the alkaline conditions found on calcium -rich chalk and limestone , which give rise to often dry topographies such as limestone pavement . As for their growth habit , the flowering plants range from small, soft herbaceous plants , often living as annuals or biennials that set seed and die after one growing season, to large perennial woody trees that may live for many centuries and grow to many metres in height. Some species grow tall without being self-supporting like trees by climbing on other plants in
4608-530: The superfamily Chalcidoidea which spend their larval stage inside figs . Some are pollinators but others simply feed off the plant. The non-pollinators belong to several groups within the superfamily Chalcidoidea, while the pollinators are in the family Agaonidae . Pollinating fig wasps are all gall -makers, non-pollinating fig wasps either make their own galls or usurp the galls of other fig wasps; reports of their being parasitoids are considered dubious. Aristotle recorded in his History of Animals that
4680-488: The total. The word fig , first recorded in English in the 13th century, derives from (Old) French figue , itself from Occitan (Provençal) figa , from Romance *fica , from Classical Latin ficus (fig or fig-tree). Italian has fico , directly derived from Latin ficus . The name of the caprifig , Ficus caprificus Risso, is derived both from Latin caper , genitive capri (he- goat ) and English fig . Ficus carica
4752-480: The tree cools the hot environments in which it grows, thus producing fresh and pleasant habitat for many animals that shelter in its shade during periods of intense heat. The mountain or rock fig ( Persian : انجیر کوهی , romanized : anjīr kuhi ) is a wild variety, tolerant of cold dry climates, of the semi-arid rocky montane regions of Iran, especially in the Kūhestān mountains of Khorasan . Ficus carica
4824-422: The tree exposed. This practice consists in digging a trench that is appropriate to the size of the specimen, some of which are more than 10 feet tall, severing part of the root system, and bending the specimen into the trench. Specimens are often wrapped in waterproof material to discourage development of mould and fungus , then covered with a heavy layer of soil and leaves. Sometimes plywood or corrugated metal
4896-499: The two lineages and recent work mapping fig sections onto molecular phylogenies of wasp genera and performing statistical comparisons has provided strong evidence for cospeciation at that scale. Groups of genetically well-defined pollinator wasp species coevolve in association with groups of genetically poorly defined figs. The constant hybridization of the figs promotes the constant evolution of new pollinator wasp species. Host switching and pollinator host sharing may contribute to
4968-559: The world's staple calorie intake, and all three plants are cereals from the Poaceae family (colloquially known as grasses). Other families provide important industrial plant products such as wood , paper and cotton , and supply numerous ingredients for beverages , sugar production , traditional medicine and modern pharmaceuticals . Flowering plants are also commonly grown for decorative purposes , with certain flowers playing significant cultural roles in many societies. Out of
5040-483: Was coined in the form "Angiospermae" by Paul Hermann in 1690, including only flowering plants whose seeds were enclosed in capsules. The term angiosperm fundamentally changed in meaning in 1827 with Robert Brown , when angiosperm came to mean a seed plant with enclosed ovules. In 1851, with Wilhelm Hofmeister 's work on embryo-sacs, Angiosperm came to have its modern meaning of all the flowering plants including Dicotyledons and Monocotyledons. The APG system treats
5112-422: Was described by both Aristotle and Theophrastus . Aristotle noted that as in animal sexes, figs have individuals of two kinds, one (the cultivated fig) that bears fruit, and one (the wild caprifig) that assists the other to bear fruit. Further, Aristotle recorded that the fruits of the wild fig contain psenes ( fig wasps ); these begin life as larvae, and the adult psen splits its "skin" (pupa) and flies out of
5184-408: Was natural sun-drying, where the figs were exposed to the warmth and light of the sun. The second method involved oven-drying, where the figs were placed in a controlled temperature environment within an oven. Each process has its unique impact on the texture and flavor profile of the dried figs. Raw figs are 79% water, 19% carbohydrates , 1% protein , and contain negligible fat (table). They are
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