Ficus thunbergii ("Himeitabi")

Japanese name: ヒメイタビ （姫崖爬）
Scientific name: Ficus thunbergii

[Overview]
An evergreen woody climber growing in forests in warm regions.
White milky sap comes out when the leaves or stems are damaged.
It produces adventitious roots from the trunk and extends by creeping over trees and rocks.
The stems and petioles of young plants are densely covered with spreading soft hairs.
Leaves are simple and alternate; juvenile leaves are ovate to ovate-elliptic, about 1–3 cm long, with 2–3 pairs of large teeth.
Mature leaves are ovate to ovate-elliptic, 2–6 cm long and 1–3 cm wide, with entire margins.
The petioles of mature leaves are at first densely covered with spreading soft hairs, but later become somewhat hairless.
It is dioecious.
One flower sac is borne in each leaf axil.
The flowers grow on the inside of the flower sac, so the fruit ripens with no flowers visible from the outside.
After flowering, the flower sac becomes a fruit sac (the fruit).
The fruit sac is spherical, 1 cm across, and ripens to grayish brown.

[Cultivation]
Propagate by cuttings or layering.
It prefers a sunny, well-drained, moderately moist site.
It is heat tolerant and overwinters if the temperature stays at or above 0°C, so keep it in a bright place such as by a window.
For potted plants, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries; for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
From spring to autumn, give liquid fertilizer once every 2 weeks, or place slow-release solid fertilizer on the soil once every 2 months.
Pests include spider mites, scale insects and aphids.

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