Four microscope views of fig fruit-bud sections with scale bars.
Original scientific figure

Four microscope views of fig fruit-bud sections with scale bars.

Marcotuli et al. (2020), Frontiers in Plant Science, Figure 1; CC BY 4.0. · CC BY 4.0 · Image source

Experimental fruit-bud sections of Petrelli and Dottato cultivars, showing distal and basal nodes.

Overview

Kew accepts Ficus carica in Moraceae, native from the eastern Mediterranean to Central Asia and the western Himalaya, including Greece and Kriti. Its 1753 publication is a naming date, not a date of origin or first cultivation.

Its flowers line an enclosed cavity reached through a narrow opening, the ostiole. A 1977 study examined pollen transfer by the agaonid wasp Blastophaga psenes and argued that pollen exposed on the body surface would be hard to carry through this narrow entrance.

Galil’s 1977 study describes pollen retained in folds and along the wasp’s sides during water loss, then released through partial swelling and attempted egg-laying in a receptive fig. This wasp-mediated route is not required by every cultivated fig.

Enclosed flowers with a narrow ostioleWasp-mediated pollination in some formsSome cultivated forms fruit without pollination
01

Origins & earliest records

Formally published in Species Plantarum (1753), p. 1059, per Kew.

02

Evidence & interpretation

Kew accepted name and distribution; Galil 1977, New Phytologist 79:163–171 (summary).

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Species Plantarum

    · 1753

    Selected bibliography; original place of publication (p. 1059) as recorded by Kew.

  2. 02

    Pollen transfer and pollination in the common fig (Ficus carica L.)

    Galil · 1977

    Selected bibliography; New Phytologist 79:163–171.

Family, evolution & connections

Taxonomic classification

A hierarchy of classified groups, not a chain of direct ancestors.

Source note: Family placement follows Kew.

  1. FamilyMoraceae
  2. SpeciesFicus carica

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Taxonomic databaseFicus carica L. | Plants of the World OnlineResearch access: 2026-10-07
  2. Journal articlePollen transfer and pollination in the common fig (Ficus carica L.)Research access: 2026-10-07

Image credits

Original scientific figure

Four microscope views of fig fruit-bud sections with scale bars.

Marcotuli et al. (2020), Frontiers in Plant Science, Figure 1; CC BY 4.0. · CC BY 4.0 · Image source

Experimental fruit-bud sections of Petrelli and Dottato cultivars, showing distal and basal nodes.

NH·169 · RESEARCH EDITION 01Back to top ↑