Ficus platyphylla explained

Ficus platyphylla is a deciduous tree within the family Moraceae. Common local names include Gamji in Hausa and Gaba or Kobo in Bambara.[1]

Description

Species grows up to 20m (70feet) tall, the crown is large and spreading while the bark is pale brown with scales and fissures, the species sometimes grows as an epyphyte.[2] Leaves, alternate, petioles and stipules are present; leaflets are ovate to elliptic in outline, up to 25cm (10inches) long and 17cm (07inches) wide. The fruits are globose in shape, reddish and small, usually between 1- in diameter, they are arranged in clusters of 15 in leaf axils on peduncles that can reach 5cm (02inches) in length.

Distribution and habitat

Commonly found in the savannah regions of West and East Africa, from Senegal eastwards to Somalia.[3]

Uses

The species is used as an antidote to poision in different cultures.[4] In Nigeria, the stem bark extracts of the plant is used in ethnomedicine to treat a variety of ailments including depression, epilepsy and psychosis.[5] It is also used to expel parasitic worms from the body.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: M.M.P.N.D. - Sorting Ficus names . 2024-01-10 . www.plantnames.unimelb.edu.au.
  2. Book: Flora of Somalia. 2: Angiospermae (Tiliaceae - Apiaceae) . 1999 . Royal Botanic Gardens . 978-1-900347-77-8 . 1. publ . Kew . 102.
  3. Book: Lansky, Ephraim Philip . Figs: the genus Ficus . Paavilainen . Helena Maaria . 2011 . CRC press . 978-1-4200-8966-0 . Traditional herbal medicines for modern times . Boca Raton.
  4. Shi . Yinxian . Mon . Aye Mya . Fu . Yao . Zhang . Yu . Wang . Chen . Yang . Xuefei . Wang . Yuhua . 2018 . The genus Ficus (Moraceae) used in diet: Its plant diversity, distribution, traditional uses and ethnopharmacological importance . Journal of Ethnopharmacology . en . 226 . 185–196 . 10.1016/j.jep.2018.07.027.
  5. Chindo . Ben A. . Anuka . Joseph A. . McNeil . Lilly . Yaro . Abdullahi H. . Adamu . Simon S. . Amos . Samson . Connelly . William K. . Lees . George . Gamaniel . Karniyus S. . 2009-03-30 . Anticonvulsant properties of saponins from Ficus platyphylla stem bark . Brain Research Bulletin . 78 . 6 . 276–282 . 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2008.12.005 . 0361-9230.

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