Species library › Ficus › Ficus vasta
Other Partly documented

Ficus vasta

Ficus vasta is a massive fig of the Horn of Africa and southern Arabia, reaching about 25 m tall with a broad, bowl-shaped crown and buttressed trunk. It grows in wadis, riverine thickets and highland savanna, and seedlings often start on rocks or other trees before their roots engulf the host.

At home, aim for
Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Full sunDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Wikipedia describes it as a tree of dry savanna and river corridors, in riverine stands and thickets, often beginning life as an epiphyte or on rock, where its roots thicken and fuse around the support. Herbarium labels record it in dense wadi woodland in Yemen, on limestone in Socotra and in the Wadi Darbat gorge in Dhofar. In Ethiopia it is recorded on stony farmland, as a live fence and coffee shade tree and in market places, where trees are kept for shade.

Measured records run 300–2,250 m, with a median of 1,705 m (48 records). Wikipedia gives 1,400–2,500 m, which fits the Ethiopian and Yemeni highlands, while the Socotra and Dhofar populations grow much lower, at about 300–700 m.

Ethiopia (southwestern and central highlands)EritreaYemen, including SocotraOman: DhofarSaudi Arabia: southwestern escarpment (Asir)Somalia and DjiboutiKenya, Uganda and South Sudan (sparse)

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app.