Ficus watkinsiana
A large strangler fig of eastern Australian rainforest. It starts life as an epiphyte high in a host tree, then sends roots down and eventually stands as a tree up to about 60 m tall. It is found in upland rainforest in north Queensland (mostly 700–1100 m) and in subtropical rainforest from Bundaberg to northern New South Wales. At home it is grown as a young tree that needs bright light, a mild cool winter and a free-draining, fertile mix.
Where it grows wild
Well-developed upland and mountain rainforest, often on basalt-derived soils. Seedlings germinate in the canopy of host trees, where they get bright, broken light. The roots then reach the ground and enclose the host, and the mature crown sits in or above the canopy.
In north-east Queensland it grows at about 700–1100 m. The southern population reaches lower altitudes. The 13 wild records with elevation span 10–1084 m, median 645 m.
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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.