So I live in Canberra Australia, and I see many of fig trees in people gardens, but I have never seen one growing in the wild, and am not even sure there are any capri-figs or wasps around our area.

Last year however I was going to my gym one day, and then right outside the front door I look up, and growing in the top of a palm tree is 2-3 fig trees, grown from seed obviously dropped by a bird sometime in the past!

I have waited, and now the weather warmed up I took a photo! There is at least 2 separate trees in this photo, and around the back of the palm another is growing.

[img]https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Uv6FNLcxKuU/Umr4JoOqoJI/AAAAAAAAHa4/YyecUwDDzpQ/w2178-h1225-no/20131026_100007.jpg[/img]

That is amazing.  It will be interesting to see what variety they turn out to be, and how they do in their tree house long term.

Well how about that!  That is just incredible.  Please keep an eye on it for us.
 Thanks very much for sharing.
 Soni

That is something else to see and glad you shared it with the forum.
Thanks

That's awesome. Where exactly is that? My brother lives in Palmerston, he'd love to see a palm tree with a fig.

That bird has great taste.

Wonderful picture, fig and nicely pruned date palm.
The future is not of a long life for the fig plant as the living branches grow and move up.

I hope by now you've climbed that tree and gotten cuttings.  ;)

Hi Naikii,

That's very interesting what you have found...It is rather common to see new small bushes of a variety of plants growing on the 'cups' left once you cut the palm stalks. Birds mostly sparrows spend the night on those cups eventually leaving behind fertile seeds from a variety of fruit which with the correct surroundings of media/dust/ humidity and nutrients quickly develop into thick bushes,... but figs?

This may mean that somewhere around that area there are caprifigs and fig wasps pollinating whatever varieties they found  (Smyrna or Common alike)... the birds, rodents, etc ..eat those figs and drop the seeds everywhere and these under the right conditions may give birth to a new fig.
I would not be surprised once, back in time, by about the same years where the Caprifig and Smyrna fig varieties  (Sarilop mainly) were being introduced in Americas and South Africa, similar efforts were made in Australia.

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/37410326

Earlier this season, found a 'parasite' fig tree growing strongly, sucking nutrients from a palm, certainly originated as the ones you saw, but with edible black figs. There are pictures and text describing this fig, which for the moment I have called sparrow fig. The chances of finding in the wild an edible fig born from seed, are very small.

Francisco

That is amazing, loved seeing it. As for climbing the date palm, you couldn't get me to even try climbing any of ours. Those things can be lethal. I can't tell you how many times I've been impaled trying to mow around the young ones, lol.

It will be fun to monitor them? will they fall to the ground when leaves fall, or will take roots up there?  Amazing!

First palm fig I've ever seen, very cool!

That is an incredible site. It would be fun to see if this is a new and good fig. Won't the fig likely be removed next time the palm is trimmed? Maybe you could as for cuttings before it's gone.

@rcantor,  OH please try to get cuttings from this brave fig.  IDK what life expectancy will be up there but I would LOVE it if you get a cutting and eventually share.  It must have an appropriate name...   "Bob's, Bird's blessing"?  :-)
Soni

UNBELIEVABLE!!! :-D

@BexleyRabbit Tell your brother it is at the CISAC center in Belconnen right at the main entrance.

I might go back and take a few more shots later and see if anyone can work out a way to get some cuttings safely, this tree is quite tall. Perhaps ill take the SLR with zoom lens and see if it has brebas or anything, grown from seed it/they could be male figs.

Well I went back, and was pretty sure I saw some breba figs, but upon reviewing the photos, it seems perhaps not. Here are a few more I took.

[img]https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-_Kg4jgGiAUA/Umy_Zjl9RRI/AAAAAAAAHq8/oPR6WfcJnqQ/w283-h424-no/pic+5.jpg[/img]

[img]https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-AVfiUd94ofs/Umy-snV0e4I/AAAAAAAAHqY/-O6Z1DeFxro/w636-h424-no/Pic+1.jpg[/img]

[img]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bFQLWbAfWkQ/Umy-fnDk02I/AAAAAAAAHqQ/zPFIjSsOfGE/w636-h424-no/Pic+2.jpg[/img]

[img]https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-7VT03nq4Rd4/Umy-Z-4qbtI/AAAAAAAAHqI/_X_yrfb4uyw/w636-h424-no/Pic+3.jpg[/img]

[img]https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-wmkRkRIy7wU/Umy-50H8wBI/AAAAAAAAHqg/IwKXR0vCTEA/w636-h424-no/pic+4.jpg[/img]

It must be taking root in the fibers and the dirt and dust that gets caught in the palm. 

[QUOTE=naikii]@BexleyRabbit Tell your brother it is at the CISAC center in Belconnen right at the main entrance.

I might go back and take a few more shots later and see if anyone can work out a way to get some cuttings safely, this tree is quite tall. Perhaps ill take the SLR with zoom lens and see if it has brebas or anything, grown from seed it/they could be male figs.


[/QUOTE] Thanks, that's not far from him. My bet is that Rainbow Lorikeets are responsible. I have seen them nest in that type of palm elsewhere. They like the cavities between the pruned branches and besides, they love figs!.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/suavehouse113/6464152633/

 

Great Photos. let me be first in line for cuttings...LOL

Nice photos, thanks for sharing.

Best,
Tam