Ficus Species, Dinner Plate Fig, Highland Breadfruit

I recently took a soft cutting from this tree (with permission from a building occupant) in Santa Cruz, CA.

Here is a link...Read More with more information on it:

http://treesofsantacruzcounty.blogspot.com/2014/12/ficus-dam...

Very very easy to grow in the correct climate, though doesn't much like wind. Its a tropical plant of course but will do in a micro clima...Read Morete or protected position even in places like California, Sydney Australia.
The tree is not sterile, and does set seed, just it's impossible to get any out of Papua New Guinea where the seed is found unless you go there or someone does for you. It doesn't set seed outside of Papua as the particular wasp that fertilises the flowers concealed in the syconium (fig) don't exist outside of Papua.
Cuttings are difficult so marcotting is used with slightly more success. Transplanting the marcot from the main tree is also difficult, though. Unfortunately even then the resulting trees are often difficult to train into a nicely balanced tree as the material used for the marcots are almost always the lateral or side branches. This sets the tree back as it needs patient training to develop a trunk. Seed would be absolutely ideal if anyone could get hold of it.
There is a highland and a lowland Ficus dammaropsis. The lowland one has by far the largest and more impressive leaves. The lowland one is rarely seen outside the tropics as it's also not nearly so hardy as the highland one, needing humidity warmth and irrigation year round. These trees are highly prized by Papuans who eat the fruit and cook the leaves and use the entire tree for a variety of medicinal and or domestic purposes. Old settlements can often be recognised in the thick growth by the appearance of one or two of these trees many many years after the occupants have moved on.

There is a huge Ficus dammaropsis growing here in Ventura, Calif. that must have been there for at least 25 years. It is about 20' tall a...Read Morend produces baseball-size fruit often. Click on the street view from here: /maps/place/3915+Telegraph+Rd,+Ventura,+CA+93003/@34.2741982,-119.2420917,178m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m7!1m4!3m3!1s0x80e9b3172a3e5ecd:0x745effb5618cbdfb!2sTelegraph+Rd,+Ventura,+CA!3b1!3m1!1s0x80e9ad5ae661f30d:0x7b8f66caf5fbbdf

and look behind the liquor store among the palms.

This is a hard to find Tree! Usually if you do find one it is very small with about two leafs. Reason for the difficulty is it has to pro...Read Morepagated by air layering. The soil prefers to be moist and not dried out and it thrives in the coastal community in zone 10. Feed regularly and add Ironite every so often. This the most expensive tree I have in my garden and I love every bit of it.