I am a biology student at Grand Canyon University and I am putting together my final project for my ecology class. Can anyone help me identify this tree? We are studying the bird distribution in this tree and I am having trouble determining the species. Here are some hopefully helpful hints. The bark on the tree is a grey-ish color. This pictur was taken this morning (winter), but the tree shows the same coloring year-round. On one of the pictures, there are small yellow-white berries nestled in the leaves. I have included my contact case as a scale (I didn't have a ruler handy...) Thanks for any help.
Yes, you are quite right. I pulled off a small branch, and the leaves are definitely alternately paired. Well now I have absolutely no clue as to what this tree is. Help?
Judging from the fruits and bark one of the many species of figs (Ficus). Most have simple, evergreen leaves as does this one, rather than the lobed deciduous leaves of the common fig (Ficus carica). Try Ficus retusa, maybe it's that one. Otherwise, local independent garden center may have your tree now or stock it at other times, take your twig sample in and see if they know it.
Ficus retusa? I seriously doubt that... retusa would have tons of aerial roots all hanging down trying to root in the soil... and the likelihood of it growing in Arizona, let alone as a mature tree, is remote in the extreme. They may like the heat, but need what would only be seen as excessive humidity to survive, and as far as I know Arizona is usually dry as a bone.
Sunset Western Garden Book says of F. microcarpa (F. retusa) that "In California and Arizona, it grows at a more moderate rate to 25-30 ft. high, 35 ft. wide" and that "Plants sold as F. m. nitida (a name with no botanical standing) may have the same weeping form as the species or may have upright-growing branches".
do the leaves have a scent, kinda like eucalyptus? because the tree looks like a type of mrytle to me, from the bark and the berries.
There is no discernable scent from the leaves. The fig idea sounds like a good one. I know that the university tried to plant biblical plants, a fig tree might fit into that... Thanks for all the help so far.
I agree it looks very like F. microcarpa. The trunk shape and bark color is very like F. microcarpa var. hillii, commonly planted in Australia and taller-growing than the "retusa" type tends to be. By the way, this is nothing like any biblical fig, which would be either the common edible fig F. carica or possibly one of its wild relatives like F. palmata. These are very different looking plants from the tropical strangler figs, which is the group that F. microcarpa belongs to.
