| Origins | South, Southwest to Southeast China. It also has distribution in Southeast Asian countries. |
|---|---|
| Ecology | The Japanese Superb Fig is mainly distributed in coastal areas and its natural habitats consist of open fields and evergreen broad-leaved forests. It is also commonly seen in villages and plains. A young individual can attach itself onto other plants, strangling its host along its growth and replacing its host. |
| Meanings of name | It is said that the "pen tube" in its Chinese name “Pen Tube Fig (筆管榕)” refers to its newly emerging red bud on branchlet apex, which resemble the tip of an ink brush dipped in cinnabar (red pigment). |
| Applications | The canopy of the Japanese Superb Fig spreads widely, providing potential shade for pedestrians that has led it becoming a common shade tree and street tree in urban areas. |
| Japanese Superb Fig and Big-leaved Fig (Ficus virens Aiton) | It may be easy to get confused between these two similar-looking species. Actually, it is not difficult to distinguish them under careful observation. The bark of the Japanese Superb Fig is blackish brown, while that of the Big-leaved Fig is yellowish-brown. The leaves of the Japanese Superb Fig are crowded towards the apex of the branchlets, while those of the Big-leaved Fig are alternately arranged and not crowded at branchlets apex. The figs of the Japanese Superb Fig are purplish black when mature, with short peduncles, while the figs of Big-leaved Fig are purplish red when mature, sessile. |
