Ficus

All species exude white to yellowish latex and many have aerial roots. Leaves are usually alternate, rarely opposite or whorled. Leaf blade is simple to lobed, rarely palmate, glabrous or hairy. Leaf margin is entire or toothed; veins pinnate to ± palmate. Stipules are often united, enclosing terminal bud, deciduous or persistent, leaving ring-like scar. Inflorescences are sessile or pedunculate, axillary or on specialized cauliflorous branches. The inflorescence (fig or syconium) has many minute flowers inserted on inner wall of hollow receptacle communicating with outside through an apical pore or apical pore closed by scale-like bracts. Monoecious species have male, sterile female, and female flowers in each fig. Dioecious species have either male and sterile female flowers or only female flowers in each fig. Sterile female flowers (gall flowers) are similar to female flowers but never produce seeds and are usually occupied by a fig wasp. The whole inflorescence becomes a false fruit, in which the flowers and seeds grow together to form a single mass inside a closed receptacle.