No tree genus works harder in landmark landscapes than Ficus. The figs give a project its icons: banyans with buttressed trunks and curtains of aerial roots, glossy evergreen canopies that read as instant establishment, and clipped forms so architectural they function as living sculpture.
Ornatec has grown, moved and installed figs at landmark scale for more than two decades. In August 2004 our team craned a mature curtain fig, Ficus microcarpa, into position at Disneyland Hong Kong, its netted root ball swinging over the palms below. That single lift captures what figs are for: mature presence, delivered as a finished feature.
The banyan habit
What sets the great figs apart is the banyan habit: aerial roots descend from the branches, thicken into props and over time turn a single tree into a grove. Ficus benghalensis, the banyan fig, is the definitive expression, and variegated selections add a second layer of drama to an already theatrical tree. Grown on and prepared properly, these are the specimens that give a resort arrival or a civic forecourt its centrepiece.
A form for every role
- Avenue and screen: Ficus nitida, the Chinese banyan, densely evergreen and endlessly tolerant of clipping.
- Fine textured canopy: Ficus Amstel Queen, narrow willow like leaves on a dense, multi stemmed head.
- Living sculpture: Ficus panda, grown as multi head cloud forms, every dome clipped by hand over years.
- The statement banyan: Ficus benghalensis in green and variegated forms, grown for trunk, buttress and curtain.
Prepared for the journey
Figs move well when they are prepared with respect for what they are: heavy crowned trees with vigorous root systems. The specimens photographed here show the discipline: root systems regrown into transportable balls long before a crane arrives, trunks sleeved in hessian to protect the bark through handling, and crowns tied and wrapped ahead of freight. It is the same method that put a mature curtain fig into a theme park with its character intact.
Start with the stock
Three of the forms above are in current production and listed now: Ficus nitida, the Chinese banyan, Ficus panda and Ficus benghalensis, the banyan fig. For curtain figs and one of a kind specimens, talk to us about sourcing and lead times.