Ficus laminosa

Turner, Ian M., 2015, The botanical legacy of Thomas Hardwicke’s journey to Srinagar in 1796, European Journal of Taxonomy 108, pp. 1-25 : 11

Ficus laminosa

Hardwicke’s description is reasonably detailed:

“ Ficus - laminosa . — An humble species, growing among detached rocks in a small water course, and other moist places along the valley of the Koa-nullah. The stem is procumbent, shrubby, diffuse. Leaves opposite, lanceolate, entire; fruit laminous. The natives collect the leaves to feed their cattle with, and call it Chancherree.”

I reproduce the extract as published, including the internal hyphenation of the binomial. Various species names are similarly hyphenated in the original publication. I consider these typographic errors to be corrected, but others might cast doubt on the correct use of a binomial. However, the name did appear unhyphenated in the extract version of Hardwicke’s paper in the Asiatic Annual Register ( Hardwicke 1801). Correspondence indicates that it was Roxburgh who suggested the name to Hardwicke.

Britten (1906) pointed out that Ficus laminosa is the correct name for the fig species variously referred to as Ficus saemocarpa Miq. or F. squamosa Roxb. Unfortunately , his publication seems to have been overlooked by all subsequent fig specialists, a lacuna reinforced by the absence of any Hardwicke herbarium material of this species. The drawing no. 65 referred to by Britten is here designated lectotype of the species. There is a similar drawing in the Plants of India set (Vol. III no. 9).