Broom Cluster Fig

Ficus sur, with the common names Cape fig and broom cluster fig, is a widespread Afrotropical species of fig that bears its fruit directly on the trunk and branches. The tree is found from Cape Verde and Senegambia across tropical West Africa to Cameroon and the Central African Republic, eastwards to Eritrea, northern Somalia and Yemen, and southwards through all tropical eastern and southern African countries. It is found in tropical forests and grassy woodlands. The article says the heavily clustered figs suggest fecundity, and that some trees in East Africa have been venerated as sacred shrines in animist practices. All parts may exude a latex, which has some traditional medicinal plant uses. The latex has been shown to contain ursene and oleanane triterpenoids, of which the latter may be effective in cancer treatment, while a methanolic extract from the roots is potentially effective against chloroquine-resistant malaria. The page gives these as findings of studies, not as established treatments.