Description
The inspiration for this painting “Forest Walk – Adelaide Botanic Gardens’ is an avenue of majestic Moreton Bay Fig Trees.
It is a medium to large, spreading tree 15 to 35 metres high with a similar spread. It often has Buttress roots, which are large, wide roots on all sides of a shallowly rooted tree. Typically, they are found in nutrient-poor tropical forest soils that may not be very deep. They prevent the tree from falling over while also gathering more nutrients.
We were fortunate to have two large Moreton Bay Fig Trees is our school grounds. It is these large roots that I loved as a child. I leaned up against, and they gave me such comfort.
The fruit is edible, but not very palatable, however, Indigenous Australians ate them when ripe and soft, or made into a paste