May 24, 2016

  • Moreton Bay Fig Tree

    While in Santa Barbara, I had lunch with my sister, who last summer returned to Santa Barbara after 45 years living in Europe.  She is now living in a second story condo with a lovely triangular back yard along a creek (they're usually dry in California), and with a huge Moreton Bay Fig tree by the creek.  She spends a lot of time on the balcony, reading, eating, and enjoying the back yard.

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Comments (18)

  • Your sister deserve a quiet life in california in a wonderful surrounding. The tree is amazing
    Love
    Michel

  • The roots of that fig tree remind me of a nerve ganglion cell! Very cool - the tree and that your sister is now within visiting distance!!

    • It's a wonderful tree! There's one by the Santa Barbara Amtrak station -- I didn't know of this one until recently, and it's just as magnificent as the other. It's super cool that she can enjoy it from her balcony!

  • WOW! What a gorgeous root system. Reminds me of the Banyan trees of India.
    I am glad she has become acclimatized to the southern California life of relaxing and reading.

    • The Moreton Bay Fig Tree is a ficus tree, also in the banyan family. It may be the same tree as you had in India. It's great that Pam can sit and read under this majestic tree -- she spends a lot of time reading, and it's a super location for her!

  • I wonder if she came back with the accent? :)

    • She's quite fluent in both languages. Soon after moving to Italy, she developed a strong accent, but that's disappearing quickly -- she sometimes uses Italian contexts, but the accent itself is almost gone!

  • I can imagine your sister having many interesting stories to tell.

    Interesting back yard.

    Blessings

    Frank

    • It's a great yard for a condo complex! These shots were taken from a second-floor balcony.

  • Interesting roots. Will you sister eat the figs that the tree produces?

    • The tree produces fruit that is edible but "unpalatable and dry," according to Wikipedia. I've never heard of anybody trying to eat one! They are huge, beautiful shade trees.

  • What an interesting root system!!

  • Interesting that you say it's a ficus. That explains why my ficus destroyed my patio concrete.

    • Even small ficus have ridiculously destructive root systems! This can be resolved by cutting the roots before they reach concrete, but even that is almost not worth risking it!

  • By all means, be careful with any root "adjustment". The shade is a trade-off, but I hope there is no widespread damage to your walkways and other accoutrements. When we got back from Korea, in 1992, it took several months to shed Korean mannerisms.

    • The roots are in my sister's condo's yard -- they are pretty safe, as there's a large triangle between the creek and the building -- it's a beautiful view from her balcony! Yes, the adjustment will be major after 40 years, but her son and daughter are there to help.

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