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The aim of this study was to explore the accumulation potential of heavy metals (HMs) by Ficus retusa L. and its possible use for air pollution biomonitoring in urban areas. Plant material was sampled along the national roads in Constantine city (NE-Algeria), characterized by an intense traffic load. The concentrations of cadmium, copper, lead and zinc were determined in the washed and unwashed leaves. The mean concentrations of HMs decrease in the following order: Zn > Pb > Cu > Cd for both studied leaves, and were about 0.68 and 0.98 mg/kg d.m for Cd, 7.26 and 8.74 mg/kg d.m for Cu, 20.35 and 37.61 mg/kg d.m for Pb and 63.33 mg/kg d.m and 75.94 mg/kg d.m for Zn, for washed and unwashed leaves respectively. The studied metal contents were significantly higher than those cited in the literature; this indicates the traffic road impact on HMs emissions and uptake by plants. Higher values of metal accumulation index (MAI) indicate the effectiveness of the studied species for monitoring air metallic pollution in urban areas. Results of this study could be beneficial as preliminary reference values for HMs uptake by F. retusa in urban environments.

Pruning Ficus trees in urban green spaces may lead to the accumulation and spread of their leaf litter on the understory vegetation. This study was conducted to evaluate the allelopathic effect of Ficus retusa L. leaf litter on the understory species in urban gardens. A field study showed that the plant cover and species richness of litter-affected plots were lower than those of litter-free areas. The litter-affected soils had substantially lower pH and higher electrical conductivity. In a greenhouse experiment, litter-affected soil significantly inhibited the emergence and growth of understory species selected for the purpose of this study: Melilotus indicus (L.) All., Trifolium resupinatum L. and Amaranthus viridis L. Osmotic potentials equivalent to those of the litter-affected soils did not affect emergence or growth of these species. A spectrophotometric analysis indicated that the litter-affected soils contained larger amounts of phenolics and flavonoids. An HPLC analysis revealed that the litter-affected soils contained higher concentrations of free phenolic and flavonoid allelochemicals. These results demonstrate that F. retusa leaf litter may reduce plant cover and species richness. The significant inhibition in both field and greenhouse experiments could be attributed to phenolic and flavonoid allelochemicals released from the tree litter, as the osmotic potential of the litter had no effect on the understory species. The allelopathic potential of F. retusa leaf litter plays at least a partial role in reducing urban vegetation.

Aims: The aim of present investigation was to evaluate the traditional claim of Ficus retusa as an anti-diarrheal and anti-spasmodic agent using different pharmacological models. Background: Diarrhea is considered as major cause of mortality, especially in children and aged persons. Because of diarrhoea, 17% of admitted children get die. In order to treat the diarrhea, natural drugs may be useful. Objective: In order to prove the traditional claim of Ficus retusa, present work was undertaken with objective to prove antidiarrheal and antispasmodic activity. Methods: The anti-diarrhoeal activity was evaluated by magnesium sulphate induced diarrhea and 5-hydroxy tryptamine(5HT) induced diarrhea. Further, the exact were subjected to gastrointestinal motility test using standard procedure. Conclusion: The response towards bioactivity was dose dependent. It was concluded that 400mg/kg bw of ethanolic extract is most potent in antidiarrhoeal and antispasmodic activity.

Virtually, one usually experiences a significant coolness around and under trees in comparison to open sunshine, with qualitative variations. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of irrigation with saline water (8000 and 16000 ppm) on some trees and their effect on transpiration rates, and the impact of these trees on reducing the atmospheric temperature and therefore their impact on climate change. The trees under study were used in the study: Bauhinia variegata, Cassia fistula, Cassia nodosa, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, Ficus retusa and Khaya senegalensis. In general, results indicated that, the atmosphere was cooler around Cassia fistula by reduction of atmospheric temperature by 6.5 °C (also, it produces odorous flowers) followed by Eucalyptus camaldulensis (5.3 °C). Reduction of temperature was correlated with high transpiration rate after irrigation with saline water after 2, 4 and 8 days of irrigation. It can be concluded that, using of saline water in irrigation of ornamental trees is efficient to induce the cooling effect in our gardens. Also, results showed the superiority of some trees in their efficiency in absorbing CO2 and were in the following order: Ficus religiosa (87.65); Bauhinia variegata (83.76); Cassia nodosa (81.53); Eucalyptus camaldulensis (80.15); Khaya senegalensis (79.04); Chorisia speciosa (73.29); Cassia fistula (72.54); Bombax malabaricum (72.34); Erythrina variegata (71.82); Ficus retusa (71.33); Ficus benghalensis (67.20) and Tipuana speciosa (65.99).

Because the different plant species showed a different behaviour against air pollution in the different sites and even in the same site, the present study was conducted on some selected ornamental plants grown together in different parts of Japanese garden, industrial Helwan City, the greatest Cairo, Egypt during the summer season 2017 to determine the relative tolerance of these plants to air pollution prevailing in this city using the air pollution tolerance index (APTI), which estimated by the use of four physio-biochemical parameters of the leaves, i.e. ascorbic acid content, relative water content (RWC %), leaf extract pH and total chlorophyll content as a practical tool for determining tolerance level of the plants and comparing among themselves. Mature leaf samples were monthly collected for 3 times during the morning hours from the selected ornamental plants grown in the North, Middle, South, East and West parts of the garden for analyzing. The APTI scale was used for determination of sensitivity/tolerance degree for every plant species.The obtained results indicated that a considerable variation in the means of ascorbic acid content, RWC %, pH of the leaf extract, total chlorophyll content and APTI values were observed among the different plant species selected from each part. Thus, every species exhibited a sole behaviour than the other ones under air pollution conditions of the same place. Based on the APTI values of various species in every individual place of the garden and the corresponding tolerance degree, it can be advised to plant Yucca elephantipes, Ficus benjamina, Bauhinia variegata and Lantana camara species in the North part; Yucca elephantipes, Cassia nodosa, C. fistula and F. benjamina species in the Middle part; C. fistula, Delonix regia (Poinciana), Ficus cycomorus (Gemez), Lantana camara and Washingtonia filifera palm in the South part; Ficus benghalensis, Codiaeum variegata (Croton), Duranta erecta and Lantana camara species in the East part, while for the West part, it is prefer to plant Delonix regia (Pionciana), Pinus halepensis, Bauhinia variegata, Ficus retusa (F. nitida), F. microcarpa "Hawii", Lantana camara and Brachychiton porpulenum species as the most suitable ornamental plants for air pollution load prevailing in every part of Japanese garden.

Currently, there is lack of data provided in the literature regarding the wood quality of locally grown timber trees. It is known that the wood quality varies greatly from one geographical area to another depending on the growth conditions and environmental factors. Therefore, this study aimed to characterize the wood quality of three hardwoods species; Dalbergia sissoo Roxb. (irrigated with treated wastewater), Morus nigra, and Ficus retusa L. grown in Egypt in order to find the possible utiliz

Propagation and seedling growth characteristics of five plant species: Duranta repens (Yellow bush), Hamelia patens (Fire bush), Ficus retusa (Yellow ficus), Buxus sempervirens (Boxwood / West indies) and Acalypha wilkesiana (Copper leaf), were examined in the nursery as indices of suitability for use as hedge plants in the landscape. The experiment was laid out in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with four replicates where the treatments were the plant species. Cuttings were cultivated in polyethylene pots filled with top soil medium. Data collected included: time to rooting, rooting percentage, number of leaves/plant, seedling height and stem girth. They were subjected to analysis of variance and means separated using Least Significant Difference (LSD) at 5% probability level. It took Acalypha wilkesiana , Duranta repens and Hamelia patens species shortest time (21 days) to root while Buxus sempervirens and Ficus retusa took the longest time (28 days) for rooting. Duranta repens species produced the highest rooting percentage (80.5%) at 28 days after planting and the highest number of leaves/plant (15leaves). This study revealed Duranta repens as the easiest to propagate among these species. All plant species evaluated except Ficus retusa are easily propagated in the nursery thus indicating their potential suitability for commercial production in the nursery and use as hedge plants. Duranta repens and Buxus sempervirens are recommended as hedge plant choices based on their ease of propagation and early establishment.

Fluctuacions en les poblacions de Gynaikothrips ficorum (Marchal, 1908) (Thysanoptera, Tubulifera) i dels seus enemics naturals a les gales de fulles de Ficus retusa a Algèria L’estudi consisteix en l’observació de les fluctuacions mensuals de les poblacions d’aranyols en Ficus retusa, així com dels seus paràsits i depredadors coneguts, a Boudouaou. Amb aquest objectiu, cada quinze dies es van recollir 20 fulles de cadascun dels arbres seleccionats, durant 12 mesos de gener a desembre de 2015. Aparentment, el nombre d’ous augmenta considerablement a l’agost, quan se’n van registrar 11.163, valor que es va superar lleugerament a l’octubre, amb 11.471 ous. Durant la primavera i l’hivern es va registrar una absència gairebé total d’ous. Se superposen els estadis larvaris 1 i 2 (L1 i L2): L1 va d’agost a octubre, amb 27 i 51 individus respectivament, seguit d’ L2, amb 65 i 186 individus d’octubre a desembre. Les prepupes estan actives a l’abril i al juny, quan assoleixen 46 i 50 individus, respectivament, i augmenten fins a 266 al novembre, si bé mostren valors elevats al juny i al juliol, amb 171 i 135 exemplars respectivament. Els individus adults augmenten progressivament fins a arribar al màxim al començament de desembre, amb 642 individus. També s’han identificat dos depredadors: Montandoniola confusa (Hemiptera, Anthocoridae) i Nephus peyerimhoffi (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) i només un paràsit: Tetrastichus gentile (Hymenoptera, Eulophidae), que apareix al final després dels altres depredadors i actua juntament amb aquests., Monthly fluctuations of thrip populations on Ficus retusa were monitored and parasites and predators in Boudouaou, Algeria, were identified. Twenty leaves were collected fortnightly from 30 trees from January to December 2015. The number of eggs increased significantly in August with 11,163 eggs and was slightly higher in October with 11,471 eggs. Presence was rare in spring and winter. The 1st and 2nd larval stages (L1 and L2) overlapped: L1 were present from August to October with 27 and 51individuals respectively, and L2 were present from August to December with 65 to 186 individuals respectively. Prepupae were active in April and June, reaching 46 and 50 individuals respectively, before increasing to 266 in November. Highest numbers of pupae were observed in June (171) and July (135). The number of adults gradually increased, reaching a maximum of 642 in early December. Two predators were identified: Montandoniola confusa (Hemiptera, Anthocoridae) and Nephus peyerimhoffi (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae). A parasite, Tetrastichus gentilei (Hymenoptera, Eulophidae), was also later identified., Fluctuaciones en las poblaciones de Gynaikothrips ficorum (Marchal, 1908) (Thysanoptera, Tubulifera) y de sus enemigos naturales en las agallas de hojas de Ficus retusa en Argelia El estudio consiste en la observación de las fluctuaciones mensuales de las poblaciones de arañuelas en Ficus retusa, así como de sus parásitos y depredadores conocidos, en Boudouaou. Para ello, cada quince días se recogieron 20 hojas de cada uno de los árboles seleccionados, durante 12 meses de enero a diciembre de 2015. Aparentemente, el número de huevos aumenta considerablemente en agosto, cuando se registraron 11.163 huevos, valor que se superó ligeramente en octubre, con 11.471 huevos, frente a una ausencia casi total de los mismos en primavera e invierno. Se solapan los estadios larvarios 1 y 2 (L1 y L2): L1 va de agosto a octubre, con 27 y 51 individuos respectivamente, seguido de L2, con 65 y 186 individuos de octubre a diciembre. Las prepupas están activas en abril y junio, cuando alcanzan 46 y 50 individuos, respectivamente, para aumentar hasta 266 en noviembre, si bien muestran valores elevados en junio y julio, con 171 y 135 ejemplares respectivamente. Los individuos adultos aumentan progresivamente hasta llegar al máximo a principios de diciembre, con 642 individuos. Se han identificado asimismo, dos depredadores: Montandoniola confusa (Hemiptera, Anthocoridae) y Nephus peyerimhoffi (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) y solo un parásito: Tetrastichus gentile (Hymenoptera, Eulophidae), que aparece al final tras los otros dos depredadores y actúa junto con estos.

The tree species differed by their capacity to capture air-borne dust and to allocate trace element from contaminated soil. The aim of this study was to explore the accumulation potential of heavy metals (HMs) by F. retusa L. and its possible use for air pollution biomonitoring in urban areas. Plant material was sampled along the national roads in Constantine city (NE-Algeria), characterized by an intense traffic load. The concentrations of cadmium, copper, lead and zinc were determined in the washed and unwashed leaves. The mean concentrations of HMs decrease in the following order: Zn > Pb > Cu > Cd for both studied leaves, and were about 0.68 and 0.98 µg/g for Cd, 7.26 and 8.74 µg/g for Cu, 20.35 and 37.61 µg/g for Pb and 63.33 µg/g and 75.94 µg/g for Zn, for washed/unwashed leaves respectively. The studied metal contents were significantly higher than those cited in the literature; this indicates the traffic road impact on HMs emissions and uptake by plants. Higher values of metal accumulation index (MAI) indicate the effectiveness of the studied species for monitoring air metallic pollution in urban areas, and its usefulness for phytoextraction of HMs from the polluted soils and/or air. Results of this study could be beneficial as preliminary reference values for HMs uptake by F. retusa in urban environments.

Synthesis of AgNPs was attempted using aqueous Ficus retusa leaf extract (FRLE). The effects of silver nitrate concentrations, FRLE volume, initial pH and temperature on synthesis were also studied. TEM revealed the size of AgNPs in range of 5–35nm and crystal structure was confirmed by XRD. FTIR showed the capping of AgNPs by biomolecules of FRLE. Zeta potential of −39.1 indicates good stability of AgNPs. The AgNPs were evaluated for their antibacterial and high catalytic activity in enhancing decolourisation of eriochrome black T dye in presence of sodium borohydride (from 19.74 to 86.05%) and light source (from 41.96 to 80.11%).

In this study, 18 plant growth-promoting bacterial (PGPB) strains were isolated from the rhizosphere of both Red silk-cotton tree (Bombax malabaricum) and Chinese banyan (Ficus retusa). Culture morphology was observed and genotypic characterization was accomplished by sequencing partial 16S rRNA gene. Plant growth promotion traits and antagonistic activities of the strains against phytopathogenic fungi were evaluated. Among all strains, Bacillus thuringiensis (MN419208) exert the highest indole acetic acid (38 µg/ml), produced exopolysaccharides (587.2 µg/ml), and fixed nitrogen which in turn increased both fresh and dry weights of bean plants by 41.5% and 18.8%, respectively. In another greenhouse experiment studying the antifungal activities of seven strains and their co-culture against Rhizoctonia solani (LN735538), B. sonorensis MN419205, B. wiedmannii MN419207, B. subtilis MN419218, and the mixture of (MN419207) and (MN419208) reduced total damping off from 81.7% in control to 30%, 35%, 35%, and 38.3%, respectively, and reduced disease severity index from 33.3% to 20.5%, 22.5%, 14.2%, and 19.3% as well. Our data indicate that these strains are effective in promoting plant growth and in inhibiting R. solani infection nonetheless field experiments are needed to examine their effectiveness as a viable alternative to chemical fertilizers and conventional pesticides.

Ficus retusa (F. retusa) belongs to family Moraceae is a large and extensively growing tree across Indian continent. It's commonly known as Chilkan and Marabuten. This tree is claimed to have medicinal properties. The aim of present study is to investigate the pharmacognostical characters of important medicinal plant, F. retusa L. The pharmacognostic studies were carried out in terms of macroscopical, microscopical characters, standardization, phytoconstituents and chromatographic analysis of F. retusa leaf and bark. Various standard methods were adopted to carry out the investigation.

Background: Ficus microcarpa L. fil. (Syn: Ficus retusa) (Moraceae) is well-known traditional medicinal plant. The bark is used for diverse health ailments in traditional and folklore remedies. Aims: The present study was undertaken to lay down pharmacognostical and phytochemical standards. Materials and Methods: Pharmacognostic studies on fresh, dried and powdered bark was carried out to determine it's morphological, anatomical, and phytochemical diagnostic features. Furthermore, major phytoconstituents were identified from the extracts with the help of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) study. Results: The morphology showed to be soft, brittle, rough, shallow vertical, irregularly oriented fissures, curved surface; with splintering, laminated fracture. Microscopically F. microcarpa showed all general characteristics of bark with some distinct differentiation. The phellem is thin and even, phelloderm few cell and rectangular and followed by smaller sclerides, the phloem rays are broad, multi-serrate and showed the scattered bundles of sclerides. The fluorescence and physicochemical standards for bark were established. HPLC analysis showed the predominant presence of therapeutically important phytoconstituents such as oleanolic, betulinic acid, lupeol, β-sitosterol, catechin, and gallic acid. Conclusion: The bark of F. microcarpa considered equivalent to other Ficus species, such as Ficus virens, Ficus infectoria, Ficus arnottiana, Ficus lacor, and Ficus talboti. However, there is no pharmacognostical and phytochemical reports on F. microcarpa to authenticate and differentiate it from similar species. Present work has described pharmacognostical and phytochemical characteristics of F. microcarpa and diagnostic features to differentiate it.

We studied the diet of the Indian flying fox (Pteropus giganteus) in Pakistan from March 2008 to February 2009 and found that the bats fed on 20 species belonging to 11 plant families. Of these, four families (Anacardiaceae, Bignonaceae, Malvaceae, and Sapotaceae) were identified from remnants of flower petals in food boluses while the remaining families (Annonaceae, Arecaceae, Ebenaceae, Meliaceae, Moraceae, Myrtaceae, and Sapindaceae) were identified from the seeds in the boluses and from guano samples. Plants in the family Moraceae (50.7%) comprised most of the bat’s diet. Fruit of Ficus retusa (27.5%) and F. carica (23.0%) during winter, F. glomerata (30.9%) and F. religiosa (28.1%) during spring, Psidium guajava (19.6%), F. bengalensis (18.7%) and Diospyros peregrina (17.8%) during summer, and D. peregrina (71.9%) during autumn, were the most frequently identified items. The four seasonal diets varied significantly (χ 2 = 435, d.f. = 18, P < 0.01). Results confirm that the ecological services rendered by P. giganteus, such as pollination and seed dispersal, outweigh its losses, such as damage to the ripe fruit. Hence, the species should not be regarded as a pest; rather efforts should be made to ensure its conservation.

During the last decade, the presence of thrips on crops has manifested itself by the increase in viral diseases transmitted by some species. This study proposes a first approach to these Thysanoptera, which have been very little studied in Algeria. An exploration and identification of thrips on different host plants in coastal and sub- coastal regions in Algeria were made for 2 consecutive years. The taxonomic study enabled the determination of 5 species. There were two Tubulifera-Phlaeothripidae, being Gynaikothrips ficorum (Marchal, 1908), which is strictly limited to Ficus retusa, and Haplothrips tritici (Kurdjumov, 1912), is harvested from Anacylus clavatus and Avena sterilis, and two Terebrantia-Thripidae, Odontothrips loti (Haliday, 1852 on jasmine and Pittosporum tobira, and Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande, 1895) collected from roses, Cucurbita pepo and Cucumis sativus. The fifth species was Limothrips cerealium (Haliday, 1836), which was harvested from Triticum durum, Triticum aestivum and Avena sterilis.

Resistance to conventional fungicides causes poor disease control in agriculture. Natural products from plants have great potential as novel fungicide sources for controlling pathogenic fungi. In this study the antipathogenic activity of the leaf juices of 11 plant species (Chenopodium ambrosioides, Pulicaria vulgaris, Lavandula pubescens, Lavandula dentata, Ageratum conyzoides, Ficus retusa, Zizyphus nummularia, Acacia tortilis, Phragmanthera sp. Aff. Rufescens, Lawsonia alba and Olea europaea) were evaluated in vitro against three plant pathogenic fungi (Fusarium solani, Phytophthora spp. and Rhizoctonia solani). Plate assays showed that the leaf aqueous juices have antifungal activity against these fungi. The aqueous extracts of Pulicaria vulgaris, Lavandula dentata, Ageratum conyzoides, Ficus retusa, Zizyphus nummularia, Acacia tortilis, Phragmanthera sp. Aff. Rufescens (when associated with Acacia tortilis), Lawsonia alba and Olea europaea exhibited antifungal properties against Fusarium solani, Phyt...

Ridwan M, Pamungkas DW. 2015. Diversity of trees around the springs in Panekan Sub-district, Magetan, East Java. Pros Sem Nas Masy Biodiv Indon 1: 1375-1379. Natural water sources usually appear on areas with certain vegetation conditions. Panekan Sub-district has a lot of water springs that are still natural with dense vegetation in the surrounding areas. The purpose of this study was to identify species of trees commonly found in the spring in the Sub-district of Panekan, Magetan, East Java. The method used was an exploration to capture any kind of trees in a radius of 20 meters around the springs. The results showed as many as 29 species of trees from 16 families found around the springs in Sub-district of Panekan. The dominant species was Moraceae group such as Ficus microcarpa, Ficus elastica, Ficus retusa, Ficus racemosa, Ficus annulata and Ficus benjamina.

The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of container volume, container shape, and copper-coating containers on root and shoot growth during nursery production and after establishment in the field. Liners of ficus (Ficus retusa L. ‘Nitida’), a fibrous-rooted species, and Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi.), a coarse-rooted species, were grown in regular or tall #1 containers in a glasshouse and were subsequently transplanted to the field or into #3 or #5 regular or tall containers. During the nursery phase, copper-coated containers improved rootball quality of ficus and pepper, but biomass production was not affected consistenly by copper coating. Tall, narrow versus regular containers restricted pepper growth throughout the nursery phase and field establishment, but had little effect on ficus. Biomass production of pepper trees was greatest in regular-shaped containers, and tall containers reduced growth consistently. Container shape did not affect shoot growth of ficus. The larger container volume of the #5 yielded greater total biomass of pepper and root dry weight of ficus during nursery production than did #3 pots. In the field, shoot dry weight of ficus was greatest when previously grown in #5 containers, and total biomass of pepper was greatest in both regular #3 or #5 containers.

Three kinds of common plant: bastard banian (Ficus retusa), hsianshih trees (Acacia confusa) and pine trees including their cones grown in semitropical areas were investigated to serve as bio-indicators for 137Cs contamination in soil in Taiwan. Gamma spectroscopy was performed to measure the concentration of 137Cs in soil and different parts of the plants. The results indicate that either the pendent rootlets of the bastard banian or the pine tree including its cones can be used as bio-indicators for environmental radioactivity monitoring. Though the effectiveness of the hsianshih tree as an indicator is known to be inferior to others, its popularity makes it a potential bio-indicator in semitropical area.

Background. The urban area continues growing, and in most cases, the planning of green areas does not include in the species selection their physiological characteristics, which determine plant survival. Question/Hypothesis. Stomatal conductance (gS) is a key variable that provides information on how the environment affects a plant physiology. Therefore it is important to inquire how gS is affected in an urban site. Studied species/Data description. Data of environmental variables (photosynthetically active radiation, PAR; air temperature, T A; vapor pressure deficit, VPD ), leaf water potential, ?; and gS were collected in four species Ficus retusa , Fraxinus uhdei, Ligustrum lucidum and Quercus rugosa . Study site and years of study. Two sites, in the center and in the rural area, were selected in Puebla, Mexico, during the wet and dry seasons (2012-2013). Methods. Environmental variables, gS and ? were measured with a diffusion porometer and a pressure bomb through the day every two hours in apparently healthy leaves. Also an experiment under greenhouse conditions was performed. Results. Maximum values of PAR, T A and VPD were registered in the city center in the dry season, whereas maximum gS and ? were found in the rural area in the wet season. ? and gS were significantly higher in F. retusa followed by F. uhdei, whereas the lower values were observed in L. lucidum and Q. rugosa . All variables affected gS for all species. Conclusions. The results demonstrate that it is possible to recommend Ficus retusa and Fraxinus uhdei as suitable species to ameliorate the urban environment.

The antibacterial activity of methanolic crude extract and its subsequent fractionation into ethyl acetate, n -butanol, chloroform and aqueous fractions from wood, bark and leaves of Ficus benghalensis L., Ficus retusa L., Dalbergia sissoo Roxb., Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels, Populus nigra L. and Cupressus sempervirens L. grown in Egypt was investigated against some pathogenic bacteria. The antibacterial susceptibility test was evaluated by disc-diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentrations methods. The MCE and ethyl acetate fraction were found to possess maximum antibacterial activity. The ethyl acetate and n -butanol fractions from S. cumini presented good activity against tested bacteria. The wood chloroform fraction from F . retusa and P. nigra displayed some activity against the tested bacteria. Other trees had different antibacterial activity. The obtained results could be considered adequate for further studies for the isolation and identification of the active chemical components from the extracts for their antibacterial activity. These findings demonstrated that the species had great potential to be used as a bio-resource for natural health products and food preservation.

The internal wiring of an existing stem or trunk flow gauge was redesigned to obtain greater accuracy of the gauge itself, eliminate errors due to signal loss in connecting cables, and reduce the number of channels and of the computing required of the datalogger Tests of the gauge conducted on bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) and Ficus retusa (L.) Nitida trees, in a greenhouse and in an urban backyard, and under well-watered and dry conditions gave daily sap mass flow rates that were within 5% of those obtained by direct weighing

Ficus retusa Linnaeus, Systema Naturae, ed. 12, 2: 681; Mantissa Plantarum: 129. 1767. "Habitat in India." RCN: 7724. Lectotype (Corner in Gard. Bull. Straits Settlem. 17: 393. 1960): Herb. Linn. No. 1240.10 (LINN). Current name: Ficus retusa L. (Moraceae)., Published as part of Jarvis, Charlie, 2007, Chapter 7: Linnaean Plant Names and their Types (part F), pp. 516-528 in Order out of Chaos. Linnaean Plant Types and their Types, London :Linnaean Society of London in association with the Natural History Museum on page 520, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.291971

A greater percentage of yellow ficus ( Ficus retusa ‘Nitida’) seedlings die out at the nursery production stage as they can be stressed easily. Rooting time is slow (30-60 DAP) and any disturbance in the root system could be fatal. Some die without any reason. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the rooting, growth and sustainability of yellow ficus in varying growth media to determine the efficient growth media for its propagation. A cutting of yellow ficus each with eight (8) nodes was planted per black polythene nursery bag each filled with different growth media. The growth media utilised were: topsoil alone, sawdust alone, topsoil + cow dung (4:1), topsoil + poultry manure (4:1), cow dung + sawdust (1:4), sawdust + poultry manure + topsoil (1:1:3) and sawdust + cow dung + topsoil (1:1:3). The experimental design was Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications. Significantly (P sawdust alone (15.18, 12.78) > sawdust + cow dung + topsoil (1:1:3) (8.35, 6.80) > topsoil + cow dung (4:1), (8.79, 4.71) > topsoil + poultry manure (4:1) (5.24., 4.65) > cow dung + sawdust (1:4) (3.00, 3.36) at both plantings. The growth medium Sawdust + cow dung + topsoil (1:1:3) significantly (at P topsoil alone (0.12, 0.13); > topsoil + cow dung (4:1) (0.11, 0.12) > topsoil + poultry manure (4:1) (0.11, 0.10). Significant growth media influences on the number of branches and branch lengths of this plant were observed. Sawdust + cow dung + topsoil (1:1:3) medium most favorably supported establishment and sustenance of yellow ficus plants. Keywords : Ficus, Potting media, response, seedlings, sustenance, vegetative growth.

The branching and spread of roots in containers was studied in a shallow rooting plant (Erythrina corralodendrum) and in a deep-rooting plant (oak, Quercus ithaburensis). In the Erythrina, the weight of the roots was found to decrease towards the base of the container. Sixty percent of the root system was laterals, which were evenly distributed throughout the container. In the oak, a higher root weight was found in the lowest third of the container than in the 2 upper thirds. Lateral roots comprised 14% of the complete root system, mostly in the base of the container. Severe pruning of oak roots resulted in a ratio of main-root/lateral roots comparable to that found in unpruned Erythrina. The growth and distribution of roots of plants with different growth characteristics in containers of various shapes, e.g. deep and narrow, or shallow and wide as compared to regular shape containers, were studied. Thus, in Ficus retusa, which has a shallow root system, the development of roots was stimulated in a shallow and wide container, but roots and canopy were restricted in a deep and narrow container. In Pistacia lentiscus, which has a deep root system, planting in a shallow and wide container resulted in retarded canopy and roots, while growing the same plant in a narrow and deep container showed a stimulated root growth. In Dodonea viscosa, whose root system is naturally deep and tends to spread laterally, a slight retardation of the root development was found when it was grown in a shallow and wide container. When grown in a deep and narrow container, canopy and root growth were stimulated. The study indicated that growth tends to be stimulated when there is a mutual matching between the natural growth pattern of roots and the shape of their container.

Short-range attraction/feeding stimulation of male Mediterranean fruit flies [Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), (Diptera: Tephritidae)] to a stem extract of a host plant,Litchi chinensis Sonn. (Sapindaceae), and to milky exudates from stems of nonhost plants,Ficus retusa L. andF. benjamina L. (Moraceae), were attributed to the presence of the sesquiterpene α-copaene. The presence of α-copaene in the milky exudate from stems ofF. benghalensis L. is also suggested as eliciting similar behavioral responses in male medflies. The presence of minor quantities of α-ylangene in the plants and its contributory effects to the behavioral response of male medflies is discussed. Short-range attraction/feeding stimulation of male medflies to equal amounts of α-ylangene-free α-copaene samples (94.5%+), prepared from α-copaene-enriched angelica seed oil and copaiba oil, respectively, showed no difference in intensity of response. α-Ylangene elicited a slightly less intense response for male medflies than α-copaene.

The present paper includes eight parasitic fungi occurring at Jabalpur.Gloeosporium pestis onDioscorea bulbifera andPseudocercospora vitis onVitis vinifera are two new fungus records for the country.Alternaria tenuis onCarica papaya, Alternaria tenuissima onPhaseolus vulgaris, Ricinus communis, andPancratium sp.,Colletotrichum capsici onPlumaria acutifolia, Glomerella cingulata onBauhinia variegata, Ficus retusa, andPestalotiopsis versicolor onTerminalia tomentosa are new hosts records for the fungi.Macrophomina phaseoli onAbelmoschus esculentis is a new fungus record for the state.