Ficus sycomorus

Description:

Sycamore or Fig-mulberryMoraceae (Mulberry family or Fig family)"Now there was a man called by the name of Zacchaeus...Well, he was seeking to see who this Jesus was, but he could not for the crowd, because he was small in size. So he ran ahead to an advance position and climbed a fig-mulberry tree* in order to see him." (Luke 19:2-4; NWT)* Or, "sycamore tree."Native to Africa south of the Sahel and north of the Tropic of Capricorn, also excluding the central-west rainforest areas. It also grows naturally in Lebanon, where the famous Gemmayzeh Street is named after its Arabic name Gemmayz, the southern Arabian Peninsula, in Cyprus and in very localized areas in Madagascar, and has been naturalized in Israel and Egypt.Fruits are edible. www.flickr.com/photos/shanfari/4003980129/"This tree (Ficus sycomorus) has fruit like that of the common fig, but its foliage resembles that of the mulberry. It grows to a height of 10 to 15 m (33 to 50 ft), is strong, and may live several hundred years. Unlike the common fig, the sycamore (fig-mulberry) is an evergreen. While its heart-shaped leaves are smaller than those of the fig tree, the foliage is thick and wide-spreading, and the tree provides good shade. It was frequently planted along roadsides for that very reason. The short, stout trunk soon branches out with its lower limbs close to the ground, and thus made it a convenient tree along the roadside for a small man like Zacchaeus to climb in order to get a view of Jesus." (it-2 pp. 1049-50)