Craving some fresh fruit? The Bellamy’s got you covered! The mansion grounds are home to a lovely Ficus carica, known by its common nomenclature as the fig tree (“Ficus carica ‘Brown Turkey,’”n.d.). This tree in particular is a Brown Turkey fig, a species grown in the southeast (Polomski, 2012). Additionally, according to our 2010 records, this flora is considered an heirloom plant, similar to the Magnolia grandiflora detailed in one of our previous posts.
Ficus carica require “full sun to part shade” in order to flourish (“Ficus carica ‘Brown Turkey,’”n.d.). This is primarily the reason as to why our tree here at the Bellamy is located in the herb garden between the urban slave quarters and carriage house; it is one of the few areas within the grounds that receives constant sunlight. After receiving sufficient sunlight and water, figs can grow anywhere from “15 to 30 ft tall,” with ours falling within that range (Polomski, 2012).
Once a Ficus carica is fully grown it begins to yield fruit. Although ours bloomed a little early this year, the trees typically produce figs towards “late summer” (“Ficus carica ‘Brown Turkey,’”n.d.). Unfortunately, this means that the flora will not be in season for the Azalea Garden Tour; but even when it is not bearing fruit the tree adds to the overall ambiance of the Bellamy grounds. That being said, there is plenty of fruit to go around as of right now! Here at the Bellamy, ripe figs are light brown in color, with unripe fruit appearing yellow. We don’t utilize any sprays so you can pick ripe figs right off of the tree and eat them during your tour! In addition, our gardeners often pick an abundance of figs in the early morning and place them in a bowl at the front desk for any and all guests (and occasionally a hungry intern) to eat or take home. We even use over ripened fruit from the Ficus carica to make jams. So if you’re feeling famished stop by the Bellamy Mansion for some figs and a tour!
Want to learn how to make jam out of figs? Take a look at this page to learn how!
References
Ficus carica 'Brown Turkey.' (n.d.) Retrieved from
http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=245738&isprofile=0&.
Polomski, B. (2012). Fig. Retrieved from https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/fig/.
Want to learn how to make jam out of figs? Take a look at this page to learn how!
References
Ficus carica 'Brown Turkey.' (n.d.) Retrieved from
http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=245738&isprofile=0&.
Polomski, B. (2012). Fig. Retrieved from https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/fig/.
