Ficus obliqua, commonly known as the small-leaved fig, is a tree native to eastern Australia, New Guinea, eastern Indonesia to Sulawesi and islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It is a banyan of the genus Ficus, which contains around 750 species worldwide in warm climates, including the edible fig. Beginning life as a seedling, which grows on other plants (epiphyte) or on rocks (lithophyte), F. obliqua can grow to 60 m (200 ft) high and nearly as wide with a pale grey buttressed trunk, and glossy green leaves. The small round yellow fruit ripen and turn red at any time of year, although they peak in autumn and winter (April to July). Known as a syconium, the fruit is an inverted inflorescence with the flowers aligning an internal cavity. F. obliqua is pollinated by two species of fig wasp—Pleistodontes greenwoodi and P. xanthocephalus. Many species of bird, including pigeons, parrots and various passerines, eat the fruit. It is used as a shade tree in parks and public spaces, and is well-suited for use as an indoor plant or in bonsai. All parts of the tree have been used in traditional medicine in Fiji.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficus_obliqua

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1142:

The Treaty of Shaoxing, ending the Jurchen campaigns against the Song Dynasty, was formally ratified when a Jin envoy visited the Southern Song court. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurchen_campaigns_against_the_Song_Dynasty

1531:

Swiss Reformation leader Huldrych Zwingli was killed in battle when Catholic cantons attacked in response to a food blockade being applied by his alliance. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huldrych_Zwingli

1776:

American Revolutionary War: The British Royal Navy defeated American ships at the Battle of Valcour Island on Lake Champlain, but gave American forces enough time to prepare their defenses for the Saratoga campaign. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Valcour_Island

1968:

Apollo 7 (lift-off pictured), the first manned mission of NASA's Apollo program, and the first three-man American space mission, launched from Complex 34 in present-day Cape Canaveral, Florida. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_7

1987:

Sri Lankan Civil War: The Indian Peace Keeping Force began Operation Pawan to take control of Jaffna from the Tamil Tigers to enforce their disarmament as a part of the Indo-Sri Lankan Accord. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Pawan

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

microcosm: 1. A smaller system which is representative of or analogous to a larger one. 2. A small natural ecosystem; an artificial ecosystem set up as an experimental model. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/microcosm

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

One of the blessings of age is to learn not to part on a note of sharpness, to treasure the moments spent with those we love, and to make them whenever possible good to remember, for time is short.   --Eleanor Roosevelt https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Eleanor_Roosevelt