Banyan trees an environmental treasure worth protecting

Banyans usually grow on hardwood hammocks, raised areas of land. They are considered a keystone species, essential to the hardwood tropical ecosystem, and grow tall and wide.

April 11, 2025

Most of us recognize and appreciate Banyan trees, but few of us understand their importance to our environment. banyan, ficus aurea, is another name for strangler fig or golden fig and is one of only two native ficus species in Florida (ficus citrifolia, the short leaf fig, is the other).  It is one of the most interesting trees in a North American Everglades tropical hardwood hammock.

Banyans start their lives as epiphytes germinated from sticky seeds that lodge in the branches or crevasses of another tree. The young plant puts out long aerial roots which eventually reach the ground and then grow quickly as they draw water and nutrients from the soil.

The aerial roots of a banyan tree begin as thin tendrils emerging from upper branches and can take months to reach the ground.

Sabal palms are exceptionally good hosts for stranglers as seeds often find their way into the receptive “boots” of the palms where moist, nutrient rich conditions are perfect for germination.

Once the aerial roots reach the ground, the plant is no longer an epiphyte, and becomes a fast-growing tree, with spreading lateral limbs that eventually drop more aerial roots, enabling the tree to enlarge to enormous proportions.

A Banyan’s aerial roots become separate trunks supporting lateral growth.

Banyans can reach 60 to 80 feet in height with an equal or larger spread. As the aerial roots descend, they often completely envelop the host tree, while the developing crown shades out necessary sunlight. The dying host appears to have been “strangled”, hence the name strangler fig. The dead host tree often leaves the fig with a hollow trunk when it decomposes, providing more nutrients as it decays.

Banyans usually grow on hardwood hammocks, which are raised areas of land protected from fire, flood and saltwater. They are considered a keystone species, essential to the hardwood tropical ecosystem which also includes sabal palms, gumbo limbo, slash pine, saw palmetto, and live oak

The aerial roots of banyans begin as thin tendrils emerging from upper branches and can take months to reach the ground.

Aside from their height and spread, banyans can live for hundreds of years. The thick, shiny green leaves provide dense shade and the surface roots and hollow trunk offer essential habitat to thousands of invertebrates, bats, reptiles, amphibians, and birds. They are the larval host plants for the ruddy and Antillean daggerwing butterflies. These wild native fig trees produce tremendous amounts of fruit, which are a key food source for birds and mammals.

Ficus aurea are pollinated by a single species of wasp, (Pegascapus jimenezi) and will stay in almost continual bloom to retain and nourish these pollinating wasps. Fruits are produced throughout the year and this is the easiest way to tell the two native species of ficus apart: ficus aurea, with larger leaves, has ripe yellow fruits that are close to the stem.

The oval, evergreen leaves of Ficus aurea are handsome and disease resistant.

Ficus citrifolia has smaller leaves and produces red fruits on slender stalks.

Indigenous peoples and early settlers in Florida relied on the edible fruit of ficus aurea, which also was used to make a rose-colored dye. Latex from the tree’s milky sap made a chewing gum, and aerial roots were used to make lashings, arrows, bowstrings and fishing lines. Seminoles used the bark to treat wounds and extracts have been shown to be anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic.

The unique features of Florida’s banyan or strangler fig make it a fascinating study in environmental symbiosis. Once established on land, the aerial roots provide structural support for the tree while stabilizing the soil and preventing erosion. The expansive canopy offers essential shade and shelter to birds and wildlife while creating an important microhabitat for other plants. Through an intricate web of resilience and diversity, this tree helps maintain the health and balance of the ecosystem in which it exists.

Banyans can also grow directly from seeds on the ground. Those found in gardens, probably from a visiting bird, can be potted for transfer to a suitable home.

But banyans are in trouble everywhere; they are regularly bulldozed or cut down by developers and because they require so much space, they are not often replanted on smaller lots. The site of the future Boys & Girls Club in West Palm Beach, at the corner of Southern Boulevard and Interstate 95, is one such spot where several large and distinguished banyans were slated for the axe. This property is part of the original 108-acre tract of land that was once Bacon Park. And here it's interesting to bring in a little backstory on the origin of the adjacent Dreher park, now the Palm Beach Zoo, and Mr. Dreher, affectionately known as the “Johnny Appleseed” of West Palm Beach.  

In 1924, 21-year-old Paul Dreher arrived in Florida from Germany, armed with a degree in horticulture. After teaching himself English, in 1931 he became an employee of West Palm Beach, where he was instrumental in filling marshes and building Currie, Phipps, and Howard parks. Dreher planted thousands of trees In West Palm Beach during his lifetime and became its first director of parks. In 1951, after convincing the town to purchase the 108-acre Bacon Park on the corner of what is now Southern Boulevard and Interstate 95, Dreher set about stocking the area with trees and shrubs. He built a small red barn and opened the town’s first petting zoo with a goat, some chickens, ducks and geese. In 1957, this became the Dreher Park Zoo. The name changed to the Palm Beach Zoo at Dreher Park in 1997 and later, the Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society. It now houses more than 500 animals.

Banyan trees develop beautiful symmetry, with aerial roots supporting lateral branches.

The fortunate and happy ending to this story is that many of the trees slated to be cut down on the Boys & Girls Club property (which included several enormous banyans probably planted by Dreher) will instead be moved to other locations within the park. This sets an important precedent for planning boards and hopefully future members of the Boys & Girls Club will learn a life lesson on the importance of adding and maintaining trees for a sustainable environment. Dreher died at the age of 90 in 1993; his legacy lives on through his innumerable and invaluable tree plantings which provide shade, shelter, sustenance and beauty for the animals and visitors to the Palm Beach Zoo.

 -Kim Frisbie

Original article on the Palm Beach Daily News is HERE.