--- title: What tree is it? | Nimaro description: Discover the unique Nimaro tree, its ecological relationships, and its vital role in Nepal's agroforestry and local communities. image: https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/ficus_auriculata.jpg --- - [Sustainable Business](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/sustainable-business) - [Green light](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/green-light) - [Treedom World](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/treedom-world) - [Green Focus](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/green-focus) Topics - [Sustainable Business](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/sustainable-business) - [Green light](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/green-light) - [Treedom World](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/treedom-world) - [Green Focus](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/green-focus) [Go to Treedom](https://www.treedom.net/en/) - ![](https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/Treedom_April2021/Images/treedom-assets/flag/en.svg) - [![](https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/Treedom_April2021/Images/treedom-assets/flag/it.svg)It](https://blog.treedom.net/it) - [![](https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/Treedom_April2021/Images/treedom-assets/flag/de.svg)De](https://blog.treedom.net/de) - [![](https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/Treedom_April2021/Images/treedom-assets/flag/fr.svg)Fr](https://blog.treedom.net/fr) - [![](https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/Treedom_April2021/Images/treedom-assets/flag/es.svg)Es](https://blog.treedom.net/es) [Go to Treedom](https://www.treedom.net/en/) - [Blog](https://blog.treedom.net/en) - [trees](https://blog.treedom.net/en/tag/trees) - What tree is... # What tree is it? | Nimaro *Oct 02, 2026* | written by: [*Tommaso Ciuffoletti*](https://blog.treedom.net/en/author/tommaso-ciuffoletti) Condividi - ![facebook share](https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/Treedom_April2021/Images/facebook-icon-round.svg) - ![Twitter share](https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/Treedom_April2021/Images/twitter-icon-round.svg) - ![LinkedIn share](https://blog.treedom.net/hubfs/Treedom_April2021/Images/linkedin-icon-round.svg) **The Nimaro is one of the many tree species Treedom plants in its projects: a fig tree with enormous leaves and fruits that grow directly from the trunk. [We plant it in Nepal, where this species has long been part of everyday life in rural communities.](https://www.treedom.net/en/plant-a-tree/nimaro-tree_2149)** It doesn’t take long to realise that the Nimaro is not your average tree. Its leaves are large, *heart-shaped* and highly distinctive, earning it the English name *elephant ear fig*. Its scientific name is **Ficus auriculata**, and it belongs to the Moraceae family, the same family as the common fig and many other trees in the *Ficus* genus. It can grow to around 12 metres in height and develop several trunks. But its most striking feature becomes apparent when you look at its fruit: unlike the figs we are more familiar with in Europe, which generally appear on the branches, those of the Nimaro can grow directly from the trunk and older branches, sometimes in large clusters. When ripe, they turn reddish and can reach several centimetres in diameter. There is a particular botanical explanation for this. What we call a “fig” is not technically a fruit in the usual sense, but a structure known as a **syconium**, containing many tiny flowers inside. And this is where one of the most interesting stories about the Nimaro begins. ## A tree and a wasp, together Like many *Ficus* species, the Nimaro has developed a very close relationship with a small pollinating insect: a wasp called **Ceratosolen emarginatus**. Their relationship is a particularly precise example of *mutualism*. The wasp uses the Ficus syconium to complete its life cycle, while the tree relies on the wasp for pollination. When a female enters a suitable fig, she carries pollen collected during her previous visit. In doing so, she pollinates the flowers inside and, at the same time, finds the environment she needs to reproduce. The relationship is so close that the biology of the two species has evolved together over time. For the Nimaro, this means that even a seemingly ordinary fruit can be the result of a highly sophisticated ecological relationship, invisible to anyone looking at the tree from the outside. ## A tree you can eat ![nimaro](https://blog.treedom.net/hs-fs/hubfs/nimaro.png?width=702&height=556&name=nimaro.png) *Ficus auriculata* is native to a broad area of South and Southeast Asia: its natural range includes, among other countries, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and parts of southern China. It grows mainly in humid environments, including forests, valleys and areas where water is readily available. In Nepal, the Nimaro is known by several local names and has long been used by rural communities. Its ripe figs are edible, while its leaves and young branches are used as **livestock fodder**. It is therefore more than just a species found in the landscape: it can play a practical role in the economy and food systems of farming communities. This versatility is one of the reasons why the Nimaro can have a place in an agroforestry system. A single tree can provide food for people and biomass for animals, while its presence contributes to greater diversity within the agricultural system. Studies of agroforestry systems in Nepal include *Ficus auriculata* among the species used as fodder trees. ## A fig tree that makes room for biodiversity As with many trees in the *Ficus* genus, the Nimaro can play a role that goes beyond what it directly provides to people. Its figs are a food source for various fruit-eating animals and therefore contribute to the food webs of the ecosystem. And its relationship with its pollinating wasp shows how closely the presence of a single plant species can be connected to that of other organisms. This is perhaps one of the most interesting things about the Nimaro: several different functions coexist in the same tree. There is the fruit that can end up on the table, the leaf that can become livestock fodder, the wasp that depends on its hidden flowers, and a whole range of other organisms that can find food or shelter in the tree. That is why, when the Nimaro is planted in Nepal as part of Treedom’s projects, it is not simply another tree added to a plot of land. It is a local species being introduced into a system where plants, animals and people can have different but complementary relationships. [And all it takes is a look at those large figs growing from the trunk to remember that, in nature, the most interesting stories are often the ones we cannot see at first glance.](https://www.treedom.net/en/plant-a-tree/nimaro-tree_2149) [![Plant now](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/8486845/70b00e29-df03-43ed-96a6-a067e58f0c62.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/8486845/70b00e29-df03-43ed-96a6-a067e58f0c62) [![For businesses](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/8486845/5521a90d-9d0e-459c-a0e2-719efc5b4c7e.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/8486845/5521a90d-9d0e-459c-a0e2-719efc5b4c7e) ### You may also want to read: [Show all](https://blog.treedom.net/en) - Trees - [Plant](https://www.treedom.net/en/plant-a-tree) - [Gift](https://www.treedom.net/en/gift-a-tree) - [Discover the tree' horoscopes](https://www.treedom.net/en/horoscope) - [Activate subscription](https://www.treedom.net/en/subscriptions) - Green ideas - [Capture CO2](https://www.treedom.net/en/co2) - [Your company](https://business.treedom.net/) - Impact - [Manifesto](https://www.treedom.net/en/manifesto) - [Agroforestry system](https://www.treedom.net/en/agroforestry) - [How we do it](https://www.treedom.net/en/projects) - [Countries](https://www.treedom.net/en/countries) - Who we are - [Treedom](https://www.treedom.net/en/about-us) - [Treedom in numbers](https://www.treedom.net/en/community) - [Team](https://www.treedom.net/en/team) - [Work with us](https://www.treedom.net/en/workwithus) - Need help? - [Customer Care](https://help.treedom.net/en) - [Contacts](https://www.treedom.net/en/contacts) - [Register of trees](https://www.treedom.net/en/page/register) ##### Social Copyright © 2020 Treedom s.r.l - [Legal information](https://www.treedom.net/en/page/contacts), [terms and conditions](https://www.treedom.net/en/page/terms), [privacy](https://www.iubenda.com/privacy-policy/78150422), [cookie usage](https://www.iubenda.com/privacy-policy/78150422/cookie-policy). 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