What's a Banyan Tree?

A banyan, also spelled "banian", is a fig that begins its life as an epiphyte, i.e. a plant that grows on another plant, when its seed germinates in a crack or crevice of a host tree or edifice.

What is special about Banyan Tree?

Banyans are strangler figs. They grow from seeds that land on other trees. The roots they send down smother their hosts and grow into stout, branch-supporting pillars that resemble new tree trunks. Banyans are the world's biggest trees in terms of the area they cover.

What is banyan tree called?

Banyan, (Ficus benghalensis), also called Indian banyan or banyan fig, unusually shaped tree of the mulberry family (Moraceae) native to the Indian subcontinent. The banyan reaches a height up to 30 metres (100 feet) and spreads laterally indefinitely.