Ficus benjamina, or the Weeping Fig, produces flowers within a special structure called a hypanthodium or fig, which is a fleshy, hollow receptacle. Inside, male, female, and gall flowers grow on individual pedicels. For the plant’s most common use as an ornamental houseplant, it’s rarely grown from seed, and indoor plants often do not flower or fruit, so their flowers are rarely seen.

Flower Characteristics

Inflorescence: The flowers are housed within a unique structure known as a hypanthodium, which is a type of fig.

Flower Types: The fig contains different types of flowers:

Male flowers: These are shortly pedicellate, meaning they have a short stalk, and are abundant.

Female flowers: These are sessile, growing directly without a stalk.

Gall flowers: These are pedicellate and are also found within the fig.

Fruit: The fruit, called a syconus, develops from the hypanthodium and is small, fleshy, and typically red when ripe.