Ficus johannis is principally represented in cultivation by subsp. afghanistanica (see below). Subsp. johannis, which seems to be a smaller, shrubbier plant, is grown outside the Temperate House at Kew (labelled with the synonym F. geraniifolia Miq.), as bushes pruned down to the level of the pediment. It was introduced by Christopher Grey-Wilson in 1966, from the southern Zagros mountains of Iran.

subsp. afghanistanica (Warb.) Browicz

Common Names
Afghan Fig

Synonyms
F. afghanica (Popov) Drobow
F. carica L. var. afghanica Popov

Ficus johannis subsp. afghanistanica has entered cultivation by a number of routes. In the United States, rather unconventionally, it arrived at Yucca Do Nursery, Texas as a mysterious packet of seeds from a customer who had obtained them from northern Iran (Yucca Do 2003). From this source, and others in the United States, it has been distributed quite widely, and is proving to be a very satisfactory garden tree. Several selections have been made by Cistus Nursery, Oregon, including ‘Silver Lyre’ which has particularly good foliage. The beauty of this species lies in its elegantly dissected leaves; they would not be suitable for use as a discreet cover for nudity in an emergency, their laciness suggesting something far more seductive. It is certainly a species to look out for and obtain in its best forms, for cultivation in a hot sunny site. In good conditions it has the potential to make a fine tree, rather resembling a big F. carica.

Ficus johannis subsp. afghanistanica.