Sacred fig
Ficus religiosa
Also called Bodhi tree, Peepal and Bo tree
Houseplant · Trees & big statementsThe leaf ends in a long thin tail — a drip tip, for shedding monsoon rain — and it is the shape carved on two thousand years of temple stone. Sold as bonsai because a full one is thirty metres of tree.
Care at a glance
- Ease
- Medium
- Water
- Once a weekDrench and drain — water the whole surface until it runs from the holes.
- Light
- Bright, with some direct sun
- Feed
- Every 45 days
- Humidity
- Average
- Hardiness
- Indoors, or out in high summer RHS H1B, to 10°C
- Size
- 1.5 m tall · 1 m across
- Lifecycle
- Tree
- Origin
- The Indian subcontinent
Is it safe for pets and people?
PetsToxic to pets
Affects dogs, cats, horses. Signs: mouth and gut irritation if chewed; a skin rash wherever the milky sap touches.
PeopleIrritates skin
The milky sap, from any cut surface.
HandlingTake care handling it
RHS category C. The sap is a latex — wear gloves to prune and wash it off skin at once.
Checked against ASPCA and RHS on 2026-08-05.
A guide, not veterinary or medical advice. If a pet or a person has eaten a plant and you are worried, call your vet or doctor now — don’t wait for signs to appear. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
First signs of trouble
- It goes bare in a cool room around midwinter. That is deciduous behaviour in its own climate, not a death — keep it barely moist and wait for spring.Winter leaf drop · disorder