Banyan

A Banyan (also Banian) is a fig that starts its life as an epiphyte (a plant growing on another plant) when its seeds germinate in the cracks and crevices on a host tree or on buildings and bridges. "Banyan" often refers specifically to the Indian banyan (Ficus benghalensis), which is the national tree of the Republic of India, though the term has been generalized to include all figs that share a characteristic life cycle, and systematically to refer to the subgenus Urostigma.

Like other fig species (including the common edible fig Ficus carica), banyans bear multiple fruit in structures called syncarps. The Ficus syncarp supplies shelter and food for fig wasps and in turn, the trees are totally dependent on the fig wasps for pollination.

The seeds of banyans are dispersed by fruit-eating birds. The seeds are small, and most banyans grow in forests, so that a plant germinating from a seed that lands on the ground is unlikely to survive. However, many seeds land on branches and stems of trees or on buildings. When those seeds germinate they send roots down towards the ground, and may envelop part of the host tree or building structure, giving banyans the casual name of "strangler fig". The "strangling" growth habit is found in a number of tropical forest species, particularly of the genus Ficus, that compete for light. Any Ficus species showing this habit may be termed a strangler fig.

Banyan (album)

Banyan is the debut album from Banyan, founded by Stephen Perkins of Jane's Addiction and Porno for Pyros fame, and David Turin. This record is dedicated to Marc Perkins. "They are compared to a deeply rooted Banyan tree which is ever increasing its hold on earth."

Track listing

All songs written by Banyan.

Players

External links

Banyan (clothing)

A banyan (through Portuguese banian and Arabic بنيان, banyān, from the Gujarati વાણિયો, vāṇiyo, meaning "merchant") is a garment worn by men in the 18th century influenced by Persian and Asian clothing.

Banyan is also commonly used in present day Indian English and other countries in the Indian Subcontinent to mean "vest" ("undershirt" in American English).

Also called a morning gown, robe de chambre or nightgown, the banyan was a loose, T-shaped or kimono-like cotton, linen, or silk gown worn at home as a sort of dressing gown or informal coat over the shirt and breeches. The typical banyan was cut en chemise, with the sleeves and body cut as one piece. It was usually paired with a soft, turban-like cap worn in place of the formal periwig. An alternative style of banyan was cut like a coat, fitted, with set-in sleeves, and was closed with buttons and buttonholes.

Wearing the banyan

In the humid climate of Colonial Virginia, gentlemen wore lightweight banyans as informal street wear in summer.