42. Corrib Fig

Galway’s waterside fig brings biblical themes to mind close to the city’s twentieth century cathedral.

The Corrib Fig grows tenaciously from the stone embankment of the Friar’s River Canal next to the Corrib River and in sight of Galway Cathedral. Like other figs growing close to waterways – the Blackfriars Fig growing on the banks of the Irwell at Salford, or the Bristol Bridge Fig defying gravity on the sheer stone wall of Bristol’s floating harbour  – it is the likely fallout from human commerce or effluent. It has become a valued landmark and a new pedestrian bridge was relocated in order to spare the tree. 

Species details

Fig
Ficus carica

Where to find it

Waterside, Woodquay, Galway, H91 DK58, Ireland
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Fig Notes

In Ireland and Britain, figs are urban trees and are often associated with canals and rivers. This is in stark contrast to the lands with which they are most often associated, namely dry, rocky landscapes around the Mediterranean basin and western Asia. Although uncommon, self-seeded figs growing in these islands are usually found on the stony banks of waterways close to human populations. This last point is key, our urban figs are most likely the result of discarded seeds – most likely from sewerage – that have found footholds on these approximations of their favoured environments. While they are frequently close to water, the nooks and crannies these opportunist trees have exploited are not wet themselves.