CAPRIFICATION Meaning and
Definition
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Caprification is a horticultural technique that involves the artificial pollination of the edible fig tree (Ficus carica) by a wasp called Blastophaga psenes. This practice aims to ensure the growth and ripening of fig fruits by introducing the wasp's larvae into the ovules of the tree's flowers. Caprification is primarily used in regions where the natural pollinators of fig trees are absent or insufficient.
The process of caprification starts as the wasp enters the so-called "male" fig or the syconium of the fig tree, which hosts the wasp larvae. During its stay inside the syconium, the female wasp emerges and takes the time to collect pollen from the male flowers located within the fruit. After acquiring the pollen, the wasp proceeds to lay its eggs in the female flowers of the "female" fig, also known as the true fruit that we consume. This act of laying the eggs, which may or may not lead to successful pollination, helps stimulate the fruiting process.
The larvae release chemical signals that attract other wasps, promoting more successful pollination. Caprification stimulates the development of the fig's flowers and fruits, resulting in larger, sweeter, and more desirable crop yields. The technique is commonly practiced in Mediterranean countries, where the wasp and fig trees have had a long-standing evolutionary relationship. Nonetheless, caprification can also be carried out manually by farmers, who mimic the natural process of wasp pollination by manually transferring pollen.
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A process of accelerating the ripening of fruit by puncturing, particularly of the cultivated fig, practised in the Levant.
Etymological and pronouncing dictionary of the English language. By Stormonth, James, Phelp, P. H. Published 1874.
Common Misspellings for CAPRIFICATION
- xaprification
- vaprification
- faprification
- daprification
- czprification
- csprification
- cwprification
- cqprification
- ca-rification
- ca0rification
- capeification
- capdification
- capfification
- captification
- cap5ification
- cap4ification
- caprufication
- caprjfication
- caprkfication
Etymology of CAPRIFICATION
The word "caprification" comes from the Latin word "caprifĭcus", which is a compound of "capra" meaning "goat" and "fĭcus" meaning "fig". So, "caprification" literally means "goat fig" or "goat-like fig". It refers to a traditional agricultural practice involving the use of the pollen from wild fig trees, which is collected from small cups placed on the branches and then transferred to commercial fig trees to improve pollination and fruit production.
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