There is great power in the roots of the strangler fig. Tentative as the first thin roots of this epiphyte snake their way to the ground, then the criss-cross branching of more and more encircling roots, then the thickening and strengthening as the individual roots merge together to form a new tubular tree, choking the life out of its host which eventually rots away, its supporting job done. I would like to shoot a timelapse movie of a strangler fig from seed to mighty rainforest giant, over 25 or even 50 years. I won’t ever do that now, but what a story it would tell!