You could chop it just about anywhere and it would be fine (can't believe you waited so long!). Stick the top in water and wait for it to root. My question is, why 4" ... yet? Once you restrict it that much (and I know Ficus do well when somewhat restricted) it will grow a lot slower, or is the trunk so fat you're happy with it just as it is?

Just got it. It came that way. It is about one year old. It was meant to go into the ground and it has a straight leader. It has a beautiful twisted root system and I did raise it a little but all of that system is below the soil.

I always thought that raising the caudex up and putting it into a smaller pot forced the caudex to grow bigger and fatter, more slowly, but eventually. Not so? What do you suggest?

I do have two other ficus, cordata and pumila. The cordata has a beautiful thick five inch high aerial root system above the pot. My space is limited so growing the root system below ground for a year is not an option.

BTW, do you know if there is more than one Ficus religiosa? This one has elongated leaves rather than the heart shape.

Putting Ficus into smaller pots (compared to the ratios of other trees in pots) can push some initial growth, but most trees don't have caudexes, and growth eventually will slow drastically (you will need to repot and prune regardless). If you want more growth out of yours, a not-so-small pot would be better. I had the heart-shaped religiosa, my sis-in-law the other one, but I liked mine best!

Well, now I have both. I'll describe what I did. Perhaps someone can comment.

The new F.religiosa was in a three gallon container. The root ball was huge. I chopped away with a lot of apprehension. Multi-trunks are trimed to 9 inches high. The few leaves are still hanging on but perhaps not for long. I had wanted it to go into a 7 by 7 pot.

Was it too much chopping for the first time? Can it go into the smaller pot in the future? When can I trim trunks, branches and roots again?

When you feel there is enough new growth to give you enough options to see
the future of the tree. Whether it goes into a smaller pot in future depends on a lot of things, and maybe it's time to say what else you're doing to keep it alive and worry about general health, rather than shaping. So, how are you watering it, where is it in relation to how much light, and what about humidity, soil mix, and anything else you can think of?

General health is not a problem as it will be growing alongside a few dozen buddies. Along with high Florida humidity, it has a fast draining soil, and is hand watered once per week. It has overhead cover.

Someone in another forum asked a question about a seasonal lighting change. My lighting is similar, direct winter sun and bright shade in summer. The light is bright enough to grow blooming plants such as orchids, begonias, pelargoniums, etc. Can you comment on this lighting?

Agressive pruning is new to me. As space is limited, I do need to learn bonsai type of pruning, and especially when to prune. I always potted up, but cannot do that any longer. I've had other Ficus growing here for a few years, but since the soil is now fast draining, the roots are coming out of the bottom of the pots.

Thank your for your help.

Pruning in bonsai is done to achieve something, to shorten the tree (and expect new smaller branches that give the fatter trunk an 'older' look; to encourage new growth, and to weed out unwanted growth to shape it into a particular style, but it's not done 'just' to prune it 'because it's a bonsai'. For some reason (Karate Kid?) people have the idea pruning is a built-in requirement, and while it is done on almost every tree, it's not an end in itself, but a tool to be used when needed, not something that's just done 'because'. You have to decide if your tree needs pruning for any of the above reasons - if you post pix on the gallery here (leaving a note telling us to look for it) then people will comment and give advice re pruning, but it's hard to randomly do it without seeing the tree, or knowing what styling direction you want to go with it, and without before and after pix it's hard to say if you've done too much at once. But just 'pruning' as a matter of course may not be necessary at a given time beyond foliage trimming for neatness.

Simply, I want to contain the plant in the pot. I think that was the first reason for bonsai. My aim is to keep it at a reasonable size. Thank you for your help.

Hi ,

Looks like this thread is not active anymore...however, just wanted to check on you people for advice on my newly acquired bonsai...This one is a natural grown on a roof, I potted it...wanted advice on what needs to be done with it...its a new hobby i started :)

I'm confused. This plant was growing on a roof & you collected it and put it in that pot when? Where do you live? What is the plant material?

Al