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| I have a small Ficus benjamina that was given to me as a Christmas gift. It is a really beautiful plant, and quite a nice addition to my small living space! I have a few questions, though...
First, I'm not sure about the soil it was originally potted in. It looks like plain old potting soil, with some akadama and pebbles thrown on top to give it color. There's a lot of mulchy stuff in there, too. In my opinion, it retains far too much water (the tree has been producing a lot of chlorotic leaves lately, even though I tend to only water it when the soil is noticeably dry). In addition to that, the soil is eroding away from the base of the tree, leaving some upper portions of the roots exposed. While this isn't really that big of a deal, it doesn't look too great. My main idea right now is that I want to re-pot this guy...or, at least, replace the soil in the same pot. It hasn't outgrown its home just yet. I've heard that a lot of people tend to use just fired clay, while others prefer a particular mix. So, my first real question is, what sort of soil mix would be the most beneficial for my little fig? Second is more of an aesthetic matter that could have repercussions on the health of the tree. The leaves are a bit too large for a tree this size, and I was considering defoliation as a way to get smaller leaves to develop. Do you have any advice on this matter? Thanks in advance for whatever help you all can give. :) |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Hi, actually, having some root exposure (as long as they're woody and spread out relatively evenly around the trunk) is considered attractive in bonsai. If yours has most concentrated (bunched) on one side, or one out of proportion to the others that's a different story, but still I'd leave things open a bit, rather than burying them. Your leaves are large because they're trying to grab the most available light, and what you need is either a good south window, or a small full spectrum light (a fluorescent's ideal), but be careful of things just called 'Gro(w) Lites" as not all are good for much. And the more hours (up to 16 a day) you can give it strong light, the better. Also put a wide high-sided (1") tray of water and pebbles under the pot for humidity, but never let the water reach the pot bottom. Your soil is wet near the bottom if nothing else, and what you need is something peat-less, which most potting soils are not, though a coarser particle type from a garden center would help if you mixed it ~60/40 (40% soil, 60 grit) with grit - chicken grit from a "Feed' store, or small size aquarium gravel, and/or a mix of thirds also using perlite. I would not defoliate this year, though if your tree is healthy next June, you could do a partial job (only maples can withstand 100%) and more the next year. The most expert advice will be at www.bonsaihunk.us/cultural.html. |
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| Yeah, I meant to mention that it's the unattractive type of root exposure. There's one really fat root (which actually looks to me like the trunk was bent when it was younger) jutting out from one side. It really looks off. I thought about letting it grow until next summer and then planting a few smaller figs in there and letting them mesh together as they do, to produce some nicer-looking aerials. I don't know; that's all far into the future. My main thing right now is getting some better soil in there to try to keep it from being over-watered. Thanks a lot for your advice, and thanks for the link! |
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| I was recently was given a Ficus Benjamina that had been neglected for some time and your description happens to describe my little guy to a tee. The first thing I did was replace the soil with a better, fresh mix of premixed "tree" soil with a fired clay product. Adding a course sand element would be great too. I just didn't have any at the time. I raised it in the pot to expose some of the root structure. Yeah, it's not great looking just as you describe yours, but at least I can see what I really have to work with. I too plan to graft some root structure to one side. Good luck with this. I love ficus trees. :) |
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