My First Ficus Progression

[thomas22]

I would like to share my progression of my first Ficus. I bought the tree 4 years ago. The first pic was 3 years ago after a trim. The second pic was a month ago just prior to a repot. I chopped the trunk at this time also. You can see how tall the trunk was and how much it thickened in a few years. Third pic is root work and the last pic is how the tree looks tonight. The current plan is to let the trunk grow out do at least one more chop. The right side needs branching to catch up with the left. I see this tree being pretty large when it's all said and done.
I have a few questions: Does anyone have a good guess as to what type of ficus this is? Do you think I will be able to reduce the leaves? If the leaves can be reduced then I would be more inclined to make the tree smaller. Any styling advice is welcome.

 

[sorce]

Looks like a Microcarpa. One of them "you can't make a Bonsai out of" trees!

Looks like you're doing a good job of "the impossible"!

I still have 3 cuttings of cuttings of my first mallsai of one. I put them outside and it's finally growing again! You can Probly get the leaves a bit smaller.

Do you keep it outside?

Sorce

 

[thomas22]

Thanks Sorce. I keep this tree outdoors. When I first got this tree there were tubes at the bottom so I ground layered right where the trunk started to flare out. As you can see there are plenty of roots where I want them now. Other than that there is nothing too impossible about these trees. I just wish the leaves were smaller.

 

[mat]

Looks like a Microcarpa. One of them "you can't make a Bonsai out of" trees!

I'm not sure what this means as there are tons of great F. micropcarpa bonsais. It's one of the most used Ficus species.


Edit - in response to the original post... Generally the way to get the leaves to shrink is to increase ramification. You want more of them, so that each one can be smaller.

 

[thomas22]

Here is an update. I was cleaning out my old computer and found an older picture of this Ficus. It had the typical tubers for roots that I ground layered right where it starts to flare out. My biggest regret was the lack of movement I put in the trunk in the early stages. As the the trunk thickened the trunk seemed to get straighter.
The second picture is tonight almost exactly 5 years later. I pulled down some branches and wired the ones that were getting thick. I going to let that first left branch grow out for another year and get really thick. I need it to be thicker than the second branch and it will also help thicken the lower trunk. After this I get to start with ramification. Looking forward to this. Feel free to give advice. I have several ficus now but this was my first one.

 

[eferguson1974]

I would like to share my progression of my first Ficus. I bought the tree 4 years ago. The first pic was 3 years ago after a trim. The second pic was a month ago just prior to a repot. I chopped the trunk at this time also. You can see how tall the trunk was and how much it thickened in a few years. Third pic is root work and the last pic is how the tree looks tonight. The current plan is to let the trunk grow out do at least one more chop. The right side needs branching to catch up with the left. I see this tree being pretty large when it's all said and done.
I have a few questions: Does anyone have a good guess as to what type of ficus this is? Do you think I will be able to reduce the leaves? If the leaves can be reduced then I would be more inclined to make the tree smaller. Any styling advice is welcome.

Looks like a fine start to me. And its leaves are similar to the trees I have, which I think are microcarpa. But the bark on mine seems darker. Cool start anyway. I havnt gotten to the leaf reduction stage with mine. One of my native (to CR) is kinda ready and seems like its reducing. I believe its the thin stems you get from ramification that limits leaf growth. Theyre tuff trees, so no worries, you'll get there soon enough..show us when you do please.

 

[thomas22]

I did some root work a few days ago. I cut some off the bottom and straightened some roots out. You can see the ugly root in the second pic and now it look pretty good. My plan is to let the first branch grow so it is thicker than the second branch. This will also thicken the trunk. Maybe after everything is in proportion I can just let the whole tree grow out and thicken the trunk up some more.

 

[StoneCloud]

By defoliating it you will get smaller leaves. You can partial defoliate. If you don't want to take all the leaves of.

 

[thomas22]

I cant wait for that phase but I figure it is best to wait until the trunk and main branches are close to where I want them before I begin defoliating and reducing leaf size. I know it looks a like a bit of a mess at the moment but my goal right now is just getting a fat trunk with taper, nice roots, and getting the main branches in proportion. After that I can begin making it pretty.

 

[StoneCloud]

The tree has great potential and the current messy look don't matter!

 

[Anthony]

You may wish to work a bit more on your 4 or 6 surface roots.
Helps in getting the fat trunk.
Good Day
Anthony

Also - why do you need to bare root ?
Just slows down the tree tremendously and can kill it as it gets older.

 

[thomas22]

You may wish to work a bit more on your 4 or 6 surface roots.
Helps in getting the fat trunk.

Can you elaborate on this. I don't understand.

Also - why do you need to bare root ?

I needed to work/cut the bottom so I can fit in a pot some day and also work the upper roots. This required bare rooting. I shouldn't need to bare root moving forward.

 

[Anthony]

@thomas22 ,

You are trying to get your roots like this . See image.

Take a few cuttings and test ideas, not the mother.
We found that ficus can -

[1] Be grown easily to trunk size in a 1'' internally deep pot using just a simple soil of 5 mm inorganic 90 % to 10 % organic by volume.
Using extension branches [ in our case 3' lengths ]

[2] Deep pots were not needed for trunk thickening. Nor did you have to do such heavy under root cutting - happens naturally.

An image of surface roots on a ficus.
Second image a 3" trunk grown in a 1" deep pot
Hope this helps.
Good Day
Anthony

Root image -



Grown to 3" trunk size in this pot - experiment took 5 years ----- but can be done in 3 years.
Branchlet refinement will take about 5 years more

No bare rooting done to either tree, by the way.

 

[thomas22]

@Anthony Thanks for the tips. I probably wouldn't have done the repot or bare root if that one branch in the front didn't look so bad. The roots are going to be important if this tree is to be a nice some day.

 

[Gustavo Martins]

@thomas22 ,

Grown to 3" trunk size in this pot - experiment took 5 years ----- but can be done in 3 years.
View attachment 146058

@Anthony Do you care to share your wisdom/secrets?

@thomas22 ,

[1] Be grown easily to trunk size in a 1'' internally deep pot using just a simple soil of 5 mm inorganic 90 % to 10 % organic by volume.
Using extension branches [ in our case 3' lengths ]

View attachment 146058

Is this the "secret"?. What do you mean exactly by using extension branches? Just letting the branches grow free without clipping or chopping back?

 

[Redwood Ryan]

Do you care to share your wisdom/secrets?

Live in the tropics

 

[StoneCloud]

Live in the tropics

LOL Truth! On some of my trees I'll prune a branch and literally have new bud break by end of the next day. Fun but this climate makes for a lot of work

 

[Anthony]

Hee hee Gustavo,

if that was a secret, then the whole of Bnut knows -

Our local Ficus, is a willow leaf type, Grows on concrete, roof tops and needs very little water to thrive.
Additionally, it weeps as a tree and is elegant, but can have a powerful trunk.
It is also deciduous and during our Dry season [ Christmas to May / June ] will self defoliate.

Using the tree's properties we were able to -

[1] Use very little organic matter [ aged compost ] and silica based gravel at 5 mm.

[2] Using extension branches [ yes, one branch at a time ------------- so start at the bottom ----------- grow first branch to around 1 m ]
then when that has thickened to suit what you need. Go to the second branch do the same ------------ now remember your
proportions and the trunk size you want.
Finally next the third branch.

After that the rest will happen naturally.

[3] The 2.5 cm depth of the pot is to control the over thickening that normally follows with this ficus and Ficus b.

So the idea was to learn about the natural properties of the tree and manipulate them to produce a bonsai.
Also to get the design to hold for a while, since the tree is prone to coarse effects.

By the way we do this type of testing with all of our local trees, so it often takes 3 to 5 years before we actually train
anything.
But when you know the properties, you can really move, as Design goes.

For example, we have a shrub here, yet to be identified, that if a wound is made, will spend endless time just healing
it. So big cuts are not a problem, the shrub will just heal it.
Any other questions ?
Good Day
Anthony

 

[Anthony]

Ryan, Stone Cloud,

actually it is because, as from June, we will drop back to the daytime high of low 80's deg F, as rain and clouds take back over.
So the place goes cooler , moister, but we still have breezes.
For example even when raining buckets a drop, humidity stays around 80% and lower.
We have a marine altered climate, because we are so small, 30 x 50 miles approx.

Our hotter months at 90-93 deg.F for half an hour to 10 minutes were in April and May.
Night temperatures will stay around 70 to 75 deg.F

So trees can grow if they have a supply of water.
Good Day
Anthony

 

[Gustavo Martins]

Live in the tropics

It's not the tropics but not that different, trust me. Zone 11b or something... Basically, lots of humidity (all year around) and temps seldom below 10 C at sea level. Ficus will stay outside all year. I haven't try it yet (less than a year into bonsai) but lots of people grow Ficus on pots and they are always outside.

Hee hee Gustavo,

if that was a secret, then the whole of Bnut knows -

Our local Ficus, is a willow leaf type, Grows on concrete, roof tops and needs very little water to thrive.
Additionally, it weeps as a tree and is elegant, but can have a powerful trunk.
It is also deciduous and during our Dry season [ Christmas to May / June ] will self defoliate.

Using the tree's properties we were able to -

[1] Use very little organic matter [ aged compost ] and silica based gravel at 5 mm.

[2] Using extension branches [ yes, one branch at a time ------------- so start at the bottom ----------- grow first branch to around 1 m ]
then when that has thickened to suit what you need. Go to the second branch do the same ------------ now remember your
proportions and the trunk size you want.
Finally next the third branch.

After that the rest will happen naturally.

[3] The 2.5 cm depth of the pot is to control the over thickening that normally follows with this ficus and Ficus b.

So the idea was to learn about the natural properties of the tree and manipulate them to produce a bonsai.
Also to get the design to hold for a while, since the tree is prone to coarse effects.

By the way we do this type of testing with all of our local trees, so it often takes 3 to 5 years before we actually train
anything.
But when you know the properties, you can really move, as Design goes.

For example, we have a shrub here, yet to be identified, that if a wound is made, will spend endless time just healing
it. So big cuts are not a problem, the shrub will just heal it.
Any other questions ?
Good Day
Anthony

Thanks for the explanation

I've got a F. macrocarpa mallsai type. I am planning a trunk chop but currently letting it grow unrestricted cause I want it to thicken some more at the base. So maybe, I should not worry about this if they thicken anyway? I may just go and chop it now? It's growing like mad at the moment.