Jumping the gun

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Mame
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I believe I should have waited a little longer before moving my BRT outside. Dropped under 50f last evening with strong winds. Some of the leaves are white. I don’t think the sun is strong enough yet to burn. Besides it only gets morning sun. Back inside now. z
 

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I leave move outside down into the 40s F. Sometimes they just pout when changing seasons. I'd leave it outside as much as possible, you'll especially want it out there if it starts growing new leaves
 
I brought all of my trops out this past weekend. They go on the east side of the house in the shade for a week to acclimate to being outside. Then I'll move them to the south side for more sun,
 
I put my tropicals outside toward the end of March as soon as nighttime temperatures are consistently above freezing. I’ve found a late frost is harmless to ficus, provided the ambient temperature is above freezing.

I did see a little bit of discoloration on the uppermost leaves, but close to the equinox, the sunlight is less intense, and the leaves are more easily able to adjust to the sunlight by the time the solstice rolls around. @leatherback ’s method is almost certainly superior, but I like to give my ficus trees the maximum possible amount of direct sun exposure per year.
 
I brought all of my trops out this past weekend. They go on the east side of the house in the shade for a week to acclimate to being outside. Then I'll move them to the south side for more sun,
Thanks for the advice. I’ll follow it.
 
@leatherback ’s method is almost certainly superior, but I like to give my ficus trees the maximum possible amount of direct sun exposure per year.
I would not bet on it.

You are frost-free in March already!? Crazy! I had white grass last week!
 
I would not bet on it.

You are frost-free in March already!? Crazy! I had white grass last week!

Not frost-free, but above freezing. I brought the trees back inside one night when the temperatures were too close to freezing for my comfort, but the lows were generally just under 40°F (4.4°C), and often a few degrees higher.

Regardless, I’m really just experimenting to test the limits of my raw materials. I don’t have any ficus bonsai yet, just rooted cuttings of F. microcarpa and F. neriifolia, as well as F. religiosa seedlings.
 
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I brought all of my trops out this past weekend. They go on the east side of the house in the shade for a week to acclimate to being outside. Then I'll move them to the south side for more sun,
Should I defoliate the white leaves or tell everyone it’s a variegated Brazilian Rain Tree
😉
 
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