Need advices on this chunky heirloom tigerbark

[aisopia]

Zone 12b, specifically Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Tree specifications (rough measurement): 10 inches across in length (the picture isn't the best, but all that moss are actually covering the trunk, not the soil), and the trunk is 18 inches tall, which make this tree 28 inches in height. I forgot to measure the width and it's night now but the trunk is almost triangular in shape.

Context: This is a tree pass down from my grandmother to my father and right now it is next to an outdoor trash bin for quite a long time actually.

Since I'm new, I don't actually plan in making too much changes yet aside from removing the moss and maybe change the soil once I'm free next week, and the following month I will try to consult a local bonsai artist and hopefully try to land a temporary part time job to learn a thing or two as it's holiday for me.

However, since I can't stop thinking about some of the problems I notice regarding the plant, I thought it is best I try to ask around to give myself some clarity for the moment.

(a) I don't think the tree is in good health. There some small circle holes here and there and the leaf is light green to yellow in color. I'm also worry that the roots might have rot since it was never repotted for as long as I remember.

(b) As you can noticed on the second picture, one of the branch was chopped off and I believe there's rot around that area. I think I would love to have a branch back in that exact position if possible, and since there's plenty of thick branches at the top, I wonder if applied grafting could work. If you guys had any specific or other methods to share that you think best suited for this problem, please share, optimally backed with books or journals for more details Ig.

(c) Now I probably still have a buck load of time to think about the style before I even have the confident and the skills to style this tree, but I would love any opinion on what's possible with this tree. I'm thinking that if I can recover the aforementioned branch, maybe slanting the tree and making the top right branch the apex is a good idea. I don't know. If possible, do share some picture reference for any suitable style.


anyway thanks for reading the wall of text if u reached the end lol

 

[Shibui]

Yellow leaves is often a sign of nutrient deficiency. Ficus love fertiliser. It is likely your tree has not had any for some time and is slowly starving. Fortunately it is a ficus so can go without for a long time. You should be able to find some liquid fertiliser in K.L. Mix as per directions on the packet and water it onto the soil. If nutrient deficiency is the problem the leaves should start to go to green in a couple of weeks.
Root problems is another possible reason for yellow leaves. If you can lift the root ball out of the pot you should be able to see what's going on down there. Again. ficus can cope with being root bound. I've seen some that have never been repotted in over 20 years and still doing OK.
You should plan on repotting when you can get some help and materials needed. All trees do better after repotting.

Rot in a trunk is not usually a problem as it the dead heart wood that rots. The living part close to the bark rarely starts to rot.
I think I can see a small branch just above the hole in the trunk. That should be a good start to replacing the branch you want there. Just bend it down closer to the hole and let it grow into a new branch.
Grafting is definitely possible with ficus. You can approach graft if you bend a long branch down from the top and graft it where you want the branch to grow from the trunk but the existing nearby shoot will be much easier.

The photo you posted is difficult to see the branches with other trees behind it and I don't think I can see the top of the tree so that makes it hard to offer meaningful advice on shaping.
A couple of good, clear photos with a plain background will help. Try to take the photo level with the trunk so we get a better look at the trunk, branches and roots.

 

[aisopia]

Yellow leaves is often a sign of nutrient deficiency. Ficus love fertiliser. It is likely your tree has not had any for some time and is slowly starving. Fortunately it is a ficus so can go without for a long time. You should be able to find some liquid fertiliser in K.L. Mix as per directions on the packet and water it onto the soil. If nutrient deficiency is the problem the leaves should start to go to green in a couple of weeks.
Root problems is another possible reason for yellow leaves. If you can lift the root ball out of the pot you should be able to see what's going on down there. Again. ficus can cope with being root bound. I've seen some that have never been repotted in over 20 years and still doing OK.
You should plan on repotting when you can get some help and materials needed. All trees do better after repotting.

Rot in a trunk is not usually a problem as it the dead heart wood that rots. The living part close to the bark rarely starts to rot.
I think I can see a small branch just above the hole in the trunk. That should be a good start to replacing the branch you want there. Just bend it down closer to the hole and let it grow into a new branch.
Grafting is definitely possible with ficus. You can approach graft if you bend a long branch down from the top and graft it where you want the branch to grow from the trunk but the existing nearby shoot will be much easier.

The photo you posted is difficult to see the branches with other trees behind it and I don't think I can see the top of the tree so that makes it hard to offer meaningful advice on shaping.
A couple of good, clear photos with a plain background will help. Try to take the photo level with the trunk so we get a better look at the trunk, branches and roots.

Sorry for the late response. I'm sorry if the pictures isn't as clear as it should be but this is the best I could've taken since the entire tree is very heavy and I only plan to move it once holiday arrive later this month.

But the style isn't as important to me as the current tree health right now. Having rot on the core wood sounds very concerning for me. Is there any recommended way as to how I should deal with the rot? Should I carved it away?

 

[Shibui]

Rot in the core is not usually a problem for trees. The centre of a trunk is not really doing much except holding the tree. The living parts are the outer parts close to the bark. many trees live long lives with completely hollow trunks.

If you are concerned you can try to cut out as much of the soft wood as you can get to and treat the remaining solid wood with a wood preservative. Lime sulphur is traditionally used to protect dead wood in bonsai but some modern wood hardeners like 'Earls wood hardener' have also been used.
Water collecting in hollows can make rotting worse so we usually try to make hollows so water will run out, allowing the wood to stay drier. Hollows can also be filled with epoxy putty or even cement to fill up the hole. New bark should then gradually grow over the filler.