Ficus Bonsai Care Guideline Placement
It requires a lot of light, preferably full sunlight, so be sure not to place it in a shady location. The temperature should be kept relatively constant. Figs can endure low humidity due to their thick, waxy leaves, but they prefer higher humidity and need extremely high humidity to develop aerial roots. Winter protection may be required if you experience very frosty conditions in the winter.
Watering
The Ficus should be given water generously and it can tolerate occasional over, or underwatering. The warmer the placement of the fig during winter the more water it needs. If it’s kept in a cooler place, it only needs to be kept slightly moist
Fertilizing
Fertilize every two weeks during summer, and every four weeks during winter if the growth doesn't stop. Liquid fertilizer can be used as well as organic fertilizer pellets.
Pruning and wiring
Regular pruning is necessary to retain the tree’s shape. Prune back to 2 leaves after 6-8 leaves have grown. Leaf pruning (defoliation) can be used to reduce leaf size, as some Ficus Bonsai species normally grow large leaves. If a considerable thickening of the trunk is desired, the Ficus can be left to grow freely for one or two years. The strong cuts that are necessary afterward don't affect the Ficus' health and new shoots will grow from old wood. Larger wounds could be covered or watered.
Wiring and bending thin to medium Ficus branches is easy due to their flexibility, but you should check the wires regularly as they can cut into the bark very quickly. Strong branches should be shaped with guy-wires because they can be left on the tree for a much longer period.
Repotting
Repot your Ficus tree during the months of October to late March every other year, using a basic Bonsai soil mixture. Ficus tolerates root-pruning very well.
Propagation and grafting
Cuttings can be planted at any time of the year, but they have the highest success rate during mid-summer growth. Air-layering will work best during spring, in September to March. In most cases, springtime is the best time for planting Ficus seeds.
Ficus trees can fuse by placing branches, roots, or trunks together and applying some pressure. This technique is known as approach-grafting and it can be used to form appealing structures. You can tie many young plants together to fuse them and build a single strong trunk. Fig tree branches and roots can also be grafted quite easily. If the growing conditions are ideal, you can even take aerial roots from one part of the tree and graft them into a different position. For faster healing, or closing of large wounds, young plants, shoots, or aerial roots can be grafted across wounds. An experienced grower can work on fig trees with a nearly unlimited range of creative freedom, which considerably increases the appeal of growing Ficus retusa as a Bonsai plant.
Pests and diseases
Fig species are quite resistant against pests, but they are still susceptible to several issues depending on their location, and time of year, especially in the winter. Dry air and a lack of light weakens the Bonsai Ficus and often result in leaf drop. In poor conditions like these, they are sometimes infested with scale or spider mites. Placing customary insecticide sticks into the soil or spraying insecticide/miticide will get rid of the pests, but a weakened Ficus tree’s living conditions must be improved.
General information about the Ficus Bonsai tree
Depending on where you look, there is different information as to the exact number of existing Ficus tree species. We know that there may be between 800 and 2000 different species. The most popular one for Bonsai is the Ficus Retusa. It’s often shaped with an s-curved trunk and has dark green oval leaves. Similar Ficus varieties include; The Microcarpa, Tigerbark, Willow leaf, Golden Gate, Religiosa, Benjamina, and Taiwan. The Ficus Ginseng is another popular tree with a thick, pot-bellied trunk, similar to the Ginseng root. Sometimes it is grafted with Ficus microcarpa leaves (combining it to a Ficus microcarpa ginseng)..
All fig species share a milky latex sap which leaks from wounds or cuts. The tropical figs are evergreen trees, small shrubs, or even climbing plants. Some of them can produce nice flowers, while most Ficus species have hidden flowers in small receptacles from which their fruits grow. Only specialized pollinating fig wasps can pollinate those hidden flowers. The fruit can be yellow, green, red, or purple-blue and are between a few millimeters to several centimeters, as the edible fruit of Ficus carica.
Most Ficus Bonsai trees can produce aerial roots in their natural habitat, also called 'banyan tree', which are often presented in appealing Bonsai creations with many aerial root pillars or root over rock styles.
To enable aerial root growth humidity is required. Aerial roots grow down vertically from the branches and develop into strong pillar-like trunks when they reach the soil. In tropical climates, a single tree can become a forest-like structure and cover an enormous expanse.
The leaves of most Bonsai Ficus species have special pointed tips from which the rainwater drips off. The leaves can vary in sizes of between 2-50cm. In most cases, fig-trees have smooth gray bark on their trunk, but there are a few species or varieties with special bark patterns, like the Ficus microcarpa Tigerbark. Something to be aware of is that Ficus Ginseng Bonsai plants are poisonous for animals, especially if they eat the leaves. If you have pets, make sure to place your Ficus out of their reach.