What to do with fig?

monk3y · Post by **monk3y** » January 10th, 2012, 10:57 pm

and they say this is a beginner plant ahahaha

So i have a number of choices, i can either 'chop' it, not chop it and work on the nebari or chop the base and plant it as a cutting.

what would be the best in regards to the final appearance of the tree?

also, say if I had just repotted into a large grow box, pruned it down and did the usual styling and cared for it as it should be, would the trunk not naturally get larger and would the buttress roots not naturally form?

thanks for all your help I'm learning quite alot here

Dario · Post by **Dario** » January 10th, 2012, 11:19 pm

Hi monk3y, what ever you decide to do, best of luck and you will learn lots I am sure.
If you do chop etc, remember to plant the unwanted parts (off cuts) as cuttings so that you can have some more fun developing other eventual fig bonsai!
Try to work out what size you want the fig bonsai to be once it is developed. Then you will have a starting point to work from in terms of what to do next etc.
Cheers, Dario.

Andrew F · Post by **Andrew F** » January 10th, 2012, 11:21 pm

Dario wrote:Hi monk3y, what ever you decide to do, best of luck and you will learn lots I am sure.
If you do chop etc, remember to plant the unwanted parts (off cuts) as cuttings so that you can have some more fun developing other eventual fig bonsai!
Try to work out what size you want the fig bonsai to be once it is developed. Then you will have a starting point to work from in terms of what to do next etc.
Cheers, Dario.

Sound advice Dario

Andrew Legg · Post by **Andrew Legg** » January 11th, 2012, 6:41 am

Hey Monk3y,

I want to show you this photo series. A colleague at work gave me this fig (Ficus natalensis) about 8 weeks ago. For 4 weeks it stood on my driveway in a 25l paint bucket (in which it had been growing under some bushes at his house). When I got it I thought to myself "blimey this thing has no leaves except for right at the top (about a meter from the base). The rest is history and the photos shown below here are taken in a four week period. OK, I lie, a five week period!

Cheers,

Andrew

Moral of the story - if the tree is healthy (which yours looks to be), it is probably bomb-proof for a chop!

Ficus 1.jpg

Ficus 2.jpg

Ficus 3.jpg

Andrew E · Post by **Andrew E** » January 11th, 2012, 8:01 am

[quote="HornetThey should at least show the red color on the new growth, i honestly doubt the ID of most port jackon figs used as bonsai. I'd say its probably obliqua, possibly macrophylla but due to the large leaf size and coarse growth they are not used as much as obliqua and other "small leaved figs". Good thing its since most figs have the same cultivation requirements and can have the same techniques used the id overly important but i personally do like to know[/quote]

I agree with you there, a lot of people are quick to label their tree as a Port Jackson, but few of them have the true characteristics - rusty underside to the leaf, dark red of the new growth. They are much better than the moreton bay for ramification and show far less coarseness (is that a word??

) in the ramification.
I reckon that there are a lot of hybrid figs out there, nature has a way of evolving without telling us!
One thing that tells me this is a macrophylla is the heart shape to the leaf where the petiole attaches at the base. The obliqua doesn't seem to have this shape at the leaf base. maybe a hybrid obliqua!!!

Cheers
Andrew

monk3y · Post by **monk3y** » January 11th, 2012, 10:51 am

wow ok I guess I'll go with chop and plant the leftover as a cutting

is there anything different i should do to the cutting to ensure it later on has a good taper/ nebari? or do i just plant it like any other cutting?

Post by **Bougy Fan** » January 11th, 2012, 11:24 am

Just get the cutting to grow first. Cut the bottom at an angle and you may use a rooting hormone if you want. I remove all the leaves except one and plant in some propagating sand or something free draining. Place in the shade and mist often. If it dries out too much it will die.

monk3y · Post by **monk3y** » January 11th, 2012, 11:31 am

alright thank you guys for all your help

Hornet · Post by **Hornet** » January 22nd, 2012, 12:37 pm

Andrew E wrote:[quote="HornetThey should at least show the red color on the new growth, i honestly doubt the ID of most port jackon figs used as bonsai. I'd say its probably obliqua, possibly macrophylla but due to the large leaf size and coarse growth they are not used as much as obliqua and other "small leaved figs". Good thing its since most figs have the same cultivation requirements and can have the same techniques used the id overly important but i personally do like to know

I agree with you there, a lot of people are quick to label their tree as a Port Jackson, but few of them have the true characteristics - rusty underside to the leaf, dark red of the new growth. They are much better than the moreton bay for ramification and show far less coarseness (is that a word??

) in the ramification.
I reckon that there are a lot of hybrid figs out there, nature has a way of evolving without telling us!
One thing that tells me this is a macrophylla is the heart shape to the leaf where the petiole attaches at the base. The obliqua doesn't seem to have this shape at the leaf base. maybe a hybrid obliqua!!!

Cheers
Andrew[/quote]

i'm with you there, i have seena few that seem to show characteristics of a couple of species, one i found the other day has the rusty leaves of a PJ but the size of the leaf and growth habit of an obliqua. Certainly a confusing genus when it comes to identification. Unfortunately its all but impossible to id a bonsai fig since reduced leaves can be different to the mature leaves and the fruit which is another important feature are not often seen on bonsai

AusBonsai

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