Ficus obliqua, my first ever starter

[Hornet]

Got this fig about 6 or 7 years ago, cant remember how big it was then but only cost me $7.50 from bonsai northside. I've done almost nothing to it since i got it, light pruning and repotting was all that was done. Over the past few months i have started to become more interested in bonsai once more so have been looking at finally doing something to this. For now waiting for the air layers to take then i will be making a few cuts as marked. Not sure whats under the soil but hopefully its half decent

[Hornet]

ok so i decided to just do the layers as cuttings and did a bit of a chop on this today. I'm really not sure where to go, the trunk i was going to take back to the base has all the arial roots on it so now i'm thinking of leaving both trunks. The left trunk i want to make the sorter trunk, was going to train a new leader and cut a wedge out so it can be positioned to be continuing the line that the trunk already has. The right trunk i am thinking of leaving a bit of height on and possibly leave the thin branch on the right, thicken it up and train some arial roots coming stright down off it. Any suggestions? Virts would be much appreciated.

John

[Hornet]

pic may help

[Hornet]

any suggestions anyone?

[kcpoole]

I like the multiple trunk Idea, but would shorten the right one to about 2 times the height of the left one

Ken

[Hornet]

to just above the horizontal branch on the right?

[Jamie]

hi mate

this one doesnt have to bad a trunk size. but has some flaws too. ken is right bout the right hand trunk. what I would be doing though is getting some sphagnum moss or some small trays around that trunk and get a crap load of airial roots that you can train down the trunk to fuse it and create a decent nebari as the nebari isnt anything to write home bout really.

in saying that I think the trunk size is a good size for a smaller tree, as the airial roots fuse to the trunk to create the nebari it will help with taper. make sure you get the airials roots tied to the trunk early so as if they thicken they will cause reverse taper probs at the point they come out.

give me a bit of time and I will virt what i see

[Hornet]

Thanks jamie, i know what you mean about the nebari, since this one was pretty much just forgotten since i got it, only repotted twice in those 5 years and never worked on the poor roots got past the easy fix stage. Quite a few going the wrong way, wierd curves etc. My aim is to eventually cover what i cant remove with new arial roots.

[Jamie]

hi mate,

I havent read through this thread again so not sure if it has been said or if you have already done so, but these guys can be flat cut like an olive and treated like a cutting with good results too. so there is plenty of options to play with

I have had quite a lot of success with flat cutting figs, prob round the 95% success mark if not better.

[Hornet]

i'll have to see whats going on below the soil but i'd say i probably will end up doing that. Whats the best way to clean the soil from the roots with minimal damage?

[kcpoole]

Yeah Hornet chop at the little branch and wire it as the apex maybey, but if you do, keep it short

Ken

[Jamie]

hi mate,

there are heaps of ways, I wouldnt stress bout damaging the roots to much unless they are really new (white). if they have hardened off then you can either go carefully with a chop stick and carefully comb them out, or you can use a hose with a bit of pressure, I use the hose without a nozzle and just use my finger to create a straight solid stream and get into it. if its root bound big time pull it out of the pot, fond a solid objext like a thich tree in ya yard, a brick wall or a big rock, hold the trunk tight and smash the root ball against the rock etc. this will loosen out most of the soil if root bound then you can be a bit choosier with what ya want to keep.

when I have a root bound tree that I know needs root work done to it and there is just way to much, I find where the nebari actually is first, so scrape back the medium to that. then with an older hack saw/pruning saw I will cut through half to two thirds of the root ball off and then work with what is left. sometimes smashing the root ball is the only way to go. but doing a cut at half to two thirds of the root ball off makes things heaps easier. once you have done that it is generally a lot looser, then you can blast it with the hose like I said previous, then go through it with a chopstick or root rake

jamie

[Andrew F]

Dont know if you got this on fb John. But heres what id do.

[Hornet]

this has gone nuts since being chopped back, the trunk is covered in new shoots. Just wondering where i should be having the first branch?

[kcpoole]

this has gone nuts since being chopped back, the trunk is covered in new shoots. Just wondering where i should be having the first branch?

About 1/3 the way from the soil to the eventual height of the tree.

Depend really on what you are going to do with the rest of it, but as a start.

Ken