Fig lovers: what's your fert regime?

[DustyRusty]

Would love to hear from those with some good experience with figs. How much fert do you give them? I know they can take a lot, but I'd love to know what you guys actually do. I've heard of the old just put a cm or two of DL on top and water away. But how do you prevent it locking up the drainage?

I realise fert regimes are related to potting mediums so I'd really like to hear from those who use a substrate based mix rather than a majority organic one. I use 50% diatomite, 25% blue metal and 25% coco peat personally.

Would love some tips from the experts...

[shibui]

A good layer of DL on figs that are growing on + liquid fert (anything I happen to have at the time) every 3 or 4 weeks in warmer weather. Have not had any trouble with drainage but these grow so fast they get repotted every year or 2 anyway.

Established trees in bonsai pots do not need to grow so much so just a few DL pellets on the surface every month or 2 and liquid fert every 3-4 weeks in warmer weather.

My mix is about 60-70% pine bark + sand and diatomite with osmocote 12-14 month release.

[k2bonsai]

i concur, all my ficus just received a layer of DL that covered the width of the pot. On top of this i use liquid fert every 2weeks. Ficus loooooove DL, especially when you get some nice humidity on top of it.

[Andrew F]

Liberal amount of dynamic lifter and monthly liquid feed, the same as everyone has previously mentioned although i change the soil after a year, because I ultra paranoid about soil pH.

[DustyRusty]

Thanks for the replies. How often do you top up the DL?

Shibui in regard to the drainage problem i find that if I have a heavy layer of DL on top it can dry out in a day or so and create a solid disc on top of the pot that the water just sits on for awhile. It doesn't happen with my larger pots but my medium to smaller ones it does.

Thanks again

[k2bonsai]

I generally use it in conjunction with the growing seasons. Spring i load it up and leave it until the growth slows/stops, at which point i work on the roots and defoliate. I then wait for the new flush of leaves to come out and do the second run with the DL.

[Dario]

Hi Dusty, just a beginner myself and my 4 figs are still in early development and are in larger containers. They are in diatomite, turface, and 15% coco fibre. Fert with fish emultion every 2 weeks, DL on surface (top up 4 to 6 weeks).

I've heard of the old just put a cm or two of DL on top and water away. But how do you prevent it locking up the drainage? I haven't had an issue with this. Last year I got lazy on one of my figs and left the DL (caked up 2 to 3cm) on all season and kept toping it up a bit every month or so. It still drained fine all season but I did repot it so I only left it like that for 1 yr.
If it is blocking up the drainage, I imagine you could scrape it off and replace it every 4 to 6 weeks?

Established trees in bonsai pots do not need to grow so much so just a few DL pellets on the surface every month or 2 and liquid fert every 3-4 weeks in warmer weather.I don't have highly developed trees but that advice makes sense

Thanks for the replies. How often do you top up the DL?4 to 6 weeks trees in development
Shibui in regard to the drainage problem i find that if I have a heavy layer of DL on top it can dry out in a day or so and create a solid disc on top of the pot that the water just sits on for awhile. It doesn't happen with my larger pots but my medium to smaller ones it does.The DL that I left on all season did dry out like you mention but didn't form a solid disc, but I am in a different climate? Could you poke it and break it up with a cop stick or something to stop the water pooling on top? Interested to hear how to handle this situation. Maybe if you could find a way to increase the humidity on the surface it would stop the drying out causing the water to sit on top. Not sure how to do this...even a bit of chopped sphagnum on top of the fert will still dry out after a while.

quote]
EDIT hey maybe some black shade cloth over the top of the fert on the pot surface will help to stop it drying out too quickly to stop water pooling. And a little chopped sphagnum under that too?
Cheers, Dario.

[Brian]

if you want your figs to have beautiful lush green leaves, add a pinch of garden lime to the soil every few months.

[shibui]

Good point Brian. Jim Webb told us to use lime or dolomite on our figs too. He believed it helped with cold tolerance here in the cooler climates so I try to remember to give them a sprinkle of dolomite later in summer.

i find that if I have a heavy layer of DL on top it can dry out in a day or so and create a solid disc on top of the pot that the water just sits on for awhile. It doesn't happen with my larger pots but my medium to smaller ones it does.

If you are not comfortable with using lots of DL then just use a liquid fert with high N levels. Use at full strength weekly or fortnightly should do. You will still get growth at lower levels so strength and timing is not too citical.

[k2bonsai]

i still do not get why people assume you should use fert at anything less than the normal recommended strength?? you are growing trees, they are the same as their big brothers, just smaller

[kcpoole]

I have mine in Diatomite, and fertilise the same as every other tree I have more or less.
I do not fertilise heavily, as most of my figs as I do not want rampant growth on them. I am not trying to accelerate growth on the trunks.

Regime on 1 week Charlie Carp, then alternating week Miracle grow ( for Roses). Usually on a Sunday morning and do all my trees at the same time with the same mix.
OPn the surface of the substrate, I apply a Handful of "Neutrog, Sudden Impact for Roses". Tropicals and pines, junipers get a full handful, Most others get a 1/2 handful. This will break donw in about 6 weeks and then I reapply thru the growing season.

I will fertilise this week for the first time this season. Last time was mid Autumn, except for Tropicals which got an extra dose about the beginning of winter.

Ken

[sreeve]

All of my figs are in the same diatomite and zeolite mix that Ken and others are using.

For the past two years I have used Leong Kwong's "Compact" fertiliser on a fortnightly basis (10ml per 10L watering can).
I also use Seasol at the same time, at the prescribed mix.

I am really happy with the root and branch growth along with the reduced leaf size

Regards
Steve