First ficus

[bung]

Hi all

I'm new to the world of bonsai and fear i've already ruined my first plant
It is a grafted banyan fig I bought from bunnings on the weekend, probably about 5 inches tall. I got bored just looking at it and decided to prune it. Unfortunately my blind trust in everything written on the internet lead me to follow the advice of the first website I looked at and cut off all the leaves. Checking more websites today most tell me to leave a few leaves. All I left was the small buds on the end of each branch.
Is it time to buy a replacement and start again or can i save this plant?
I soaked it in water after pruning and it is now in a shady area being watered whenever it dries out. Is this the way to treat a recently pruned plant or has the internet lied to me again?
Also it came in fake soil made out of some sort of plastic, surely this cant be as good as proper soil, should I re-plant it and if so when?

Any advice for this obvious rookie would be greatly appreciated

[banksia]

bung!...G'day, and welcome to the world of Bonsai. Some pics of yur pruning efforts would be a big help. This way we can not only see pruning efforts, but also your tree.
Who knows...your defoliation may have done some good. Only when a pic is posted will you know what damage...if any...you may have done. Photos will also assist in identification too.

Cheers!
Anthony

[Mitchell]

Should have been at my house yesterday when I did an aggressive defoliation of all my ficus and privet, branches/leaves/growing tips flying everywhere.

What you have done is fine, especially if you left buds. Once it buds fully out again, I would work on getting it out of the "plastic" soil though.

[Pup]

G,day Bung, defoliation of a Ficus ( fig ) at this time of year is the norm for most areas of Australia, I defoliated at the beginning of October and will be doing it again in late December. Leaving the growing tip longer than one week will result in the inter-nodes ( the space between each leaf ) getting longer then the tree will grow out of proportion.

Banksia has said pics will help, I doubt it is in plastic probably styrene foam, Ficus are not fussed to much by the soil, but like all plants an optimum soil mix is better.

Question as to what suburb?, as there are two nursery's that specialise in Bonsai.
One in Bedford and one in West Swan both sell premixed Bonsai soil.
Now is a good time to re pot your tree.
The nursery in Bedford is not open Tuesdays, the one in West Swan is open on Thurs Fri Sat and Sun and public holidays.

This being an Australian site and oriented towards Australian natives will give you the right information on Ficus and just about any other type of tree.
Good luck and welcome to AusBonsai.
Cheers Pup fellow Perth member.

[bung]

Thanks for the advice guys, you've put my mind at ease a bit
I'll try to get a picture up tommorrow.
I'm in Rockingham pup.
Are there many get togethers around here? I saw somewhere there is a club in South Perth. This could be very handy when I get into bonsai a bit more.

Also I dont quite understand this sentence
"Leaving the growing tip longer than one week will result in the inter-nodes ( the space between each leaf ) getting longer then the tree will grow out of proportion."
Are you talking about leaving buds when removing leaves? Should I have cut them off?

[bung]

While I'm throwing questions out there I might as well ask a few more.
Is it worth giving the roots a prune when I change the soil?
If yes, any advice on this procedure?
And I live a fair way from those stores so is it hard to mix your own soil from products at a normal nursery/bunnings?
If not, does anyone have a good mix or a link to one that they can share?

Cheers

[Pup]

G,day Bung check your PMs

Cheers Pup


If you do decide to come along be prepared to join. As security is a problem for the owner.

Cheers Pup

[bung]

I'm trying to get some pics up but they don't wanna go.
I'll find a way but while I'm doing that i thought I'd ask, am I doing the right thing keeping the plant in shade after the pruning?
I'm keeping it indoors but should it at least be on a windowsill where it will get a few hours sun a day?
The internet is telling me too many different things haha

[kcpoole]

I'm trying to get some pics up but they don't wanna go.
I'll find a way but while I'm doing that i thought I'd ask, am I doing the right thing keeping the plant in shade after the pruning?
I'm keeping it indoors but should it at least be on a windowsill where it will get a few hours sun a day?
The internet is telling me too many different things haha

I would keep all Bonsai Outside, and only bring them in to dispaly for a few days. Then back out to recover
figs you can keep inside of you are careful, but outside is the best place for trees

Ken

[bung]

Cheers Ken
I was considering moving it outside even though it was advertised as an indoor plant when I bought it.
I read to keep it in shade for a few weeks after heavy pruning.
I might move it onto a windowsill for a while because it's been pretty windy all week, at least that way it will get a few hours sun a day.
Am I being too cautious?
I just don't want to kill my first plant this early haha

[Pup]

Cheers Ken
I was considering moving it outside even though it was advertised as an indoor plant when I bought it.
I read to keep it in shade for a few weeks after heavy pruning.
I might move it onto a windowsill for a while because it's been pretty windy all week, at least that way it will get a few hours sun a day.
Am I being too cautious?
I just don't want to kill my first plant this early haha

G,day bung, if you kill the fig you should give up growing weeds. That said what i would suggest is you take a drive to one of the nurserys in Perth Metro. Generally what is sold in Bussings is half dead when it gets to Perth any way.
If you Pm me I will let you know when I am down your way. We have a son and 3 grandaughters that live down that way. So I might be able to help, most of the markets sell very new stock plants, so you have to be careful. With Christmas coming there will be a lot more around.

Cheers Pup

[bung]

Ok so the leaves are starting to grow back.
I'll leave it in the shade for a little bit longer but once it does go out in the sun again should I worry about sheltering it from the wind or does wind not damage figs?

[rch003]

If it is blowing a gale then shelter it, but if its a random breeze then its okay, figs are pretty hardy