AusBonsai

Jarad wrote:

kevBatts wrote:Perhaps the problem may have been the strength of the Seasol. I have used Seasol and thought that I had diluted the mixture well, but most plants that I had used it on did the same by dropping leaves. Took a little while to recover but all is good now. Just a thought. Good luck, regards Kev

Did you happen to use the seasol on deciduous trees during Autumn...?

I don't think I mixed the seasol too strong, otherwise it would have done the same to the other fig... Maybe??

I'd never thought about not fertilising/seasoling deciduous trees in autumn Jarad. Be pretty pointless I should imagine. At least the weeds would be well nourished.

Tim

Tim.C wrote:

Jarad wrote:

kevBatts wrote:Perhaps the problem may have been the strength of the Seasol. I have used Seasol and thought that I had diluted the mixture well, but most plants that I had used it on did the same by dropping leaves. Took a little while to recover but all is good now. Just a thought. Good luck, regards Kev

Did you happen to use the seasol on deciduous trees during Autumn...?

I don't think I mixed the seasol too strong, otherwise it would have done the same to the other fig... Maybe??

I'd never thought about not fertilising/seasoling deciduous trees in autumn Jarad. Be pretty pointless I should imagine. At least the weeds would be well nourished.

Tim

Hey Tim,

That was a poor attempt at humour directed at Kev.

Jarad wrote:

Tim.C wrote:

Jarad wrote:

kevBatts wrote:Perhaps the problem may have been the strength of the Seasol. I have used Seasol and thought that I had diluted the mixture well, but most plants that I had used it on did the same by dropping leaves. Took a little while to recover but all is good now. Just a thought. Good luck, regards Kev

Did you happen to use the seasol on deciduous trees during Autumn...?

I don't think I mixed the seasol too strong, otherwise it would have done the same to the other fig... Maybe??

I'd never thought about not fertilising/seasoling deciduous trees in autumn Jarad. Be pretty pointless I should imagine. At least the weeds would be well nourished.

Tim

Hey Tim,

That was a poor attempt at humour directed at Kev.

I wouldn't say a "poor" attempt at humour. I'm still having a little chuckle to myself at that comment. You nearly got a good laugh at me too. I nearly asked why you shouldn't seasol deciduous trees in autumn. It wasn't until I thought about it a bit, that I realised how pointless it would be. All jokes aside tho, I'm still fertilising my maples at the moment. Should I stop now?, or keep fertilising until the leaves start changing colour? I've never considered this until now. I'm in Brisbane, and it's still quite warm up here.

Tim

I'm glad I at least got a chuckle.

I wouldn't be able to tell you for sure, I haven't branched into deciduous trees so that's probably a better question for someone else to tackle.

Are they still growing, or have they slowed/stopped?

My first post and I'm no Guru but the time of year maybe the problem or maybe you didn't get enough root when you recovered them? I don't know the full circumstance but maybe the figs had roots winding through gravel or another hard surface and you may not have got enough of that? Reminds me of mistakes I have made previously. Hope they come good.


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fossil finder wrote:My first post

Welcome mate!

Hi Tim,

They definitely look like benji's, and although native, they are native to northern Australia but are grown extensively as street trees in SE Qld as well as other areas. Many trees will produce viable seed outside there natural range.

I'ld say they have dropped their leaves as a reaction to stress as stated above. I've seen large plants in pots (not bonsai) moved inside and drop all their leaves within a few days and a week later start pushing new leaves. Yours may still be fine. I would be keeping an eye on your mix and only water as it's getting dry. It will probably take longer than your other tress as there are no leaves to pull the water up.

Seasol is not a fertiliser, but a plant tonic and shouldn't harm your tress at recommended strength. If you are concerned you can use it at a weaker solution.

Hi Friends,
I just here to share about Common fig Cultivation.

The common fig is grown for its edible fruit throughout the temperate world. It is also grown as an ornamental tree, and the cultivar 'Brown Turkey' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[6]

Figs can be found in continental climates with hot summers as far north as Hungary and Moravia, and can be harvested up to four times per year. Thousands of cultivars, most named, have been developed as human migration brought the fig to many places outside its natural range.

Two crops of figs are potentially produced each year.[7] The first or breba crop develops in the spring on last year's shoot growth. In contrast, the main fig crop develops on the current year's shoot growth and ripens in the late summer or fall. The main crop is generally superior in both quantity and quality to the breba crop. However, some cultivars produce good breba crops (e.g., 'Black Mission', 'Croisic', and 'Ventura').

There are basically three types of edible figs:[8]

Persistent (or common) figs have all female flowers that do not need pollination for fruiting; the fruit can develop through parthenocarpic means. This is a popular horticulture fig for home gardeners. Dottato (Kadota), Black Mission, Brown Turkey, Brunswick, and Celeste are some representative cultivars.
Caducous (or Smyrna) figs require cross pollination by the fig wasp with pollen from caprifigs for the fruit to mature. If not pollinated the immature fruits drop. Some cultivars are Smyrne (Lob Incir in Turkey) - (Calimyrna in the Great Central Valley USA), Marabout, Inchàrio, and Zidi.
Intermediate (or San Pedro) figs set an unpollinated breba crop, but need pollination for the later main crop. Examples are Lampeira, King, and San Pedro.

The fig likes dry sunny sites, the soil dry or drained. Excessive growth has to be limited to promote the fruiting. It thrives in both sandy and rocky soil. As the sun is really important it is better to avoid shades. Some varieties are more adapted to harsh and wet climates.


Thank you!

Jarad wrote:I'm glad I at least got a chuckle.

I wouldn't be able to tell you for sure, I haven't branched into deciduous trees so that's probably a better question for someone else to tackle.

Are they still growing, or have they slowed/stopped?

I don't have many deciduous trees either. Only a few Acer palmatum I grew from seed. There's one growing up the road on the footpath, so I raided some seeds and planted them. They still seem to be growing. I suppose I'll fertilise some and not some and see the difference. I've got that many at the moment, so it won't hurt.

dansai wrote:Hi Tim,

They definitely look like benji's, and although native, they are native to northern Australia but are grown extensively as street trees in SE Qld as well as other areas. Many trees will produce viable seed outside there natural range.

I'ld say they have dropped their leaves as a reaction to stress as stated above. I've seen large plants in pots (not bonsai) moved inside and drop all their leaves within a few days and a week later start pushing new leaves. Yours may still be fine. I would be keeping an eye on your mix and only water as it's getting dry. It will probably take longer than your other tress as there are no leaves to pull the water up.

Seasol is not a fertiliser, but a plant tonic and shouldn't harm your tress at recommended strength. If you are concerned you can use it at a weaker solution.

Hi Dansai, I'm not that worried about the seasol. I've been using it for years on my orchids, sometimes stronger then recommended, and never had a problem. It's a plant conditioner not fertiliser, this part I know, but unlike orchids where most of it runs off, I thought possibly excess in the potting mix may have been an issue. The leaves seemed to have stopped dropping today, so I'd say it probably was stress from the transplant like said earlier. I've just never had one this size drop so many leaves so quick, so I suppose it had me a bit concerned. Now that has decided to hang on to its last few leaves, hopefully it will be all good.

fossil finder wrote:My first post and I'm no Guru but the time of year maybe the problem or maybe you didn't get enough root when you recovered them? I don't know the full circumstance but maybe the figs had roots winding through gravel or another hard surface and you may not have got enough of that? Reminds me of mistakes I have made previously. Hope they come good.


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Hi and welcome Fossil Finder, the fig in the saucer is going great guns. It hasn't dropped any leaves, but had more finer roots. The now almost bald one still had a fair few fine roots, but not as many as the other. I'm now starting to think it's just sulking. After all it was growing nice and high on a bridge with a nice view until I come along. Now it's sitting in a polystyrene fruit box on the ground staring at a six foot fence. Worst case scenario I suppose is I end up with a big fig cutting. Time will tell.

Tim

Hi Jarad, I have read that one should use fertiliser at the specified dosage (See bonsaimary.com). Found this site the other day and is very good as far as I can see. May be worth a look. Cheers, Kev B.

Oh, hi Jarad. Just browsing through your thread to see how you got on with your fig. Not sure how to take your comment about your attempted shot at humour at my expense. Thanks

Hey Kev,

From experience, you can feed figs more frequently than pretty much every other plant. During summer and Autumn they love fertilizer,Sun and water. I have a few PJ figs and they have exploded with growth since I started feeding them a tonne and watering. They have slow release sitting on the surface as well as fortnightly doses of charly carp.

That's ok, not everyone gets my humour.

Bit of an update. My fig has been without leaves now for the last two weeks, and all the branches appear dead. Is this tree completely dead, or if I give it a very hard prune, what do you all think about it coming back? I don't have high hopes for it.

tim

Keep the soil moist and leave it for 3-6 months. If there is no growth by Christmas you can pretty well be sure that it is dead. You can scratch the bark and see if there is any green. Green = alive. I have a benji that had no leaves for 3-4 months until it reshot and has been going gangbusters ever since.