AusBonsai

Hi Ficus guy,

It did throw out a little shoot, just above the second top aerial root, but when I re-potted it I knocked it off. That was a month or two ago now, nothing has emerged again. Even that was reluctant to come sprout (it took 4-5 months after the chop to emerge. I guess that you would expect it to die back to some degree. When I get home I can scratch the cambium to see how high it is still alive.

It is a bit confusing to know what to expect really. Some said it would definitely survive, some said it probably wouldn't. I never thought that it would bud down that low, but I am glad that it is still kicking. I guess it all comes down to how healthy the tree is, the climate and some luck.

If some of the upper trunk is dead, what problem would that cause later on down the track? I have read on here that figs rot so I know that something will have to be done to stop water from pooling there, cut it at an angle I suppose and some sort of sealant.

Again, any help is appreciated.

Cheers

Jacob

Yes.

I've found that ficus can and do die back from time to time.
No growth up top is cause for concern.

Keep scratching the trunk to see if it's green.

I just had a look and the main truck seems to be alive, when I scratch it, all but about half a cm from the top is green.

The bud that I mentioned that I knocked off might be trying to break through again, there is a little nodual there that is small but it is bigger than that last time I looked.

It does still seem a little strange to me to get growth from the bottom, but I wouldn't have thought that it would be concerning. Could you please explain what is concerning Boics. Even if the main trunk was dead, would the new growth not fuse/anchor itself to the dead trunk?

Cheers

Jacob

Hey Everyone,

It has now been two months since i posted about the partial defoliation of the aerial layer so I thought it was time for another update.

So, Here is a pic after a quick trim


I decided to defoliate it again so that I would be able to wire down some of the branches. When I get to it, I will definitely be looking for some critiquing of my wiring, which is probably going to be pretty horrendous.

Front


Back


Jacob
Aerial view


And a side view

Sorry, some the pics are a bit blurry, my phone camera doesn't do the best in lower light.

Any suggestions or tips are welcome as always,

Cheers

So I thought bonsai was supposed to be a calming activity.... How wrong was I. I am sitting on my balcony, it is a nice rainy day, sipping coffee, I should be stress free.... Well, I am not lol.

I am attempting my first full wiring of this tree, and here is a rundown of what is going through my head....

ok start from the bottom... now thickest wire.... stop looking at that other branch.... ok now there are too many branches for the wire.... ok... remember to wire opposing branches....Thinnest wire not strong enough to hold the branch... crap.. now thats crossing wires.. take it off....start again....crap, now there is not enough branch space to include another wire.... Start from the BOTTOM!!!.... is everything too tight???? ... I have no clue what I am doing hahaha

So I have decided to go to work to calm down a bit. Hopefully I will finish wiring some time over this weekend and I will post some pics for critique.

Cheers

Jacob

Haha at least you haven't got to the stage of bonsai rage I turned into the incredible hulk one time when I was trying to squeeze some bonsai in before going to an appointment and stuffed up dropped and broke my tree and didn't have time to repot and it was in the middle of summer *sigh* good times. My wife asked me "I thought Bonsai was supposed to be relaxing? "

Great project. Hope it's still coming along nice. We are about to start the same mission. Keep us updated on ur great work


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I have a feeling that Jacob has found the tree to ruin bonsai or he's on holiday...

I never chop benjamina to bare wood. Chances are I will get die back and maybe a shoot at the base. But layers I have done over 100, and most of the time they back bud under the layer.
I treat them like junipers, and cut back if I want to reduce the height to the shoot / branch nearest to the trunk, and then reduce it to 2-3 leaves closest to the trunk.
They back bud lower on the trunk and if I let them grow to replenish their energy that allows me to repeat the procedure, until I have it the way I want it.