Fig/Schefflera fertilizer?

[RGodman]

Hi all,

I have never had a Ficus Benjamina, or a Schefflera... now I have both.

I live in the USA, so many not be able to get what you folks use, but I may be able to find something close.

What are you using to fertilize these? Both have been repotted a month or so back, and I think I am ready to start fertilizing with a diluted mixture.

Thanks,

Ray

[shibui]

I have never yet met a fig that could read Ray so they are happy with whatever fertiliser you can get. In fact, figs are definitely not fussy and will be happy with whatever you give them as long as there is plenty of it.
Many growers over here use Dynamic lifter or equivalent. That's pelletised Chook (chicken to you) poo. I have seen it poured onto pots about 3 cm deep and the figs grow like crazy.
I use any liquid fertilisers at full recommended strength every 2-3 weeks on my figs with occasional handfuls of the chook poo pellets.

Schefflera should do ok with similar but maybe not the same quantities as for figs.

[Ash]

Hi - just supporting what shibui has already said. Both Ficus and Schefflera do well with a lot of nutrients so just about any well balanced commercially available organic or inorganic fertiliser applied at the recommended does will do. Some people use fertilisers with high P and K and low N once the trees are mature in an effort to keep the leaf size down. When the tree is young and developing a more balanced fertiliser will give great results. best of luck, Ash

[RGodman]

Thanks to both of you!!

Ok.. yes I was more worried about having too much P or K or N.. was not sure if I needed to look at a certain ratio. (Guess I could google what chicken poo normally is)

I only have my little 4" pot verigated Benjamina which I split into 2 plants atm. I am shocked at it tho.. lost maybe 3 leaves on both plants combined, lost none of the new growth, and has new growth. I cut the rootball in 2.. giving me a small 2 trunk tree, and a 1 trunk tree, and that was maybe a month ago. Also fair to say I have not fertilized with anything up to his point, and it is winter still here ( Southeast USA ).

I am looking for a 5 or so trunk bigger benjamina that I plan to merge the trunks, and wire each trunk to be a #1, #2, #3, etc branches and leader.

The Schefflera I got off ebay cheap and am very pleased with it. Also verigated, quite a few years old, maybe 2" trunk with aerials off all the big branches.

Spun around at work and snapped this pic of the baby 1 truck ficus. Yes I know lol it is way too small to go in a bonsai pot yet as a bonsai, but the root ball is maybe 1/10th of the size of this little pot, and it looks nicer this year behind my desk in a real pot. Plan on letting it go for the year, hopefully filling at least half the pot by then with roots, and will plant it up into a bigger grow container. For now tho I get to enjoy a little tree in a little pot.

Ray

[shibui]

I doubt that you could give a fig too much of anything. ANY fertiliser will be ok. Don't worry too much about the ratios. They will just take what they need and ignore the rest.

Remember that these are evergreens but all leaves have a limited lifespan. Typically leaves of evergreen trees only live 2-3 years then die and drop off but, of course, new ones have grown in the meanwhile. Pruning will make new buds grow and form new shoots with fresh leaves. If you do not prune a fig existing shoots will just get longer and longer and end up with leaves just at the tips as older ones drop off.

I only have F. rubiginosa but I have found that they will thicken quite a lot even with limited root space. I know that F. bejamina is slower to thicken but I'd still expect it to grow, even in a bonsai pot.

Figs merge quite easily so your plan with your next one should work quite well.

[RGodman]

Shibui...

Cool ty. I had been wondering.. what is the best way to prune this? I mean it needs years of growing, trunk thickening, etc, but for now.

I figured as it is so small I'd just need to let it grow (especially main leader) to let it thicken up. I know in a maple I'd let the leader grow long for girth thickening, then chop, repeat.. for thickness and taper, all would be sacrificial branching. Is that what I do with this?.. or prune end of all tips to back bud and not let it get leggy?

I had also thought I'd wire the trunk soon.. was letting it recover, and spring to hit then wire it for shape, watching it closely so it does not mark trunk badly. Tree may be too young for this tho, I don't know.


Took a couple quick shots of my ver. schefflera. Really like it, but the guy who had it before me let the low branches go huge for aerial roots, then whacked them.. haven't yet figured out what I will do with it/them yet. Any input would be great.

Thanks as always,

Ray

[treeman]

Hi all,

I have never had a Ficus Benjamina, or a Schefflera... now I have both.

I live in the USA, so many not be able to get what you folks use, but I may be able to find something close.

What are you using to fertilize these? Both have been repotted a month or so back, and I think I am ready to start fertilizing with a diluted mixture.

Thanks,

Ray

I would be very wary about giving pelletized chicken manure to F bejamanina. They are more delicate than other some other figs and more impotantly they grow best with quite acidic conditions (around pH4-4.5). Chicken manure can be highly alkaline (because they feed the chickens shell grit).
There are so many better options than ''vegie food'' pellets.

[treeman]

doubt that you could give a fig too much of anything.

Every plant has a limit to the salinity of the water around it's roots. You can easily give too much Shib!

They will just take what they need and ignore the rest.

Have to disagree with this one too. Within reason, ratios of the main elements N P K Ca Mg S are very important. Comercial hydroponic people spend lots of money on trials to determine optimum ratios for a particular plant. Get the ratio (and rate) wrong and plant growth declines

[shibui]

Happy to take Treeman's advice. Most of the time he does know what he's talking about
As stated I don't grow benjamina here because they are just a bit touchy so not surprised they are a bit less tolerant of the sort of fertiliser levels we can throw at F. rubiginosa however I still stand by any commercial fertiliser used as directed will not hurt the tree and using any fertiliser is better than worrying about it and using nothing.

As for

I would be very wary about giving pelletized chicken manure to F bejamanina. They are more delicate than other some other figs and more impotantly they grow best with quite acidic conditions (around pH4-4.5). Chicken manure can be highly alkaline (because they feed the chickens shell grit).
There are so many better options than ''vegie food'' pellets.

we will just have to agree to disagree for a little longer.