Ficus Benjamina; 1 Year, 100% Lava

[ShadyStump]

I don't remember who it was, or even what the original discussion was about, but I DO remember someone wondering about a ficus benjamina grown in lava. I had such a project going already, so here are the results from when I repotted last week.

Here she is after one year. Unfortunately I can't find a pic from the beginning, last year. It has grown significantly taller, and with more neglect than I'd intended.


A closeup of the pot. Just a hard plastic dish with holes drilled in the bottom. About 10 inch diameter I think.
I put some mulch over top last summer to help with water retention.

And first pulled from the pot.


Very compacted with fine roots, though not quite root bound.

Raked out the roots some to get an idea what was going on.

Continued...

 

[ShadyStump]

The fine to large root ratio is very satisfactory, but I wasn't able to completely circumvent the tuberous root bases. Someone taking a less lackadaisical approach to their tree care than I have a habit of may get better results.

From there it was just a trim, took off the biggest tuber, and repotted in a coco/zeolite mix I'm trying out; but none of that has anything to do with this experiment.
Hope this is beneficial for whoever it was I had promised it to.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Now that’s commitment to the promise. Reason faded, target forgotten, but promise still fulfilled.

 

[nuttiest]

Nice growing Shady!

 

[jandslegate]

I don't remember who it was, or even what the original discussion was about, but I DO remember someone wondering about a ficus benjamina grown in lava. I had such a project going already, so here are the results from when I repotted last week.

Here she is after one year. Unfortunately I can't find a pic from the beginning, last year. It has grown significantly taller, and with more neglect than I'd intended.
View attachment 491531

A closeup of the pot. Just a hard plastic dish with holes drilled in the bottom. About 10 inch diameter I think.
I put some mulch over top last summer to help with water retention.
View attachment 491533
And first pulled from the pot.
View attachment 491537
View attachment 491538
Very compacted with fine roots, though not quite root bound.

Raked out the roots some to get an idea what was going on.
View attachment 491539
Continued...

Impressive. My Benjimina was one of the first victims of winter boredom/neglect.

 

[Lorax7]

What was your motivation for potting the ficus in pure lava? I would expect a pure lava substrate to keep a ficus drier than it would really prefer to be. I have most of mine in APL and they are quite happy. I have another one potted in perlite and coco coir and it’s really been thriving.

 

[Paradox]

Maybe its me but my experience with ficus so far albeit Willow leaf and tiger bark is they dont seem to care very much about soil type.

That said, this one looks good and healthy so nice job

 

[jandslegate]

Maybe its me but my experience with ficus so far albeit Willow leaf and tiger bark is they dont seem to care very much about soil type.

That said, this one looks good and healthy so nice job

I would tend to agree. The ones of mine that are healthy just seem to go when it's go time. Although I will say a more course substrate i.e. gravel does help thicken roots in a short time, in my experience.

 

[Paradox]

I would tend to agree. The ones of mine that are healthy just seem to go when it's go time. Although I will say a more course substrate i.e. gravel does help thicken roots in a short time, in my experience.

I prefer a more coarse substrate for sure

 

[Baku1875]

What was your motivation for potting the ficus in pure lava? I would expect a pure lava substrate to keep a ficus drier than it would really prefer to be. I have most of mine in APL and they are quite happy. I have another one potted in perlite and coco coir and it’s really been thriving.

I have a bunch that are in development in coarse perlite and cocopeat/coir, some with perlite and fir bark 80:20 and they love it. I tried a few in a high% of safeTsorb last year as an experiment and they struggled, too wet, but I live in a wet climate so it was likely the compound effect leading to overkill of moisture.

Coco/zeolite sounds interesting, zeolite is on my list of stuff to try. Vs your lava experiment, it would have much higher CEC for sure, a lot more nitrogen to pull.

View attachment 491540
View attachment 491541
View attachment 491542
The fine to large root ratio is very satisfactory, but I wasn't able to completely circumvent the tuberous root bases. Someone taking a less lackadaisical approach to their tree care than I have a habit of may get better results.

From there it was just a trim, took off the biggest tuber, and repotted in a coco/zeolite mix I'm trying out; but none of that has anything to do with this experiment.
Hope this is beneficial for whoever it was I had promised it to.

did you make fries out of those potatoes?

you just reminded me that I gotta pull a few of my ficuses out of their pots and check on the roots for tubers since im not going for a ginseng look.

 

[ShadyStump]

What was your motivation for potting the ficus in pure lava? I would expect a pure lava substrate to keep a ficus drier than it would really prefer to be. I have most of mine in APL and they are quite happy. I have another one potted in perlite and coco coir and it’s really been thriving.

Just learning the substrates available to me at the time.
I've had excellent luck with benjamina: Can't kill 'em if it tried. It's the first tree I really took the time and effort to do REAL bonsai with.
They have fairly predictable roots as a soft rule. So if I want to get an idea what a substrate/soil component does, I can test on a benjamina with little fear, and get a decent idea of the general effects.

Coco/zeolite sounds interesting, zeolite is on my list of stuff to try. Vs your lava experiment, it would have much higher CEC for sure, a lot more nitrogen to pull.

I recently started a thread to show my experiments with zeolite, which I'm slightly behind on updating. I sourced it with ecoTraction Pro, sold as an alternative to ice melts for winter traction. $45 for a 40lb bag. Also came across zeolite sold as a swimming pool filter medium at similar prices.
Went with the Pro because of the larger particle size, but if I keep it up with this stuff I'll do the regular. It doesn't have enough water retention on its own otherwise. Barely enough for the prickly pear cactus I have in it. Hence the coco coir in other mixes.
Too early to tell anything as far as ferts and nutrient release goes. I'm eager to try an acid loving tree in it, see what it takes to compensate for the alkalinity.
Zeolite is apparently already a common soil component for some of our European members, but I'm keeping the thread going so others can get an idea.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

@ShadyStump I’d suggest tracking down what “zeolite” you’re using. Zeolites are typically porous aluminosilicates, and there’s a whole variety of them, with a variety of inclusion ions. Sodalite, faujasite, montmorellite, ZSM-5, Beta, A, Y, etc., each with the possibility of proton forms, sodium, ammonium, etc. there’s like 170+ that have been made, but only a few in common use. Just FYI if you want to be more scientific with the zeolite substrate work. Careful though - some can be extremely toxic by inhalation. Asbestos, for instance, is a zeolite (cristabolite).

 

[Baku1875]

@ShadyStump I’d suggest tracking down what “zeolite” you’re using. Zeolites are typically porous aluminosilicates, and there’s a whole variety of them, with a variety of inclusion ions. Sodalite, faujasite, montmorellite, ZSM-5, Beta, A, Y, etc., each with the possibility of proton forms, sodium, ammonium, etc. there’s like 170+ that have been made, but only a few in common use. Just FYI if you want to be more scientific with the zeolite substrate work. Careful though - some can be extremely toxic by inhalation. Asbestos, for instance, is a zeolite (cristabolite).

yep. honestly, any inorganic or organic soil component that is dusty for that matter, n95 or p100 mask for sifting, with a fan behind me. whether it's pumice, akadama, perlite. Once that stuff gets in your lungs, it pretty much cant get out.

 

[Baku1875]

Just learning the substrates available to me at the time.
I've had excellent luck with benjamina: Can't kill 'em if it tried. It's the first tree I really took the time and effort to do REAL bonsai with.
They have fairly predictable roots as a soft rule. So if I want to get an idea what a substrate/soil component does, I can test on a benjamina with little fear, and get a decent idea of the general effects.


I recently started a thread to show my experiments with zeolite, which I'm slightly behind on updating. I sourced it with ecoTraction Pro, sold as an alternative to ice melts for winter traction. $45 for a 40lb bag. Also came across zeolite sold as a swimming pool filter medium at similar prices.
Went with the Pro because of the larger particle size, but if I keep it up with this stuff I'll do the regular. It doesn't have enough water retention on its own otherwise. Barely enough for the prickly pear cactus I have in it. Hence the coco coir in other mixes.
Too early to tell anything as far as ferts and nutrient release goes. I'm eager to try an acid loving tree in it, see what it takes to compensate for the alkalinity.
Zeolite is apparently already a common soil component for some of our European members, but I'm keeping the thread going so others can get an idea.

i dig these experiments. As long as you arent guinea pigging any prized trees of yours, a lot of low cost/high performance soil alternatives can be found.

That Pro swimming pool zeolite, is it close to 3/8"? it sounds like something that would be up my alley to handle a winter monsoon because I'm always looking for something with good drainage and aeration but also high CEC.

 

[Baku1875]

Do you have any tiger barks? I've recently switched to cloning as many tiger barks as possible because the leaves are about 30% smaller, and they shrink nicely when rootbound in mini pots.

About same trunk size,slightly thicker benjamina on the right with the bigger leaves. im in love with the tigers!

 

[Lorax7]

Do you have any tiger barks? I've recently switched to cloning as many tiger barks as possible because the leaves are about 30% smaller, and they shrink nicely when rootbound in mini pots.
View attachment 491669
About same trunk size,slightly thicker benjamina on the right with the bigger leaves. im in love with the tigers!

FYI, there are cultivars of benjamina that have smaller leaves than the tiger bark ficus. The “Too Little” and “Natasja” cultivars are examples of small-leafed benjaminas. Personally, I prefer the aesthetics of the flatter, more oval leaves of the tiger bark, even though the leaves are bigger.

 

[ShadyStump]

@ShadyStump I’d suggest tracking down what “zeolite” you’re using. Zeolites are typically porous aluminosilicates, and there’s a whole variety of them, with a variety of inclusion ions. Sodalite, faujasite, montmorellite, ZSM-5, Beta, A, Y, etc., each with the possibility of proton forms, sodium, ammonium, etc. there’s like 170+ that have been made, but only a few in common use. Just FYI if you want to be more scientific with the zeolite substrate work. Careful though - some can be extremely toxic by inhalation. Asbestos, for instance, is a zeolite (cristabolite).

Wow, I had no idea. I'll see what I can find out. Thanks.
The ecoTraction is sold as an ecologically friendly alternative to ice melt, so I'm assuming it's fairly safe chemically. It does hold water, just not anything like clay or DE substrates. Fairly low on dust thus far.

@Baku1875 the swimming pool stuff appears to be the same stuff as the ecoTraction, but I couldn't find anything on particle size for most I came across.
And I have a couple tiger barks now days, but very little styling so far. Looking forward to it, but not in a hurry. That "culling the herd" thread has me reevaluating some life choices of the past couple years. LoL

As @Lorax7 said, there are many varieties of benjamina, including some that don't make the tubers, but the standard houseplant sort is what I've been working with.
They're not the prettiest trees for bonsai, but they are loads of fun.

 

[Baku1875]

FYI, there are cultivars of benjamina that have smaller leaves than the tiger bark ficus. The “Too Little” and “Natasja” cultivars are examples of small-leafed benjaminas. Personally, I prefer the aesthetics of the flatter, more oval leaves of the tiger bark, even though the leaves are bigger.

good to know. the only ficus species that i have experience with are the tigers and the benjaminas, but I took a strangler fig off a large bucida buceras tree last year, and it has an interesting trunk, definitely a ficus, but large large leaves. I'm considering doing a graft of tiger bark onto that later on to reduce the leaf to trunk ratio

 

[Baku1875]

Wow, I had no idea. I'll see what I can find out. Thanks.
The ecoTraction is sold as an ecologically friendly alternative to ice melt, so I'm assuming it's fairly safe chemically. It does hold water, just not anything like clay or DE substrates. Fairly low on dust thus far.

@Baku1875 the swimming pool stuff appears to be the same stuff as the ecoTraction, but I couldn't find anything on particle size for most I came across.
And I have a couple tiger barks now days, but very little styling so far. Looking forward to it, but not in a hurry. That "culling the herd" thread has me reevaluating some life choices of the past couple years. LoL

As @Lorax7 said, there are many varieties of benjamina, including some that don't make the tubers, but the standard houseplant sort is what I've been working with.
They're not the prettiest trees for bonsai, but they are loads of fun.

it all boils down to whether or not your trees like it. I'm looking forward to the results! zeeeeeeeeeeeolite!

 

[Baku1875]

regarding the tubers, my tigerbarks dont make big tubers, but my benjaminas do. I plan on repotting and pruning some potatoes off a few this summer, so i will report on those results.

So far, tigerbark has been the more 'civilized, anti potato' ficus in my experience