ficus (benjamina?) in warm temperate climate.

[Pure_Ignorance]

Howdy.
I have 8 Ficus that I think might be Ficus benjamina that I'd like to shorten and train to be nice little bonsai. I already put them in shallow pots and trimmed their roots about three years agao, as well as chopped them down a bit over that time.

I have seen lots of advice on how to get these guys shorter, but am curious how strictly work needs to be done in spring and summer if I'm in a warm temperate zone.

I cut them back quite hard a few weeks ago, thinking it was still pretty warm and they seemed to be actively growing even though its technically autumn. I watered a bit extra for a week, and then it rained heavily for a week.

Since some of the pots aren't draining as well as they should, and are suffering(see pics). I am tempted to repot them now rwther than wait until spring like I planned.

Also, while I've been playing with them today I tried a few grafts (pics as well). I have no idea how much to graft onto the trunks, I want to have some leaves and new growth on there though cause these guys seem to just die if theres no leaves on a branch. And in any case, it's probably not gonna go well since the weather has suddenly gotten cold this week.

So my questions are, if theres new growth and it doesnt get too cold, can I repot these? Also, is the grafting doomed at this time of year, and what makes a good 'scion' for grafting branchers lower on a trunk for these plants?

Edit: added a pic of one of the healthy ones to show how much they were cut back, to compare to the waterlogged one whose roots I am worried about.

 

[TimIAm]

Hope you jump back on and see this. Sometimes the Aussie posts get lost a bit because of the timezone difference.

The main ficus species we use in Australia for bonsai (PJF, MBF and F. obliqua) all back bud quite easily. Back budding is where the tree starts to grow new buds internally and can usually be stimulated by cutting back the ends, with the aim of getting new growth closer to the trunk.

F. benjamina is not as easy to work with and you can end up with a stalled branch or a branch where the tree just gives up and you get nothing. Don't cut back beyond the last set of leaves as you risk ending up losing the branch.

As your tree has a lot of long bare branches it will take a while to chase growth back. With benjis I've found that if you keep the tree growing well (keep it fertilised, sun and watered), when it puts out new growth at the ends, it will also start new buds at the base of older leaves. Once you know you have a bud which is more internal, you can then cut back to that bud. Then you have to wait the long game of that bud growing out, and putting out a bunch of leaves and then repeat.

I personally prefer with benjis, because they aren't as reliable, to have two visible buds to cut back to in case one of the buds fails.

For what makes a good scion, just search google for bonsai grafting videos as there are plenty of good videos out there which will demonstrate how to make the cut.

In our part of the world we get growth year round on Ficus, so I wouldn't say the graft is doomed due to the cold and my benjis are still putting out masses of new leaves. It may be fine, but I do tend to get about 6 weeks in winter where growth slows down.

I prefer not to repot my ficus (or any of my trees) unless I know they are happily putting out growth. Ficus we can usually get away with a repot year round, but as your tree has a limited amount of leaves (this is less about the exact number of leaves and more about the general health), we are just about to head into winter and you already did some cutting, a repot now isn't without risk. You have to weigh up which is better option; repot now because you think the pot it is in is going to leave the tree worse off or wait until November when you see new growth appear.

I'd be interested to know if these trees are getting enough sun? Also suggest a quality slow release fertiliser.

 

[Pure_Ignorance]

Thanks for replying!
Yeah, I've been trying to back bud and shorten the branches on these since I first split them up and rescued them from the pot they arrived in. At the time I thought the small trunks were interesting and that one day I'd try and turn them into littler bonsai trees. But these buggers haven't been very co-operative, and I've been pretty sporadic and full of procrastination.

That's why I'm finally here to get serious. I am glad to hear that it isn't a death sentence to repot them this time of year in oz. Though given the weather right now, I may need to be very careful. Maybe I will just repot and give some tlc to the least draining one that seems to be suffering.

My grafting was a bit of a facepalm moment when I looked up grafting info and realised how badly I'd remembered the process Most are still living 3 weeks later though and two even look like they might be successful. I don't think grafting proper scions would work though, this plant sems to just ignore anything without leaves on it. I might switch to trying to fuse some branches into the lower trunk, since then I can keep leaves on them.

Yes, I am fertilising them now, amd perhaps more sun would be a good idea. They are a bit shaded for part.of the day. They needed that to escape the full summer sun, but they have enough shade now that moss grows well, so more sun definitely is needed.

I guess I will stick with waiting till maybe October to abuse them again. They are growing back quite nicely, so by the end of winter they should be quite recovered. I don't think I've chosen the best variety or individuals to bonsai, but I'm committed now and will keep at it

Thanks again for replying, I appreciate the advice!