Ficus Retusa fusion?

[Cory Johnson]

Hi all, new to the forums, joined because the posts I've read on here are much nicer than the people on reddit.

So I know with the right knowhow and patience microcarpa and Benjamina ficus will fuse together

Will Retusa do the same? if I want to cheat the system and get a few of the ones from places like home depot or lowes, bind them tightly together in a large training pot and keep an eye on them, will they eventually fuse together to make a much larger trunk? of course I am over simplifying the procedure but can a Frankentree like this work?

 

[Redwood Ryan]

Welcome,


Retusa and microcarpa are the same. Retusa is just an older name. The Ficus will fuse, though it's not wise to do so as the bark is too different. They most likely won't fully fuse and you'd be left with some strange half-fused tree. The bark and leaves wouldn't match at all.

 

[Cory Johnson]

Welcome,


Retusa and microcarpa are the same. Retusa is just an older name. The Ficus will fuse, though it's not wise to do so as the bark is too different. They most likely won't fully fuse and you'd be left with some strange half-fused tree. The bark and leaves wouldn't match at all.

Even if they are all coming from the same supplier? they all have the same type of bark as far as I've seen. I can post pics if needed

Also thanks for the quick reply and helpful info

 

[Redwood Ryan]

Even if they are all coming from the same supplier? they all have the same type of bark as far as I've seen. I can post pics if needed

Also thanks for the quick reply and helpful info

Ah, thought you meant fusing microcarpa with another species. Benjamina are quickest to fuse, the others are slower. Even though the trees look the same, they'll still have minor variations that won't line up.

 

[Cory Johnson]

Ah, thought you meant fusing microcarpa with another species. Benjamina are quickest to fuse, the others are slower. Even though the trees look the same, they'll still have minor variations that won't line up.

I think it might be worth the experiment

 

[hemmy]

Wow, nicer here?! Reddit must be brutal!

 

[Cory Johnson]

Wow, nicer here?! Reddit must be brutal!

Sometimes they are quiet encouraging, but for someone like myself, who enjoys the experimentation and trying to make bonsai out of nontraditional plants, not the most encouraging or helpful. I've lurked on this forum for a few months and it's all positive criticism or help from what I've seen.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Hi Cory
Redwood Ryan is one of our more experienced Ficus growers, he knows his stuff.

I noticed you are in Florida, where for 10 months a year Ficus grow incredibly fast. I know in Orlando you do get frost or freezes occasionally, so you do have to protect them for a couple months. But in your climate, you could easily take cuttings in order to get genetically identical stock to do a trunk fusion with. In one year you could have all the 4 foot tall whips you would need to do any fusion project you want. Check out the article in the link I included, if you follow those plans you will need quite a few whips all the same genetic material. As soon as it is warm enough in spring, start a flat or two with 50 to 100 cuttings of your favorite Ficus variety. Between now and then, you can make the frame or frames that you would like to use to go inside the trunk fusion. Be creative.

Then the following spring you can make your own trunk fusion.

http://www.bonsaiempire.com/blog/trunk-fusion

 

[Sebastian]

Welcome,


Retusa and microcarpa are the same. Retusa is just an older name. The Ficus will fuse, though it's not wise to do so as the bark is too different. They most likely won't fully fuse and you'd be left with some strange half-fused tree. The bark and leaves wouldn't match at all.

Depends, where I'm at they all come from the same farm in Miami. Look identical, bark and styling. Willing to bet they're all same genetic line from layers or grafts.