Help purchased a 25 year old Ficus (microcarpa) any and all info /advice welcomed thank you.

[Obscured Tower]

Hello allow me to preface this that I am brand new to bonsai , I recently finished moving into my new home with my wife and son and wanted to bring some plants into the home to liven the place up a bit. I saw this (Ficus Microcarpa)? and was captured by its striking design. Any and all info on the plant as it is and what I should be doing to ensure it has a happy life would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Bonsai Obsessed]

Hello allow me to preface this that I am brand new to bonsai , I recently finished moving into my new home with my wife and son and wanted to bring some plants into the home to liven the place up a bit. I saw this (Ficus Microcarpa)? and was captured by its striking design. Any and all info on the plant as it is and what I should be doing to ensure it has a happy life would be greatly appreciated.

So some general information, tree appears to be quite healthy, the dark green foliage is a really good sign. This is a tropical so will need to be protected once temps reach 50 or below. It will benefit greatly from being outside thru out the summer season, this will keep it very healthy! While they will survive inside, they rarely thrive with out some grow lighting, and humidity control- so keep this in mind when you choose an inside location.
Place it outside in filtered sun light, keep it watered well, damp but not wet constantly. While out side you can fertilize bi- weekly, once it comes inside it will not require much fertilizer, maybe once a month.
Outside it will push new shoots, they can be trimmed back to two leaves, as they extend. Don’t be surprised if it drops leaves when it comes inside, the change in light intensity will cause this as it readjusts.

 

[BrianBay9]

Add your general location to your profile when you can. It will help people give you better advice.

 

[BaKiBonsai]

Ive had this one for years without doing anything except watering and reporting once. It's always been indoors, it drops leaves and grows leaves.

Heads up, when I repotted it from the original soil all but one roots where dead and rotten. Apparently it can survive on litle roots, but read up on some (inorganic) bonsai soil. Depending on how often you can water it it can be very beneficial for your tree to transition at the proper moment.

 

[Obscured Tower]

Thank you for responses , I’ve noticed there are no holes in the pot it came with, should I drill some drainage holes? I also read that there are (humidity trays)? Are these useful/ feasible for a tree of this size?

 

[BaKiBonsai]

Your tree should not be in standing water, so you need something like an inner pot with holes in an outer pot (like mine) or a drip tray. Normal houseplants can go without if you water "perfectly".

In short: Would advise some holes.

 

[Michael P]

If the pot has no drain holes the tree MUST be repotted. If you are in the northern hemisphere it is summer, the ideal time to repot ficus. We really need to know where you are to give good advice.

How tall is the tree?

 

[BaKiBonsai]

Fun fact, it is common for these trees that the trunk is of a different plant (cultivar), then the branches. They are grafted on the trunk and normally grow smaller leaves than the original tree would grow.

The larger leave in my picture is on a non-grafted branch.

 

[oranjeaap]

I strongly doubt the claimed age. I've seen an almost identical tree offered for sale locally, they also claimed 25 years so maybe you got it from the same person. It was fairly obvious a grafted tree.
It's probably one of the best bonsai beginner species so no worries there, just something you should be aware of.

 

[rockm]

Ficus are easy. You can keep them outside during the summer months to help them build strength to live inside once frost and freezing weather arrives in the fall
Humidity traysare unecessary and ineffective (if your pot has no drain holes you will have to be extremely careful in watering your tree. All of the above advice is accurate.

A word in the “unique design” of your tree. Bonsai is not about “weird” or “unnusual” or odd looking small trees. It CAN be but most bonsai artists aren’t really after odd and weird. They after trying to capture natural looking trees. Trees that have inspired them in nature. The trunk here has regular even predictable twists. With tufts of foliage (No real branching developed yet). It is a beginning of sorts. The trunk is mostly monotonous and boring in its way.

Also age is not really all that important for bonsai (the exceptions are extremely old tree as in 100+ years). The mark of a good bonsai is how old it LOOKS. This tree probably isn’t more than ten or so