I purchased Ficus Benghalensis seeds from F W Schumacher Co (treeshrubseeds.com). One of the seeds from the package grew into this plant shown in the pictures. I see that the leaves look a bit different from the others and it has this yellow pollen/flowering. Could anyone help identify if this is what a ficus benghalensis is supposed to look like? The seed was planted on Nov 10, 2022 and these pictures are from today 1/1/23. This is my first time growing this tree. Thanks!
Please help identify this plant
LittleDingus
Omono
I could be way off, but it looks herbaceous to me. Soft, non-woody stems...fast growth to flower...I am not aware of any tree species that can flower in ~2 months! I don't believe it is a tree.
Does it look like any of your native wild species...something that might be considered a weed??
It could be a stray seed from the seed packet...they aren't always 100% pure...though with trees they usually are. More likely it's an opportunistic seed that got dropped there after planting. Are these kept outside?
Does it look like any of your native wild species...something that might be considered a weed??
It could be a stray seed from the seed packet...they aren't always 100% pure...though with trees they usually are. More likely it's an opportunistic seed that got dropped there after planting. Are these kept outside?
LittleDingus
Omono
Also...welcome to the forum 
If you go into your account settings, you can add a grow zone and a nearby major metro. That information will then appear to the left under your avatar for every post. It helps others know something about where you are and can give more relevant advice...bnut spans 6 continents...still on the lookout for someone on the 7th
If you go into your account settings, you can add a grow zone and a nearby major metro. That information will then appear to the left under your avatar for every post. It helps others know something about where you are and can give more relevant advice...bnut spans 6 continents...still on the lookout for someone on the 7th
Hey thanks so much for your reply. It doesn't look like anything native. I actually grew these indoors. These are my first plants that I've grown and so I don't have seeds for other varieties. It's just strange.
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
Definitely an herbaceous weed of some sort.
LittleDingus
Omono
I would suggest picking the flowers/buds before they can seed. It grows fast and could be some kind of invasive...or at least annoying...weed species.
Is the second pot in the back in the 3rd picture supposed to be a ficus also? It's hard to see but it also doesn't look like a 2 month old ficus to me. I'm not familiar with benghalensis though. It just doesn't look like woody plant growth from what I can see.
I have no experience with F W Schumacher Co but some vendors have better control over seed purity than others.
Sheffield's Seed Company seeds for sale :: Tree seeds ,Shrub seeds , Flower seeds , Vine seeds , Herb seeds ,Grass seeds , Vegetable seeds - seed for sale - Sheffields
Sheffield's, We are proud to offer extremely wide assortment of quality tree seeds, decorative cones. 1000's of seed for sale varieties In Stock. Phone: (315) 497-1058 Fax: (315) 497-1059 Email: seed@sheffields.com
sheffields.com
Is a vendor I have personally dealt with numerous times and has a good reputation within this community. I'm not knocking Schumacher...I just don't have personal experience with them and buying seed can be a risky endeavor
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
The first looks like it could be a ficus. The second is another weed.
LittleDingus
Omono
Both look like weeds to me.
OP says they were planted in November. Even that first pot looks like a ton of growth for 2 months for a woody species...especially indoors. Too compact too.
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
You are probably right. I was thinking perhaps there were several seeds in pot #1 and there are several ficus with leaves like those. but they would take more than 2 months to get that kind of growth unless in the tropics.
Crazy Diamond
Omono
By the flower looks like some type of Asteraceae species of weed
Just it make it easier I took a pic of all 3 pots at once. All 3 pots were from seeds from the same pack for Ficus Benghalensis. All were sowed on Nov 10 and the pics are from about 5min before this post.
Pot 1 is the one that was flowering and I plucked the flowers. The stem of it does have a woody texture though.
Pot 2 was something my kid did for fun and decided to grow a bunch of seeds together.
Pot 3 is another one that has fast growth but a nonwoody texture. The only thing is the roots are growing above the soil so I wasn't really sure.
I grew these originally after in a covered seed tray at 77F with daily misting after soaking the seeds for 24hrs. Pot 1 and 3 definitely had the fastest growth. They have been under a grow light and only indoors. Never moved around or anything. The soil is a mix of organic and inorganic soil I purchased from Eastern leaf and bonsai outlet.
Thank you so much for all the replies! Really appreciate the input.
Pot 1 is the one that was flowering and I plucked the flowers. The stem of it does have a woody texture though.
Pot 2 was something my kid did for fun and decided to grow a bunch of seeds together.
Pot 3 is another one that has fast growth but a nonwoody texture. The only thing is the roots are growing above the soil so I wasn't really sure.
I grew these originally after in a covered seed tray at 77F with daily misting after soaking the seeds for 24hrs. Pot 1 and 3 definitely had the fastest growth. They have been under a grow light and only indoors. Never moved around or anything. The soil is a mix of organic and inorganic soil I purchased from Eastern leaf and bonsai outlet.
Thank you so much for all the replies! Really appreciate the input.
Attachments
Crazy Diamond
Omono
The pot in the center, those maybe could be Ficus, the other dont look like Ficus
Michael P
Omono
The plant with the yellow flowers looks like horse herb, Calyptocarpus vialis. This is a shade tolerant herbaceous ground cover native to Florida and other Gulf states.
I do live in Miami, however, these are grown indoors.
LittleDingus
Omono
Pot 1: fibrous and woody are not the same. It doesn't look woody to me, but that could just be pictures vs real life. The biggest clue to me is the flowers. Woody plants aren't in a hurry to flower...they have years. Herbaceous plants often flower quickly as cold weather will kill most above ground growth.
Pot 2: the ficus genra is large...but there are common characteristics to look for. Leaves often emerge from a sheath that gets discarded. The egerge looking almost like a thorn under that sheath and unroll as the sheath falls away. The leaves are generally thick and waxy...almost leathery even. Most will bleed a white liquid latex when leaves are picked or broken. Many have large dot like structures along the leaf margines. From the pictures, pot 2 does not look like ficus to me
Pot 3: those look like square stems?? That would place it in the mint (lamiaceae) family. There are two branches of mints: the aromatic ones like mint, sage, etc...and the non-aromatic ones.
Did all the seeds come out of the same package? If pot 2 is multiple plants from multiple seeds, it would be unlikely that pots 1 and 3 would grow different species while pot 2 grew all the same looking species from the same seed packet. More likely there was a contaminant in the soil or something that entered after they were sown.
Thanks so much for the informative reply. Yes they all came from the same packet. Really unfortunate as I feel I put a lot of effort into this. I'm thinking I should start over with a batch of seeds from maybe a different source.Pot 1: fibrous and woody are not the same. It doesn't look woody to me, but that could just be pictures vs real life. The biggest clue to me is the flowers. Woody plants aren't in a hurry to flower...they have years. Herbaceous plants often flower quickly as cold weather will kill most above ground growth.
Pot 2: the ficus genra is large...but there are common characteristics to look for. Leaves often emerge from a sheath that gets discarded. The egerge looking almost like a thorn under that sheath and unroll as the sheath falls away. The leaves are generally thick and waxy...almost leathery even. Most will bleed a white liquid latex when leaves are picked or broken. Many have large dot like structures along the leaf margines. From the pictures, pot 2 does not look like ficus to me
Pot 3: those look like square stems?? That would place it in the mint (lamiaceae) family. There are two branches of mints: the aromatic ones like mint, sage, etc...and the non-aromatic ones.
Did all the seeds come out of the same package? If pot 2 is multiple plants from multiple seeds, it would be unlikely that pots 1 and 3 would grow different species while pot 2 grew all the same looking species from the same seed packet. More likely there was a contaminant in the soil or something that entered after they were sown.
19Mateo83
Masterpiece
The center one looks like a baby benghalensis.
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
I think you are right. Especially now that I know it was multiple seeded. I do have ficus with leaves like this.
19Mateo83
Masterpiece
Here’s my benghalensis I got from Wigerts for comparison
