How to make a bonsai from ficus
Indoor plants are indispensable for creating a cozy atmosphere at home. Ficus bonsai is a fairly popular trend in floriculture, and such a composition looks beautiful. The flower in the house purifies the air, which has a positive effect on health.
Ficus bonsai
A flower tree appears in the house of connoisseurs for a reason. It's all the fault of the trend of fashion. Potted flowers with bonsai cultivation are popular with indoor plant lovers. With the right approach, growing it is not difficult.
This tiny tree came to us from Japan, it is there that all types of cultivation have a philosophical meaning. To grow ficus really at home, for this you should adhere to proper care. Taking care of the ficus bonsai and carrying out the formation of the crown is an exciting activity, because it looks spectacular and unusual.
Choosing a plant
Bonsai is made not only from ficus, but it is with this plant that it turns out better, and all due to the fact that its bark looks like a real tree, and miniature leaves look as appropriate as possible. To grow ficus bonsai, any type of this flower is suitable, the main thing is that it is large. Most still choose ficus Benjamin, Microcarpa, Panda or Ginseng.
Whichever ficus is chosen, making a bonsai quickly at home will not work, skill and patience are important here.
You can make a ficus on a stone. In this case, it is advisable to give preference to a low-leaved variety.
Why is it better to choose ficus for bonsai
Ficus is the best choice for bonsai. This plant is miniature and unpretentious. Ficus perfectly adapts to all conditions.
The plant has small, but very beautiful leaves for creating a miniature tree. Ficus shoots root well. Ficus is just a godsend in care, since it does not require a lot of attention and water, and this is a huge plus for busy people.
It requires a little more attention in the autumn and spring period: at this time, it is necessary to fertilize the ficus once a week, but this will not be difficult.
In order for the flower to grow better, it should be repotted several times a year, but this rule is not required.
Ficus bonsai
In order to create a beautiful and unusual little tree, you first need to root the shoot. It is quite easy to make such a composition, and there are several ways to solve this problem. The first option is as follows: you need to put a sprig of ficus in water, preferably on a windowsill, wait for the roots to appear on the branch.
The second option is also simple: the shoot is buried in the ground and wait for germination. To do this, you need to see that roots grow on the branch, then you can transplant.
It is best to plant in a specific container, which will give the bonsai a special shape. It should be small, with less depth than the roots of the ficus. This is necessary so that the root, or at least a part of it, remains not inside the container, but outside.The soil in which it is planned to plant the tree should not be super nutritious, it is better to choose a neutral one.
After planting the future bonsai, they move on to creating the trunk and crown. This should be done immediately after the transplant. The trunks are intertwined. To do this, they cut off the bark from the branches, intertwine it, then fix it using adhesive tape and leave it in this position until the tree grows up.
We form a tree from ficus Benjamin
To create a bonsai, a certain type of ficus is suitable. For example, Rusty Red Ficus or Blunt Ficus. A beautiful tree will be obtained from the ficus Ginseng and Microcarp. Benjamin ficus bonsai looks original.
Ficus Benjamin is an excellent choice, because it will take only about 2 months to grow a flower on your own. If the ficus was purchased, before creating the bonsai, you need to wait 14 days, and then transplant it into another container with a pallet up to 5 cm deep.
Before creating a ficus bonsai, the container is prepared. A suitable container for bonsai is made by yourself at home. For a small bonsai, take a shallow (about 3-6 cm) mini flower pot. There should be holes at the bottom. The pot should be on legs with a height of 10 to 20 mm. First, the prepared container is reinforced with a mesh. After that, 5 cm of the pot is filled with sand, the plant is carefully placed in the middle and the earth is slowly poured. This should be done slowly and as carefully as possible. After that, the ficus is thoroughly watered, the water is drained from the pan, otherwise the flower may die due to decay of the roots. To create such a composition, you need proper care for the ficus bonsai.
To create it, it is imperative to pay attention to the trunk: to enlarge its base. The crown must have a specific shape: conical. Ficus Benjamin does not tolerate tying at all, unlike his fellows. Pruning, grooming and shaping with Benjamin ficus is well tolerated, so when creating a bonsai, it is often cut in certain places.
Pruning and replanting at home takes time, so you need to closely monitor any attempts at decay and provide care. It is easy to determine rotting by the ficus shoots. If they suddenly begin to dry out, you need to prune the roots.
Bonsai Form
In order for the ficus bonsai to turn out beautiful, it is important to choose the right shape and carry out the formation of the crown. The most common forms for the Ginseng, Panda and Benjamin varieties are classic and upright. Pruning is done differently for different varieties. So for your first bonsai, you should choose the classic form, because, thanks to it, it will be more convenient to do everything. This shape is characterized by a special straight trunk without branches at the bottom, and the roots are very thick and branched.
Varieties of bonsai forms
- Moyogi. Most types of bonsai, such as moyogi, have a rather curved trunk. The position of the tree is vertical.
- Shakan. Another form of bonsai is the oblique view, or, as it is also called, shakan. This type of form has inverted roots, and the ficus itself is located at an angle.
- Sokan. An interesting bonsai can be made from the bifurcated sokan shape. This form is characterized by the fact that several trunks grow from one root, one of which is smaller and the other is higher. That is why such a bonsai looks very unusual and beautiful.
- Hokidachi. For professionals in cultivation, broom-shaped or hokidachi forms, which are difficult to perform, will serve.
- Grove. A variant of the grove shape is performed immediately from 5 or more ficuses, which differ from each other.
To grow ficus bonsai properly, you need to learn how to form roots. It is also important to watch the formation of the crown and trunk as a whole.
Shaping
To shape the bonsai from ficus, the roots are often cut off. The same must be done when transplanting a flower. Ficus bonsai grows in width, not in height.Young ficus, be it Ginseng or Benjamin, must be planted in a wide pot. You should also trim shoots and roots. If you are not completely sure that you can give the plant the correct shape with your own hands, you need to read reviews on the forums and talk to people who already have experience in this matter. You should also search and study training materials, photos and videos.
Plant cap
Crown creation is an important process in the formation of an unforgettable little tree. Thanks to her, the flower looks unusual. In order to get a beautiful crown, the ficus is cut to 3-5 leaves and this is done after 5-9 new leaves have grown. Form the crown from the bottom up, use scissors for this. When the leaves are trimmed, latex is released, and after trimming the leaves, the cut should be treated with garden varnish.
Using small scissors, cut only the stems, not the leaves. In the autumn-winter period, it is not recommended to cut the flower, since the tree is at a dormant stage. At the end of winter, they begin to gradually water the ficus and carry out pruning. Excess and healthy shoots are allowed to breed.
Bonsai leg
The creation of a bonsai leg is an important point, and it is given a separate time. There are several ways to create a bonsai leg, each of which is chosen based on various factors. Basically, they use the most common method. According to this method, the ficus trunk is wrapped with a soft insulated wire along the trunk and on branches. After 7-8 weeks, the wire is carefully removed.
For a ficus, a couple of shoots should be broken off, about 12-14 cm long, after which these shoots should be placed in water. When it became noticeable that brown buds appeared, you need to plant the sprouts in a flat pot. The sprouts must be planted in a row. You can choose the most common soil for this. After some time, the sprouts will grow together.
When the plant begins to grow, you need to intertwine the branches. In a young plant, they are very flexible, and therefore weaving will not harm it. To prevent the barrel from breaking, it should be wrapped in a thick cloth.
Bonsai differs from other plants by its roots. To expose the roots, you should wait until they have hardened, and then gradually remove the top layer of soil from them.
When the plant grows to the required mark, it needs to be pinned on top and formed a crown. Using the wire, give direction to 2-4 main branches, trim the leaves of the plant. You just need to remove new shoots - and the plant is ready. Bonsai can be decorated, but it all depends on personal fantasies and preferences.
Bonsai care
In order for the plant to please you for a long time, you need to take proper care of it. It is necessary to water the plant, but do not flood it with water. If it stands at the top of the soil for a long time, the soil should be loosened.
During the growing season, you should put another lamp for additional lighting at home, and in the fall and spring you need to take care of the newly-made tree with your own hands more carefully. Fertilize and feed the plant once a week.
The transplant is carried out once every 2 years, preferably in the spring. Transplanting is important for the normal growth of the tree. After it, the plant sometimes sheds its leaves, but do not worry: after a couple of weeks it will regain a bright green color.
Ficus does not like heat, he also does not like cold air: leaves turn yellow from him. It is necessary to protect the plant from this.