Ficus Benjamin crown formation
Ficus Benjamin is one of the most popular houseplants in our country. This is due to many factors: it does not require special care, is very attractive in appearance and has high decorative properties. The main thing that is required of the owners is to timely carry out the formation of the crown, then the flower will appear in all its glory.
Ficus Benjamin crown formation
Basic Rules
Before starting the process, it is advisable to wait until the stage of active growth begins on its shoots. This usually happens in the spring. Even the slightest opening of the lateral buds on the trunk suggests that the plant can be pruned.
In order for the flower to continue to grow evenly after the procedure, it is necessary to correctly adjust the lighting in the room where it is located. Pruning should be done only with a sterile, perfectly sharpened instrument. A kitchen knife or garden pruner is great for these purposes. Each drop of milky juice released on the slices must be carefully removed with a napkin, after which the slices should be treated with powder from crushed activated carbon tablets.
Crown formation process
There are several ways how to form a Benjamin ficus crown, depending on the purpose.
Sanitary
The procedure is carried out regularly as needed. With sanitary pruning, all dried, broken and slowly growing shoots are removed from the bush, especially if there is a risk that diseases can be transmitted to healthy parts of the plant.
Anti-aging pruning
Frozen dwarf ficus, just like plants with a dried crown top, must be cut into a stump. This procedure allows the plant to quickly recover and become even more beautiful, thanks to the growth of new root shoots.
Pinning
It is carried out to make the crown lush and beautiful. To do this, it is necessary to shorten the grown shoots as necessary. Pinching is called pinching the tops of the shoots, after which the development of the bush on the sides of the trunk is activated. A pick must be carried out every spring and summer. If there is a very active growth of the plant, the procedure is allowed at any time.
Grafting
This technique of crown formatting is the favorite among flower growers. It is carried out easily and in a short time allows you to hide one of the main drawbacks: the very attention-grabbing absence of any one branch or even several.
It is possible to give a neat shape to the crown of Benjamin's ficus not only by shortening the bush and pinching it. As alternatives to give the crown a beautiful shape and personality, the usual pieces of wire, which are in every house, or special commercial spacers are often used.
Shaping the trunks
The flower can be given an interesting shape
To give the ficus trunk an original appearance, you first need to plant several identical plants in one pot at once, and then intertwine them in one of the possible ways. The trunks should not only be of the same species, but also of approximately the same age. The required shoot length is 16-20 cm.
A popular way to form the trunk of Benjamin's ficus is a scythe. For this, three young plants are planted nearby. As they grow up, they are woven according to the intended plan. For those who want to twist the ficuses with a spiral, 2 copies are enough.
Weaving the trunks, be sure to remove all young shoots from the sides. Do not weave very tightly and tightly: because of this, the thickening may be disturbed, and the trunks will begin to develop inharmoniously. At each stage of weaving, the result is fixed with a soft woolen thread. At the same time, they try to maintain an angle of 45 ° C and not crush the trunks.
Once every 2-3 months, the old fixing threads are replaced with new ones. It is advisable to additionally provide the trunk of each plant with a support.
Varieties of the crown
Creating a ficus crown is a fairly simple procedure that anyone, even a novice florist, can do. This can be done in different ways.
Bushes
This shape is achieved through periodic pinching of the main branches, after which the development of lateral buds is activated. As soon as the side shoots reach 10 cm in length, they also need to be pinched. After a while, it will be possible to form a very dense, beautiful crown.
Sculptures
The sculpture of a bush looks best on plants with a small crown, which Benjamin belongs to. Correct regular pruning will allow you to make a crown of almost any shape: from the simplest geometric shapes to the outlines of people and animals.
Braids
It will not be easy to achieve the desired shape, but the appearance of the crown will exceed all expectations. You can beautifully braid the trunks with a pigtail and at the same time collect shoots with a net or a fence.
Boles
In order to form a crown in the form of a trunk, you should choose a stem of a young plant with a strong main shoot. Only 5 of the most beautiful upper branches are left on it, the rest of the processes are regularly cut off.
The procedure is carried out until each branch grows to the desired stem size. Then, without stopping trimming the side shoots, pinch the upper buds.
The crown of the trunk is of several varieties. Often, when asked how to form a ficus, they answer that a tiered stem is the best crown shape for a similar flower.
Ficus Benjamin Bonsai
If desired, bonsai can be made from Benjamin's ficus at home, for this you just need to follow simple recommendations.
Instead of a deep flower pot, choose a shorter container, always with legs and holes for drainage.
Home bonsai is created in the following order:
- To start forming, it is necessary to obtain several young trunks 12-15 cm long and root them in a container, where a drainage layer and a high-quality soil mixture were previously filled in. Cuttings should be planted as close to each other as possible.
- As the trunks grow, they are intertwined as you please, for example, with a pigtail (it is advisable to draw a diagram in advance and adhere to it). Do not forget to fix each joint with woolen threads.
- As soon as the root system is well strengthened, the top of the soil is carefully removed, exposing part of the roots. To give the flower additional decorativeness, stones or a piece of wire are used.
- As soon as the plant reaches the desired height, the process of pinching the top and thinning the foliage begins to form the crown.
To increase decorativeness, many growers use moss and other attributes. It is necessary to care for bonsai in the same way as for ordinary ficus. It should be fertilized periodically, protected from destructive drafts.