Port Jackson Fig Recovery

[AndrewC]

I thought I'd share my progress with a PJF that I picked up last year. I bought it as a bonsai from a businesswoman who had used it for promotion outside her shop for a couple of years. It had been kept in full shade without any re-potting and I think it had once been partially yanked out of its pot when someone tried to steal it. As you could imagine, it was in need of some TLC!

I repotted it in November, back into the same pot using a mix of 50% akadama, 25% composted pine bark fines and 25% coarse sand. I also added six slow-release organic fertiliser biscuits that I'm trying out from Bonsai Emporium in Perth. The potting mix that it had been in was pretty bad, it looked like a regular gardeners potting mix and wasn't draining adequately. The rootball only reached the sides and bottom of the pot in a few places. Here's a picture of it just after re-potting:

large fig.jpg

I've been growing it in the open with fortnightly liquid fertiliser and not worrying too much about its form until it had recovered in health. Now I've started in on its design. I'm not aiming to change too much but I want to open up the canopy so we can see the trunks and branches between clouds of foliage. I'm using wire and props to align the trunks which had been crossing in places.

Large fig being wired 0001.jpg

Large fig after wiring0001.jpg

roots of large fig0001.jpg

So what's next for this tree? I'd like to improve the nebari with additional roots on each side. There's an ugly place where a root has been hacked on the left... not sure how to deal with that. There's a scar which is about 3 - 4 inches long on the back-side of the largest trunk (you can see it on the first picture). It is about two inches from the bottom and I'm not sure whether to ignore it, try to induce aerial roots around it or clean it up?

Otherwise, I think i'll try to keep it going in the direction it's headed, with the mid-level branches spreading down and out so we can see in above them, getting some more ramification and development, and enjoy looking at it! I've seen reference in these threads to defoliation of figs to improve ramification. This is something i haven't tried, so I'll have to check that out maybe for next summer.

Cheers for now, Andrew.

[bonsaibruce]

Howdy,
You seem to be doing a fine job on the fig.
Remember a fig should not look like a pine that lives in the snow. By all means show off the trunks, but the general outline should be a rounded broom style. Like a fig in the park. Aerial roots will start if there is enough humidity. You can hide the root problem on the left with a rock. The small crossing roots from the right trunk will look messy until they thicken, but don't have too many pointing to the left. I would have planted it higher in the pot, soil sloping down, not flat.
A nice tree, keep up the good work. Take to a club workshop, you'll really get some help then.
Happy bonsai,
Bruce.

[Andrew F]

Love the base on this one, look forward to seeing it next summer

[emi93m]

I like were you are going with this tree i agree with the comment of having a rounded top that will come within 1 more growing season keep up the good work cant wait to see this tree develop