fig advice

[anttal63]

well done gezz i look forward to seeing this one.

[Jamie]

Hey jamie no. 17 is a Queensland small leaf mate "Ficus Eugenoides" or "Obliqua" different names same tree so i been told.

small leaf fig????? damn thats odd, the leaves on mine are massive, i havent done anything on reduction for them yet, so maybe mine isnt the same as 17, has exactly the same shape and the way it grows as 17 though?

jamie

[dregs24]

Hey jamie no. 17 is a Queensland small leaf mate "Ficus Eugenoides" or "Obliqua" different names same tree so i been told.

small leaf fig????? damn thats odd, the leaves on mine are massive, i havent done anything on reduction for them yet, so maybe mine isnt the same as 17, has exactly the same shape and the way it grows as 17 though?

jamie

i was thinking the same cos these leaves are getting huge! Is it best to defoliate by cutting or pulling the leaves off?

[Jamie]

i have done both and had my trees come back, i have heard if you trim them off and leave the leaf stalk on the tree it pushes energy back into the tree. dunno how true it is.

but along the lines of the leaves getting massive mine would be approx 10 cm long by 4-5cm wide????? anyone else got ideas? or is this what happens to qld small leaf fig???

jamie

[Shannon]

Guys the mature leaf size is small compared to others in the fig world, have a look at a mature Morten bay leaf (huge) or even a Cabbage leaf fig (they are the size of 2 dinner plates).

I can get QLS leaf size down to around 25mm, just defoliate them twice a year for a few years.
Too sustain that size don't let new shoots grow any longer than three leafs then tip prune that shoot, and I hope they are out in full sun too!!

[pasquale]

Hi dregs,
Handsome trunks. All good advice so far. Just to add my two cents worth. I endorse Shannon's last comment - full sun. Figs will happily grow in shade but they respond to lower light levels by developing larger leaves. Full sun is a simple step to leaf reduction. Of course you will have to watch your watering and don't move them from under 70% shade cloth straight to all day sun or you will get leaf burn. Do it gradually to get them used to more sun.
One other thing, seasol isn't really a fertiliser. It's good stuff but it doesn't contain nitrogen (unless it has added dynamic lifter or something). Part of your yellowing may be because of hunger. Introduce some liquid fertiliser once they have settled after the repot or better still, before you repot.

[Ash]

About the leaf size of Ficus obliqua- (eugenioides is a different name for the same thing) the Queensland Small leafed fig can naturally have leaves from about 2 - 15 cm long depending on how it is grown and where it was collected. Plants from coastal vine forests and rocky headlands have much smaller leaves than plants comming from wet rainforest like the Atherton Tableland or say Mt Glorious near Bris. It has almost totally hairless leaves and figs that are almost sessile (not on a stalk or very very short stalk). Some good small leafed types come from rocky shores between about Townsville and Bundaberg and in my experience the seed grows true. Any ideas where this one came from?
FYI
Ficus rubiginosa the 'rusty' or 'Port Jackson' fig has rusty hairs under the leaves, larger figs born on a short to medium stalk and leaves usually larger than F. obliqua.
Ficus macrophylla the 'large leafed' or 'Moreton Bay' fig has matted rusty hairs under the leaves and much larger figs on a long stalk and leaves usually even larger again than F. obliqua and F. rubiginosa. The ranges of all three- and many other figs overlap and the common name doesn't mean they just come from that bay.

Also twisting the stipules (new leaf sheaths) off can also reduce the size of the emerging leaves because it forces the small imature leaf to mature earlier and smaller.
Ash

[dregs24]

hi,
firstly thanks all for the detailed info and advice, and a quick update on the trees in question.
I could be way off but i got the impression the larger fig has been repotted not too long ago because the soil allows water to drain through really easily and of the other trees i've had to repot so far- none have had the plastic mesh secured to the bottom of the pot and therefore the root system has grown under, and out the bottom and this isn't the case for this tree yet.
The smaller one's root system had, and the soil was hard to water and really compact so i repotted with a layer of fine pebbles in the base of the larger pot, then topped up with debco bonsai mix straight from the bag, soiled wetted then watered thouroughly with a weak solution of dynamic lifter- as i have watched a reputable bonsai nursery do with one of my pines that i was too scared to touch! Feel free to point out any mistakes you think i have made with this process.

thanks

[Gerard]

I love the "family photo" caption. Trees are looking good, I also like the background do you have a new display area?
You might take advantage of the defoliation and wire the branch tips downward at this time.

Regards Gerard

[dregs24]

hi Gerard,
yeh i got really busy out in the yard after you were around, i need to have a good think about what to cut off these puppies but i don't think i'll wire them simply because i beleive they've never seen wire in their life and i kinda want to continue that.
cheers

[anttal63]

lookn god mate !