First post & first collected ficus
Posted: January 7th, 2014, 3:36 pm
Hello all,
I have been following this fantastic site for the past nine months or so now & am excited to be making my first contribution. This morning I collected a large ficus (approx 30yrs old) which I plan to place in a grow bed (it is currently in a seasol bath).
Any advice on any of the following topics: as well as any other suggestions too, would be most welcome.
a) what soil mix to use (I was planning on lining the grow bed with road base then using a mix of scoria, course sand, diatomite & potting mix)???
b) should I take it back to a completely bare stump or leave some branches/leaves on?
c) should I cut the roots back further?
d) how to best trim/cut/shape the trunks to create some taper
Thanks in advance.
I have been following this fantastic site for the past nine months or so now & am excited to be making my first contribution. This morning I collected a large ficus (approx 30yrs old) which I plan to place in a grow bed (it is currently in a seasol bath).
Any advice on any of the following topics: as well as any other suggestions too, would be most welcome.
a) what soil mix to use (I was planning on lining the grow bed with road base then using a mix of scoria, course sand, diatomite & potting mix)???
b) should I take it back to a completely bare stump or leave some branches/leaves on?
c) should I cut the roots back further?
d) how to best trim/cut/shape the trunks to create some taper
Thanks in advance.
agree on the leaving it a while to recover before working on it. As far as the mix goes as long as it is free draining you should be ok. Ficus are tough benjis can be a bit temperamental after heavy work so you might get a little die back but it should recover well. Once you see some new growth you can give it a feed and start with some light work, save the heavy stuff until it regains full vigour.