AusBonsai

Hi Everyone,

This is one of my Port Jackson Figs that I have spent the last 10 years developing the trunk, roots and primary branching on. Finally potted it into a training pot in preparation to start working on ramification and developing foliage pads, here are some photos of it's journey so far.

Cheers Jai

A great start for a multi trunk. There is a thread on here regards power growing these that is worth reading.

More Photos, after I realized that I needed to resize them to be able upload them. Cheers Jai

Great progress and i am glad i called the multi trunk.

Thanks Bodhi,

I think multi-trunk suits Port Jackson Figs well. Reminds me of the large specimens you see in the parks around Sydney.

love the progression doing a great job to my humble eyes

trees looking good... keep us posted

Just an update to this post after much research and examination I have determined that this fig is not Rubiginosa but Watkinsiana.

Here is a recent photo:

Looking really good. Nice pot too, is that one of Luke's?

Nice tree and development.

Im curious as to what makes you think its Ficus watkinsiana? What features have you used to positively ID? My experience with Figs grown as bonsai or in pots, has led me to conclude it is very difficult to positively ID between between F. rubiginosa, F. macrophylla, F. obliqua and F. watkinsiana as the constant trimming leads to the lack of mature foliage and characteristics. Some times I see indications of a species but the lack of those features doesn't necessarily mean they can be discounted. For example, Ficus rubiginosa is described as having pubescent hairs on new growth, yet I find it only seems to occur once shoots have been left to develop and elongate for some time and the apparent indicator of F. macrophylla having M shaped bases to the leaves appears on some trees after a heavy cut back but only in a few leaves that are also quite thin in texture yet lose this feature as the shoot extends.

Not to mention the possibilities of hybridisation and variability between populations and individual plants. It is my understanding that the only way to be certain with some of these species is the fruit.

Dansai,

I completely agree with you that the only way for certain to determine species is to examine the fruit of the ficus.

With that being said this tree was purchased around 2004 in Port Stephens along with 3 others in 200mm pots, the nursery owner said they were all struck cuttings and had sat at the back of the nursery for a number of years. His best guess at species was Port Jackson but he said he couldn't be certain, being new to bonsai at the time I didn't question his opinion and happily bought them. Watkinsiana is listed as occurring naturally as far as the Williams River which feeds into the Hunter River, so I do see it conceivable that the cuttings were taken from a Watkinsiana tree in this area and struck by the nursey owner.

Here is a pick of the 4 in grow boxes 2010:





Over the years I have observed the growth habit of these trees and it is vastly different from any of my Port Jackson Figs. When left to grow freely the leaves grow to the size of Macrophylla and Watkinsiana but lack the rusty brown underneath like Macrophylla, instead they are smooth and shiny on the top and bottom like Watkinsiana. It is difficult to reduce leaf size and I consistently find after pruning, the leaves start to revert back to adult size after only two or three leaves. Another trait of these trees is the unpredictable die back of branches after pruning, only through trial and error have I worked out that if I leave at least one leaf on the branch it will not die back. However this doesn't always lead to new shoots developing on the branch and it is more common in branches further from the dominate apex. Again these two traits I have not observed in my Port Jackson figs which I find very easy to reduce leaf size and tend to have abundant new shoots on bare branches after pruning and I have never had an issue with limb die back.

I took a number of cuttings from this tree in 2014 and have been developing them for future bonsai material, I am thinking of planting one in a large container to maybe one day hopefully getting it to fruit which would leave no doubt to what species the tree is.

Here are some pictures of the cuttings:













The appearance and growth traits of these cuttings again lead me to think they aren't Port Jackson and are more in line with Watkinsiana.

I came across a post by Timritchie sometime ago and he describes his fig as Watkinsiana, the first picture in the post immediately caught my eye as the trees characteristics looked exactly like mine.

My gut tells me that this tree is not a Port Jackson.

In the end it doesn't really matter what it is, all I know for sure is its the most challenging/frustrating of all the figs in my collection but at the same time the most rewarding tree which has taught me so much about the art of bonsai.

Cheers Jai

Yep Jai, sounds very much like the watkinsiana that tried to bonsai for a number of years. Now planted in the ground as I have the room for it to grow. Although I do still have one in a pot. Although it seems unlikely that the original grower would have got a cutting from a wild watkinsiana. All the ones I have seen growing wild all start high up in the original host tree and so don't have low branches. The only ones I've seen started low on trees have been those that been planted in Camphor Laurels and they bolt up like telegraph poles before branching up.

It is possible they may be macrophylla. I know the description for macrophylla says they have nearly always have rusty brown hairs, (which I've always found strange since rubiginosa is commonly known as the Rusty Fig and yet locally here on the coast rarely has rusty hairs), yet my figs that show other features of macrophylla are all smooth and shiny. I have similar problems with my macrophyllas that you have described, the main difference I have noticed is watkinsiana seems to be very reluctant to ramify, and like you have said, revert to very large leaves very quickly.

Hi jaic1980,

How can I train my 3-year-old PJ fig to have multiple trunks like yours?
I love the look of it but am new to Bonsai growing and don't know how to get these results yet

Hi BonsaiBaby,

The key is to trunk chop low and treat all new shoots as trunks.

Once these shoots have hardened off choose the best placed ones and remove the rest. Then grow on and repeat the process until it's time to start secondary and tertiary branch structure.

Best to leave your fig alone until spring or early summer before starting this process.

Regards Jai

Hi
I don’t have a Ficus watkinsiana?
I think the post you referred to was possibly a Ficus superba var henneana, which is a Fig that I’ve posted about that is difficult to reduce the leaf size.


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