Ficus has aerial roots. Reproduction of rubber ficus, care, diseases and pests. Proper care and formation of ficus

Mulberry family.

In nature, it grows in India, China, South Asia, as well as the Philippines, Hawaii, and Australia.

These are evergreen shrubs and trees. In nature, they grow like our birches, about 20-25 meters in height, at home, Benjamin's ficus does not grow quickly and in about 10 years it will reach 100-120 centimeters in height. Ficus has an invasive root system that spreads not only in depth, but also on the surface of the earth, the aerial roots of old plants growing in a humid tropical climate form entire arrays of supports under a wide spreading crown. In indoor ficuses in pots, the root system is quite strong, the roots over time, if you do not sprinkle the earth, are shown above the ground, but aerial roots do not form.

Ficus benjamin has a dark gray bark, with brown transverse strokes. It branches very well, the shoots are drooping, the leaves are alternate, on short petioles, smooth, shiny, leathery, oblong (elliptical) or lanceolate, pointed at the end, 6-12 centimeters long and 3-6 centimeters wide. The fruits are siconia, about 1.5 cm in diameter, paired, axillary, red, burgundy when ripe, inedible. Under room conditions, ficus benjamin does not bloom and, accordingly, does not bear fruit. At the break of the petiole, when the leaf is cut, the roots are pruned, a sticky white milky juice is released.

Temperature

Moderate, optimal for growth within 20-25 ° C, but by and large, the temperature of ficus benjamin is unimportant, but it is important that watering matches the temperature - water more often when it is hot and less often when it is cooler. In cool conditions, a wet earthen ball dries slowly, for a long time, and this is very harmful to the ficus. In winter, ideally, the temperature should be 16-18°C, with limited watering, a limit of 8-10°C when kept dry. But usually benjamin's ficuses grow well in normal home conditions, in heated rooms. If there is little light, the plants partially lose their leaves, so during a warm wintering, ficuses, especially variegated varieties, can be illuminated.

Lighting

Ficus benjamin grows well in a bright place, with protection from direct sunlight at noon. An east window is perfect, where the sun is in the morning or evening. Variegated forms need a lighter and warmer place than dark-leaved forms. Only varieties with dark green leaves can grow well on the north window, and the variegated varieties "Safari" or "Eldorado" need a western window to preserve color, or a place in close proximity to the south, it is already dark on the east.

Watering

Moderate, ficus does not like waterlogging of the soil, it must be well dried before the next watering. From waterlogging, ficus benjamin may begin to rot the roots, while the plant simultaneously throws off a large number of leaves that lose color, become pale green. Water for irrigation is desirable soft, room temperature.

Top dressing with fertilizers

From March to August, once every two to three weeks, you can feed ficus benjamin with fertilizers for decorative leafy plants.

Air humidity

Leaves can be sprayed, especially in summer in hot, dry weather, but benjamin's ficus can do without it, it tolerates the dry air of apartments well. But in order to wash off the dust from the leaves, you need to rinse the foliage of the ficus under a warm shower, while carefully protecting the soil from the water jet.

How to transplant ficus benjamin

Transplantation is carried out annually in the spring, in fresh soil. Old specimens are transplanted less often, every 2-3 years, but you can add fresh fertile land every year. The soil for ficuses should be loose and nutritious. A suitable mixture is 2 parts leafy soil, 1 part peat soil, 1 part sand and 1 part well-decomposed compost. You can also use leafy soil in its pure form, ficuses grow well in universal soils from the store. Large, old specimens that are less likely to be transplanted need heavier and more nutritious soil - the main component is turf soil 2 parts, sheet or greenhouse 1 part, chopped pine bark, vermiculite and charcoal can be added. An important condition is good drainage to the bottom of the pot, and the acidity of the soil should be slightly acidic, or close to neutral (pH 5.5-6.5). Ficus does not tolerate alkaline and too acidic substrates.

Pots can be both ceramic and clay, they should not be too spacious, but in diameter 2-3 fingers wider than the root ball, or the pot in which the plant was bought. If it seems to you that the pot has become small (the roots have appeared from the drainage hole), then Benjamin's ficus can be transplanted again over the summer. If the roots are not cut or torn, then it tolerates the transplant well. After transplanting, refrain from watering unless it is too hot for 2 days (if the house is very warm and dry, you can water a little and spray the leaves).

Reproduction of ficus benjamin

The easiest way to propagate ficus benjamin cuttings, they easily take root in water, in a bright place at almost any time of the year. Just cut any twigs you like about 13-15 cm long, remove the two lower leaves and put in a jar of clean water. To prevent the water from blooming, cover the jar with an opaque cloth. Growth promoters are not needed. Cuttings of this size already have a woody stem, but if you cut a couple of leaves with a still green stem, it will not take root. Benjamin's ficus does not reproduce with a leaf, and large branches with thick bark take root for an extremely long time.

If for some reason the plant has become bald in the lower part of the trunk, it is easier to re-root the crown. For this, not cuttings are used, but air layering:

On the trunk, the bark is cut and removed in the right place, a strip about 1 cm wide. The trunk in this place is wrapped with sphagnum moss soaked in water (it is fixed with a thread only for the convenience of photography)

Air layering ficus benjamin
We cut the plastic cup along the walls into two halves (cut the bottom to half and make a hole along the diameter of the trunk) and fix it on the trunk, fastening it with tape. We fill up the earth and water it.

Air layering ficus benjamin
It is advisable to use a transparent glass so that you can see the appearance of the roots. The earth in the cup should be watered regularly, it should not dry out. Roots on this cutting appeared after 3 weeks.

Ficus crown formation

Ficus benjamin itself has a beautiful crown, many varieties do not require any special shaping. However, if the trunk of the ficus is bare, you can stimulate the formation of new shoots and leaves by pruning. To do this, you can cut off part of the shoots, in whole or in part, sometimes it is enough to pinch the tips of the lower branches so that new buds start to grow. Pruning should be done in spring - early summer. The younger the ficus tree, the easier it is to form pruning.

In addition to trimming and pinching, the crown of ficuses is formed by bending with wire (for the formation of bonsai and pre-bonsai). Ficus shoots are quite flexible, easy to bend, but the thin bark can crack or peel off the wire, so it is applied loosely and braided wire is used. There should be a gap between the wire and the stems of the ficus - after all, the plant grows, and the branches gain thickness, with a tight winding, the wire will eventually grow into the bark.

Ficus Baroque is formed with wire, the flexible trunks of the ficus can be bent quite steeply, striving to achieve the chosen bonsai style.

If you form a ficus by splicing with a trunk, then when braiding a pigtail of several trunks, be sure to leave gaps between them for the growth of the trunks in thickness. Drawing by Vitaly Alenkin.

Trunk splicing - several rooted cuttings are planted tightly to each other and wrapped with electrical tape. Part of the electrical tape has been removed and the fusion sites of the trunks are clearly visible. Further shaping is required.

Cuttings of some varieties of ficus benjamin branch reluctantly, single branches look and gain power slowly, can stretch upwards, even with sufficient lighting, begin to branch, reaching about 30-40 cm in height. Therefore, it is worth pinching, cutting the cuttings at a height of about 20 cm.

You can plant several cuttings in a pot and, if the stems are pressed tightly against each other, then in a very short time they grow together. You can bring the stems of ficus cuttings closer together using ordinary electrical tape - it is quite plastic and does not injure the bark, it stretches on growing trunks without growing. About once a month you need to inspect the braid, rewind if necessary. It is better, of course, to grow together trunks of small diameter, 5-7 mm, but thicker ones can also be spliced, only the process will take several years.

Another way to form is to twist the trunks with a pigtail or in the manner of a hedge - openwork weaving from the trunks of ficus benjamin. This method is only suitable for young flexible plants. At the same time, several large cuttings should be planted in one elongated container at a distance of 5 to 10 cm from each other strictly in a row. At first, each trunk grows vertically and forms a trunk (all lower branches are removed). Approximately at a height of 20-25 cm, ficuses can be fixed, tilted, crossing the trunks with each other. Fix with tape or jute.

Original entry and comments on

For 4 weeks, a stalk of a tree-like ficus has been standing in the water and does not take any roots. Why do I have so many ficuses? And into the ground. And so one after another. Rooted in the "explosive mixture" ficus stalk Daniel. And a few more tips for propagating homemade ficuses. Bottle ficuses also lose their leaves.

After rooting, white “pimples” hatched on the cuttings, but after another week, these pimples turned brownish, as if from white, but the roots did not appear. Or just cut new cuttings and immediately root them in the ground, treating them with root.

And although ficuses can be cut all year round, the best results will be in late spring and during the warm summer months. In greenhouses, when cutting ficuses, the temperature is maintained at 25-30 degrees. 4 weeks is not a critical period for a ficus cutting, I would calmly wait another month.

If you are tormented by doubts - plant it in the ground under a jar, just be careful - do not flood it. And about the fragile roots of ficuses ... Ali and Benjamin took root in my water, I had to wait a long time. But the roots have grown strong. I used to be completely illiterate: - [Now I have learned a lot of different things here and I am trying to grow roots by air layering ... All my Benjamins rooted in water very quickly - maybe a week and a half.

I have ficus robusta. I got a side branch of an interesting ficus benjamin, it looks like Reginald, but the leaves are also curly. And slow-witted ... And anything in the water besides coal? (Kornevin, zircon?) I have one stalk of various leaves bent in the water ...

Reproduction of ficuses

I have all the roses in my garden, clematis are only cuttings. Under my jar, once the ficus is all moldy. And when rooted in water, they say then the roots are hard to get used to the ground. Everything that is rooted in water takes root in me. The term also depends on the type of ficus. With pure green leaves, roots appear faster and somewhere in the aisles of 2 weeks. In summer, it will be suitable to water the soil every other day, and in winter - once every 4-5 days. Ficuses love to spray their leaves with water. It is necessary to wipe the dust from the leaves from time to time.

This is an ordinary trunk from a former ficus. Why did the cut shoots put into the water stop taking root, but simply began to rot??? My grandmother propagated ficus cuttings, but first she dried them during the day. A dumb question - are you sure that jasmine-shaped gardenia is growing in your aquarium?

Thanks for the ficus tip! I already did something - I let the shoots grow bigger and stronger before cutting them. It is better to root leaf cuttings in spring and summer, as this requires warmth and a lot of light (without sun).

If you put such a cutting in a jar of water on a bright window and change the water often, then after a while roots will appear on it. Lyre-shaped ficus. In the lyre-shaped ficus, the apical stalk 10-15 cm long is cut obliquely at an angle. The bottom sheet is removed, and the rest are collected in a tube to reduce evaporation.

Over time, the crown of the ficus will become denser due to the growth of side shoots, and you will get another new plant. Only after all the operations carried out and when the moss sprouts densely with roots, the top should be carefully separated from the mother plant and planted in a separate pot. The aerial roots of some epiphytic ficuses are able to tightly braid the trunk of the host tree, causing it to die off (the so-called strangler ficuses).

Uses Many types of ficuses are useful plants. In rainforests, ficus fruits are the main food for mammals and birds, leaves and wood are insects. Place Ficus does not like change, so it is better to immediately determine a permanent place for it and, if possible, do not transfer, move or disturb it. In summer, ficus can be taken out to fresh air, a balcony or terrace. With insufficient lighting, the internodes of the ficus lengthen, growth slows down, leaves fall.

Reproduction of ficus at home

Ficus will better endure wintering in a warm and dry living space if it is provided with additional lighting and spraying. You should not set a rigid schedule for watering ficus, since external conditions (lighting, temperature, humidity) are constantly changing, affecting the intensity of moisture consumption by the plant. Bottled "ficuses Ficus palmeri (Ficus palmera), Ficus petiolaris (Petiolate ficus) for the formation of a thickened trunk, a strong drying of the soil between waterings is necessary.

How to propagate ficus by air layering

Substrate For very young ficuses, a light and permeable soil mixture is traditionally made up of leafy soil, peat and sand in equal proportions. Adult ficuses require denser soil, so turf soil and humus are added to the substrate.

A good drainage layer of expanded clay and pieces of charcoal in the soil will protect the plant from standing water and rotting roots. Rest period Almost all types of ficus from October to February are characterized by a forced dormant period associated with a lack of light and a decrease in temperature.

Fertilization Modes and rates of fertilization depend on the substrate and season. When growing ficus in an inert substrate, fertilizers are applied year-round. Vegetation during this period is undesirable, since there is not enough light, heat and moisture, and stimulation of the ficus to growth leads to the formation of weak and elongated shoots.

Hello. Please tell me what to do with my cuttings? I transplanted them into a small pot with cactus soil. Now I don’t know if these “pimples” have rotted for some reason and you shouldn’t wait for roots at all, if you still have to wait ... If the stalk looks normal, then it will definitely give roots - where should it go?

Ficus Benjamin. This species is propagated by cuttings. In winter, the ficus is not fertilized. The roots formed in the water take a long time to get used to the soil and can generally die off, I had this, especially in ficus with leaves with white edges. Faster rooting occurs if the cut ficus stalk is immediately placed in a mini-greenhouse. If the ficus has grown to the ceiling, and the leaves remained mostly only at the top, then it can simply be shortened.

Among the huge number of indoor plants, one of the most spectacular is. Purifying the air from harmful impurities, it has served as an interior decoration for more than a century.

We will tell you more about how rubber-bearing occurs, as well as about the rules for caring for and protecting a plant from diseases and pests in the article.

Ficus belongs to the Mulberry family. India is considered his homeland. Here it becomes a huge tree, reaching forty meters in height.

In its natural habitat, it forms powerful aerial roots, which, intertwining, sometimes create very bizarre “designs”.

It is not uncommon for the roots to come out when grown in a pot. Aerial ficus root is one of its features.

The leaves are located one above the other, have an oval shape with a clear division in the middle.

The ends are pointed. The color of the plates is rich green, glossy. Decorative varieties have a different color. The most common representatives:

• Belize. Beautiful, white-pink border of foliage and reddish stems.
• Decor. The young crown has a bronze tint.
• Variegata. Variegated yellow-green leaves.

Each view is beautiful in its own way. However, the rubber-bearing ficus Robusta is the most popular. Its dark, fleshy greenery has been decorating a huge number of apartments since the times of the USSR.

Previously, ficus was grown in whole plantations. They did this for industrial purposes: rubber was extracted from the stems and roots, which was used to create rubber products.

The culture is quite unpretentious. Loves good lighting, especially colorful views, but can grow even on northern windows. True, in the dark, the plant will stretch more upwards, and the foliage will become noticeably smaller.

The most comfortable temperature in summer is 18-25°. In winter, 15 ° will be enough.

The tree is distinguished by its endurance and relative resistance to drought, as it tends to retain "excess" moisture in the stems, roots and leaves. However, this does not mean that the ficus can not be watered at all. On the contrary, in the heat, moisturizing should be carried out twice a week, and only with the onset of cold weather, watering can be minimized, remembering the “favorite” once every two months.

In addition, the plant will be grateful if it is “bathed” with a shower or simply sprayed from a spray bottle.

For lush growth, top dressing will also be useful, which should be applied every 10 days.

Breeding options

Fucus rubbery - an amazing plant! Getting new trees is not difficult and even an inexperienced grower can handle it. The following methods apply:

Cuttings. For blanks, apical segments are used, on which there are 5-6 leaves.
After separating the branch, it is thoroughly washed, eliminating the juice. Then with liquid for a few days. Water is changed periodically.

To speed up the process of root formation, you can add honey, aloe juice or industrial growth stimulants to the container.

Air outlets. On a straight, even shoot with 4-5 leaves, two cuts are made with a distance of 1.5 centimeters. Then the bark is cleaned between them.

The site is treated with a root former and wrapped in a moisture-retaining material (perlite, moss, sponge). The operation site is hermetically sealed with a film.

After the formation of sufficiently strong aerial roots, the branch is separated from the mother liquor and placed in a nutrient substrate.

Escape with a leaf. To form a full-fledged tree, one leaf will not be enough. Such a blank, of course, forms roots, but the stem will not appear. Therefore, choosing this method of reproduction, you need to use a sheet plate along with a piece of wood.

Ficus (fíkus) ready for cuttings

The lower edge of the handle is made obliquely, and sometimes it is additionally split by inserting a piece of a match into the gap. The greens are rolled into a tube and secured with a rope or elastic band. Then the shoot is placed in water or immediately in the ground.

For reproduction to be successful, work must be carried out in winter. It is at this time that the ficus secretes the smallest amount of juice, which can become an obstacle to the formation of roots.

A good period for harvesting will be the spring-summer season, when the flower is most actively growing and developing.

Proper care and formation of ficus

After the cuttings acquire their own root system, they must be planted. What soil to choose?

The substrate should be loose, have good throughput and be as saturated as possible with nutrients. To prepare it, you need to take sand, leafy and soddy soil, humus and peat. All components are taken in equal quantities.

1.5-2 cm of drainage is poured into the "leaky" pot, then a little soil mixture, and only then - a young seedling. The roots are carefully straightened and completely covered with soil. It is necessary to compact the earthen layers quite a bit so as not to disturb the air permeability of the soil.

In the future, care for young growth is the same as for adult ficus: maintaining heat, moderate watering, sufficient lighting and timely fertilization. Feeding is recommended from the second year of life.

Do not forget about the transplant. "Beginners" change containers from smaller to larger annually. Strong ficuses “relocate” only in case of urgent need, when the roots will already crawl out of the container. "Old men" enough to update the topsoil.

Some flower growers are engaged. If the culture is grown by a tree in one trunk, then the work is limited to the periodic removal of dried leaves.

To obtain bushiness, pruning is necessary. First, the apical point of growth is pinched off, and after the appearance of side shoots, the process is repeated with them.

By the way, the remaining "unnecessary" pieces can be used as material for cuttings.
It is worth remembering that the juice secreted by ficus is relatively poisonous. It can cause skin irritation, so it is advisable to wear gloves when shaping the plant.

Diseases and pests

Ficus (fíkus) grown at home

The most common insects are:

• Thrips. The foliage is covered with a brilliant bloom, red spots appear from below.
• Spider mite. Drying blots on all parts of the plant, white or grayish dust, cobwebs.
• Shchitovka. The flower becomes sticky to the touch.
• Mealybug. Light rough areas appear on the inside of the leaves.

Pest control measures are very similar.

First, the tree must be washed under running water, then treated with an insecticide or some folk remedy.

Spider mites are quite dangerous pests that are not easy to get rid of. The reason is that tick larvae are resistant to many drugs. Therefore, when choosing a remedy, it is worth paying attention to the features of its action and to individuals at what stage it affects.

Sometimes, when affected by mites, the foliage begins to turn yellow and wither, later dry and fall off. It is imperative to start treatment on time, otherwise the flower will weaken so much under the influence of the pest that it may not be able to tolerate the treatment with strong chemicals.

The first step is to isolate the infected plant. This recommendation is best observed when attacked by any pests. Then increase the humidity level. After all, dry air is preferable for ticks.

And yet, both in bathing and spraying, you need to observe the measure. Otherwise, rotting of the rhizome or stem will begin. It is better to keep the pot at an angle during such events or to cover the soil with something so that moisture does not get into it.

The flower can be sprayed with Aktellik or Neoron. The procedure is carried out at least 2 times. Neoron at the first processing only damages larvae. Therefore, repeated spraying is required.

In addition to drugs aimed at the destruction of ticks, there are those that sterilize females. These measures are also effective.

In addition to processing the plant itself, we also recommend disinfecting the place where the flower was located. To do this, the window sill and glass are washed with baking soda. Curtains are also better ironed. Even after a complete cure, it is better to keep the flower in quarantine for some time.

When attacked by scale insects, we recommend both local exposure and treatment with drugs. The first method is that with a brush or a cotton swab, tubercles with pests are smeared with alcohol or soapy water. And after that, remove with a brush or cloth.

In addition to insects, fíkus rubbery can "suffer" due to care errors.

Bad smell. Most often, this sign signals root rot, which occurs due to poor drainage.

To eliminate the “sore”, the plant must be removed from the soil, the roots examined, the dead and sick removed, the healthy parts powdered with activated charcoal and planted in a container with new soil.

Dropping or yellowing of leaves. Most often, such a nuisance happens when the water regime is violated. Ficus is either waterlogged, or, conversely, lacks "drinking". To correct the situation, the soil should either be dried or watered.

The flower does not grow. In the case of stunting, the reason is simple: the pot is too small. It is enough just to transplant the culture and everything will be back to normal.

While watching the video, you will learn about.

Let the rubber-bearing ficus bring good luck to the house and please with its splendor all year round!

Young ficuses of all kinds need an annual transplant, plants over five years old - once every two to three to four years.

The diameter of the pot for small ficuses should be 2 centimeters, and for large ones - 6 centimeters more than the previous one.

You can not transplant a small ficus immediately into a large pot, especially for dwarf ficus. This will inevitably lead to acidification of the soil, the root system will rot, and the ficus will die. If you made a mistake with the size of the pot, then transplant ficus into another smaller pot, it's never too late.

The deepening of the root neck can adversely affect the leaves: green leaves suddenly begin to fall, sometimes dark brown spots appear on them.

During a ficus transplant, the earth in a pot should be lightly tamped with your thumbs. Do not leave voids near the roots. However, it is also not worth ramming the earth in a pot too much, because the earth will become too dense, air will not flow to the roots, in this case the tips of the leaves will begin to blacken, green leaves may fall off in this case too.

Lightly compacted earth in a pot after a ficus transplant will settle after a while, and it will need to be topped up to the required level so that the root collar is flush with the ground.

And even during the year, if the earth from watering begins to wash out from the upper roots of the ficus, it is necessary to periodically pour the earth into the pot.

After transplanting, thoroughly moisten the earth in a pot and remove the ficus in partial shade. The next watering of the ficus should be done only after the top layer of the earth in the pot dries out.