Hello everyone! Yesterday i posted for the first time and explained my situation a bit.. I didnt want to open a new topic to keep it tidy but got adviced that it is better like this So my story is below and anyone is welcome to share their tips advices ideas etc.

"Hi there.. This is my first post on the forum and i didn't want to open a new topic about it. I am reading both the site and the forum as much as possible but i cant really tell that i got it covered yet. I loved the site and can see that you guys are really helpfull so i want to thank you all for putting this whole thing together.

I was super bored about my small flat being too small for pet animals or most of the other ideas i came up with. I was in a big store last week and saw these nice looking flower pots. They were really nice and cheap so i got 6 of them and started looking at the plants whenever i walke passed by a store and now i got several plants. It was maybe a mistake to get the plants without knowing what would suit my place and conditions and without knowing how to take care of them but one of them is a ficus bonsai and i ended up finding videos on youtube first and followed the links and ended up here. I have also seen many other videos and collections etc. It was an amazing accident. I knew about bonsai a little but had no idea about how it is done and how amazing it can be. So i am reading as much as possible and trying to figure out how to take care of my plant but i guess some quick tips will help better while i learn untill a basic level.""

I will share some pictures of my plant and explain the conditions and all. At this time of the year what should be done what should be followed etc.. i believe This little buddy will make it through this year :lol:

bara wrote: one of them is a ficus bonsai

Sorry but no, that's not a bonsai. Just follow the houseplant care guidelines:
www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/ficus/ficus-tree-care.htm

I actually have that plant seen in your link. And here is a pic of them next to eachother. So these two are the same? I am confused. They sold it to me as a bonsai :blink:

bara wrote: I actually have that plant seen in your link. And here is a pic of them next to eachother. So these two are the same?

They are the same species. Bonsai is not a species, it is a technique to form and shape trees.

They sold it to me as a bonsai :blink:

And you bought it because apparently you liked it. No problem. It's not a bonsai though.

bara wrote: I am confused. They sold it to me as a bonsai :blink:

Yes, indeed... What you have is a well known "Mallsai" (acronym for Mall+Bonsai) widely named as Ficus Ginseng. Most of us have started this art by acquiring one of them or a Juniper Mallsai. This topic have been extensively discussed within this forum and if you search by the Ginseng word, you´ll find lots of entries on the matter. So, in order to not repeat such things once again. I´ll leave an article from this site´s Blog, where you would see the transformation of a Ficus Mallsai into a better tree with more possibilities to become a bonsai in the future. Meanwhile, study, read, inform yourself and if you can and are serious about it, join a club.

www.bonsaiempire.com/blog/ficus-mallsai

Alain

ok so now we got it right. After reading the site i got that it is not a certain plant but an art. When you said it is not a bonsai i got confused again but then again your last post brings me back to what i understood in the beginning while i was reading. Simply it is a ficus tree and i guess i will be trying for the first time to get my first bonsai out of it. ( i hope this time it is correct ) Do you think my plant is suitable to give it a try? or should i get something else? if yes what do you recommend?

oh the last post i just noticed now.. and thank you for the information.. i will follow the link!

alainleon1983 wrote:

bara wrote: I am confused. They sold it to me as a bonsai :blink:

Yes, indeed... What you have is a well known "Mallsai"

I wouldn't even call it a mallsai. Mallsai are young plants that have at least some training - thought that's most often that typical symmetrical S-shape. Ficus 'Ginseng' is something quite different.

Note that the tree from your example is such an S-shape, it's not the horrendous fat root type.

bara wrote: Do you think my plant is suitable to give it a try? or should i get something else?

Your ficus ginseng? Nope, not suitable at all.

For indoor growing, provided you can give it a good deal of natural light, Ficus Benjamina is more suitable for bonsai training

Dave

Just googled ficus ginseng and results show not something like my plant but exactly my plant.. one says it is not even that one says you all started with this kind of plants and one says not suitable at all.. i was looking for help and information not a total chaos to confuse me more up.. could you guys please agree on something?

www.google.at/search?q=ficus+ginseng&cli...iw=360&bih=511&dpr=4