well it finally happened. this was supposed to be winter "im going crazy for bonsai" work but it happend early (i was reeeealy board today) well this one and the 2 others were original cuttings from my f. retusa

my plan for this one was a cascade but the trunk under the soil changed my mind









not particularly exited about this one but my plan is to wait for a growth spurt and defoliate

Hi Keith,

I like the way you have wired the branches!

It's difficult to tell in the last photo how many branches you left on this one...
because of the foliage laying on the table behind and the angle of the shot. When looking at the 2nd last photo, which branches came off? Please and thank you!

Awesome i love ficus, they are so hardy and root easily! I have two that have been grown in cola bottles, thinking of doing root over rock with them! How long did it take for your cutting to take root?

leslie,
there are only 2 ...it was the 2 middle ones in the original

joncoh,
i started them in water only which later i found not to be the best of ideas.i ended up loosing 2 of the 5 orignals after i put them in soil.these have been in bonsai soil for about 8 months and the pots were quite full of roots.i am starting the new cuttings right in soil so ill have a better idea next time

Thank you, Keith. I'm looking forward to following it's progress.

Wooow i dont have patience for that haha, were they small cuttings? They must have grown big time in size

Hi Jon,

The reason manofthetrees lost so many of his cuttings was *because* of rooting them in water. Cuttings rooted in soil grow much stronger root systems.
I don't think many realize that it is just as much of an art to root cuttings as it is to grow and maintain an already established plant, perhaps even more so. Rooting cuttings is a challenging, exciting and very rewarding part of growing bonsai. I have 1 young tree...four different types of cuttings that are now successfully rooted and two more types that are in the process of rooting.
Try it...you might like it!

Looking good there. What direction are you taking these ficus? Will they be grown to get big fat truncs? Or are you thinking smaller elegant plants? I think your branches could benefit clipping of the tips. It would stimulate the creation of side-branches somewhat.

As for growing clippings in soil or water.. It depends a little on the plant species. Some prefer water, some soil. Some pure sand.

well the #3 cutting will definately stay smaller as for the other 2 its up in the air at the moment.as for pruning i am fertalizing heavy now to build up some energy and plan on defoliating and cutting the branch tips off in a month or so .even tho i didn't do much to the roots i didn't want to loose all the leaves right away cuz they really weren't in a growing faze yet

Hi there, I'm trying to grow ficus from cuttings and want to know what the best way is to get roots to grow. There are a few things I want to know.

How many leaves should i leave on the cutting and how far up the stem should i remove the cambium? I'm using 40% vermiculite and 60% potting soil.