Hi All,

I have a Ficus Benjamina Starlight Group that I'm not sure exactly what to do with. It's currently in a fairly small bonsai pot and I'm wondering if the pot is a little too small for the group to be doing well. I want to grow them out to get the trunks a little thicker and then repot them into a larger oval or rectangular shaped pot to create a ficus forest.

Would it be recommended to repot them now into a much larger pot to grow them out or leave them as is until I find the pot that I intend for them to be in long term? The group I have are also not that straight; is it common practice to wire trees to make them straighter to help achieve the forest look when planted in a group?

I'm also conflicted if I should wait until the group grows taller, trunk chop at about half the height, and propagate the cuttings to get more trees for the forest. This would be a taller forest with a sparse look vs a shorter forest with a more dense look. Are there pros and cons to either of these styles when using ficus to create the forest?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Here are some pictures of my Ficus Group:







Here's a picture showing a taller more sparse ficus forest:


Here's a picture showing a shorter more dense ficus forest (I would have more trees though):

I don't do Ficus, so can't help you with that, but please do not follow the examples you posted.
The first picture: the plants are too young and thin to look like trees. It's just a collecion of young plants in a pot and does not look like a forest.
The second one: The plants are planted the same distance from eachother and the side of the pot, making it look very symmatrical, static, and very boring.

The way your plants are positioned is actually better. It looks more natural.