Hello!

My name is Samuel, I am 23 and I am Portuguese. I started this hobby a year ago, due to a Carmona (Fukien Tea) I got as a birthday gift.

I recently received this Ficus (images). It is a beautiful plant, but I am not sure if it qualifies as a Bonsai. Even so, let's assume it is a Bonsai.

What should I do with it next? What are your thoughts? I will leave my own here:

Wiring the top branches and pruning a bit to give it a cleaner look
Give it some front-back movement with the wiring
Making the branches go a bit downwards
Getting a rock for the first arc, "U" shaped, upside down, to give some action to that part of the plant
Or shortening it by layering it until the first arc (medium term action)

What do you think about it? Please share your thoughts with me, I will be grateful!

Thank you,

Samuel

i have seen this with a student i have seen, he wired the trunks in a knot extremely similar to your pic, the thing is that it is that it is to unnatural, yes that species does do that naturally, but it is to much with the twisting thing, to manmade. but if you make the "hoop" a bit more un even then i then it would make a bit of a good difference. this is my opinion though. i guess with a new pot and more training it will be a good bonsai.

good luck!!

Jaime

s.valente wrote: Hello!

I recently received this Ficus (images). It is a beautiful plant, but I am not sure if it qualifies as a Bonsai. Even so, let's assume it is a Bonsai.

This is a designed tree but it is not designed as bonsai and does not qualify as such.
Trying to make this into a bonsai would require radical steps - cutting away the 'hoops', almost growing it back from start.
As you think this is a beautiful plant, I would not do such thing and enjoy it as it is now, and buy something else to create a bonsai from.

It is a strange shape, and I would think you could change that, but not with wire. Just by pruning you can get a nice shape. It is too tall for the branch placement at the moment and I am not sure you can change that easily. Why not look around for an Olive that you can train? They do make excellent bonsai material, and can be kept outside.
I would grow this as a houseplant and not try to change it. You may ruin it if you try to do too much. I would put it into a bigger pot and just grow it on,
Geoff.

I forgot:

It's not one tree, I think it's four.

i do not think that, if you use the 3d imagery picturing do da section in you brain, it is one, but different angles, i can see why you purpose this suggestion though, it is deceiving.

Thank you all for your opinions. I will carry on with it, as you said, as a beautiful houseplant and keep it as so.
I have other bought Bonsais as well as some projects of my own, including an olive.
Thank you and good luck with your trees.
Samuel

bob wrote: i do not think that, if you use the 3d imagery picturing do da section in you brain, it is one, but different angles, i can see why you purpose this suggestion though, it is deceiving.

It is not deceiving. There are 4 plants, in one pot. If you look carefull, and do the 3d image in your head, you will see. four trunks, in one pot. Hence, 4 plants. (And maybe even 5 or 6)

was 4 trunks, but noting the size, 3-7 years, they have been trained together in one pot then twisted together so by now they must have fused by the root a bit, technically meaning that it is one plant technically (taking into account the fusing of the roots (fusing of the roots is a natural habit of the ficus even if they are different plants (same species and variety))). so technically we are both right now i come to think of it.

bob wrote: was 4 trunks, but noting the size, 3-7 years, they have been trained together in one pot then twisted together so by now they must have fused by the root a bit, technically meaning that it is one plant technically (taking into account the fusing of the roots (fusing of the roots is a natural habit of the ficus even if they are different plants (same species and variety))). so technically we are both right now i come to think of it.

Once in a while, after writing something, before hitting the 'Submit' button, you should sit back and think : 'do I really want to post this' ?