A ficus (especially the ficus Benjamin, which is demanding in terms of maintenance conditions) may begin to “fall of leaves” for many stress-inducing reasons - from a change of “place of residence”, hypothermia and replanting, as well as from errors in care (lack of light, dry air, excessive watering, drafts, cold substrate). At the first signs of falling leaves of the ficus, you need to carry out a series of sprayings of the trunk and crown with Epin; analyze and eliminate the causes of “leaf fall” (there is a peculiarity here: the reasons for the falling of ficus leaves could be either recently or quite a long time ago - for example, a month ago, a delayed reaction is possible).
All types of ficus love a bright but not sunny location, regular watering (moderate in spring and summer, limited in autumn and winter), moist air and frequent spraying. Between watering ficuses, you need to let the soil dry out a little (avoiding drying out the earthen ball), otherwise the leaves will fall off due to stagnant moisture. With dry air and lack of light, ficus trees can also lose leaves; species with green leaves are more shade-tolerant, while variegated ones are more light-loving.
Most ficus trees grow all year round at room temperature; for ficuses with green leaves in winter it is possible to reduce the temperature to 16 degrees (important warm ground, hypothermia of the soil leads to the shedding of leaves). Ficuses need to be protected from drafts and cold air - two more reasons for leaf loss.
If necessary, ficuses are replanted in the spring (young plants annually, older than 5 years - after 2 years, old tubs - after 3-4 years). The substrate is made up of equal parts of compost or humus, turf, peat soil and sand; for large woody specimens, the proportion of turf soil is increased).
In summer, ficuses need fertilizing with mineral and organic fertilizers (alternately once every 2 weeks). Pruning the shoots of most types of ficus leads to branching.
To the trash
I'll tell you about my ficus.
It was sick and sick, the foliage would turn yellow, then fall off... it was simply useless, and it would be a pity to throw it away and there was zero beauty.
I read literature where it was written that this was the norm, where the cause was a draft, whatever... I eliminated all this, but to no avail.
Then I bought a Sidor LED phytolamp.
And I didn’t buy it for him, for orchids.
And since they stood next to each other, the light also fell on the ficus benjamina.
After a couple of weeks I simply didn’t recognize him!
It's like it came straight from the store!
The ficus has long since climbed down from the window sill, has been standing on the floor ever since, and now the ceiling is starting to interfere with it, so it even has to be trimmed.
Now I have much more plants than the windowsill, I take whatever I like.
Everything is fragrant, everything is growing.
So I advise.
Maybe it was left in the cold or the lighting changed? This happened to us - their leaves grow back. It's too early for the trash bin.
Give it some pruning... after a while new branches will appear...
This is not the first time I have been asked this question this spring.
I had a similar experience, so I’ll share how I stimulated my old ficus trees to perform this feat.
During the winter, many ficus trees lose their leaves due to the difficulties of wintering in an apartment. Dry air due to heating system, little light, and at the same time cold window sills - this is the main scourge for indoor plants, which winter in the cold climate of our country.
But besides this, there is another reason - the trunks below become bare over time due to natural reasons. The tree grows, the crown develops in the upper part, and at the bottom the trunk becomes bare. This happens to all trees in the wild.
Here is my ficus having reached its maximum growth, as much as conditions allowed it indoors and the size of the pot, exposed the trunks at the bottom. And the top of his head rested on the ceiling. It felt cramped on the windowsill, but you can’t put it on the floor either: it’s too dark, because I live in the Urals - we’ve had dark winters in recent years.
But I decided to try to improve the situation.
There are several ways to force mature tree grow young branches in the lower woody part of the trunk.
1. trimming the crown.
2. tilting the trunk to a horizontal position.
3. stimulation of dormant buds with an incision.
I didn’t have one trunk, but several plants growing in a pot at once.
I went the most in a simple way. I cut off the top of the trunks.
But in order for young shoots to come from the lowest tier, they usually cut the tree low - almost a quarter, or even a third of the trunk.
But since I didn’t want to shorten the ficus too much, I decided to use all three methods at once, but a little at a time.
That is, the tops of the heads were shortened by only 20 or 30 centimeters.
But she spread the trunks from the center to the sides with the help simple device. Any “wheel” that can be found in the house will do.
You can use this support for flowers.
Thus, all individual trunks received enough light and at the same time a more horizontal tilt.
But I didn’t stop there.
I lightly scratched the bark at the bottom of the trunk above the dormant buds in the places where I wanted branches.
And I regularly sprayed these places with water with a drop of biostimulant - Epin.
I also put the ficus on the balcony - where it had light. This important condition- carry out all these activities in the spring, when active sap flow and a lot of light begin.
Of course, here we must also take into account such risks as direct sun rays. Need or glass balcony, or cut when the ficus has gradually become accustomed to street conditions.
And then new branches began to appear!
Both at the top and at the very bottom. 
I left only those that grew outward rather than inside the crown.
And those that grew strictly horizontally were bent and tied to the main trunk to correct their position.
There were also those who grew completely downward. Their growth was also corrected.
Soon my ficus became “fluffy” again. And after standing on the balcony in the summer, it acquired thick, bright green foliage.
Frequently Asked Questions: Ficus
General information on caring for ficus.
They gave us an adult rubber-bearing ficus, tall - more than a meter tall. But he is apparently sick: more and more leaves begin to darken and appear brown spots and the leaves wrinkle. It grows poorly in a cramped pot. First of all, we wanted to transplant it, but we were advised not to injure the ficus by transplanting, but to cure it first. What should I do?
1.How to water ficus trees correctly?
2.What does ficus like?
3.White convex dots have appeared on the leaves of my young ficus (plant height about 40 cm), what are they? Is he sick?
4.How to form Ficus elastica?
5. My ficus leaves are falling off.
6.Ficus "Natasha" does not grow. Tell me what can have such a strong influence on growth. I replanted it several times, but to no avail.
7.And what time? soil mixture replant ficus?
8.Ficus is sick! The stem below began to darken and wither (about 10 cm already), the lower leaves fell off, and the rest all drooped.
9. We filled ficus Benjamin! It has dropped almost all its leaves!
10.Who knows or maybe did it himself: if you pinch the top of the rubber ficus (with large leaves), will it send shoots in different directions?
11.After transplantation, the ficus fell ill and the leaves fell off.
12.At the edges large leaves brown spots began to appear, they increase in size, cover the entire edge, because of this the sheets become wavy, as if corrugated, and then fall off. The sheet itself is very reminiscent of paper, the edges of which have been set on fire - brown round spots and an uneven frayed edge. All this has been going on for six months now.
13.How to “braid” a ficus?
14.How to root a rubber ficus cutting?
15.What conditions does the tiny ficus want?
16. The ficus tree has dried up. Watered moderately. Sprayed the leaves. What to do?
17. Ficus benjamina is losing its leaves!
18. Is it possible to remove some of the roots from Ficus Benjamin when replanting?
19. Should I replant ficus from store soil?
20. We were given an adult rubber-bearing ficus, tall - more than a meter tall. But he is apparently sick: more and more new leaves begin to darken, brown spots appear and leaves wrinkle. It grows poorly in a cramped pot. First of all, we wanted to transplant it, but we were advised not to injure the ficus by transplanting, but to cure it first. What should I do?
1.Answer: It is better to transplant and treat at the same time. Perhaps he has been cramped for a long time. If you decide to replant, then take a pot 7-8 cm larger in diameter and 8-10 cm larger in height than a saucepan, ceramics or plastic - it doesn’t matter. The presence of a drainage hole is mandatory; pour a 3-4 cm layer of drainage downwards, from ready-made mixtures- “begonia” or “lemon” from “garden of miracles”, you can mix their “rose” with “cactus” in a ratio of 2\1, 3/1, although this is not entirely correct. Remove from the pot, shake the old soil if possible, inspect the roots, if there are rotten ones, cut them to the living ones, sprinkle the sections with crushed coal (even activated in tablets), pour so much earth down onto the drainage so that the surface of the earth remains at the same level, those. There is almost no need to add soil from above, only from below and on the sides (you need to add soil from above, if only the old top layer managed to shake off the earth). Regarding treatment, it is difficult to say what the problem is without seeing the plant and not knowing the conditions of its maintenance; it could be diseases, pests, or poor conditions. When negative factors are eliminated, the plant will gradually recover. First, inspect the underside of the leaves and axils for pests; any foreign “objects” are a reason to be wary; if you find something, write to the forum, they will identify it and suggest methods of control. As a preventive measure, it can be recommended to start by washing the leaves on both sides with boiled water, after drying, spray with “epin” according to the instructions (5-7 drops per 200 grams of water) and continue to spray with it once a week for at least 2 months (epin does not kill pests or treat them, it somehow increases the plant’s immunity; diseases and pests, if any are found, will have to be dealt with separately).
2. How to water ficus trees correctly?
Answer: After transplanting, water very little. Ficuses, in general, should be watered only after 1/4, 1/3 of the pot has completely dried (check by sticking your finger in the ground, or by weight, but this is with experience), quite abundantly, preferably with warm (add boiling water), soft water (although -let it stand for 24 hours, if possible, pass it through a household filter). It is impossible to say how often to water because... it depends on so many factors - the time of year, the size of the pot, the ambient temperature, the speed at which the plant itself “drinks” and its condition. Ficuses really don’t like flooding; this causes the leaves to turn yellow SHARPLY AND QUICKLY.
3. What does ficus like?
Answer: The location is as bright as possible, rubber plants can tolerate a couple of hours of direct sun a day, it is ideal to place it near a window curtained with tulle, except on the north side, in which case there is no need to curtain it. Doesn't like strong drafts, but strong drafts; he can just stand under an open window. Feed once every two weeks with any organic fertilizer for indoor plants, you can use mullein, once every 1.5-2 months in winter, plus feed with “Emerald” or an analogue to compensate for the lack of lighting - in winter. Although I feed this way - I add fertilizer with each watering, but in a much lower concentration, in the summer 1\4-1\6 of the recommended dose, in the winter - 1\8-1\10, my plants do not complain. Ficus loves spraying, but only with warm and preferably boiled water (otherwise it will be white limescale on the leaves), you can spray at least twice a day. Periodically (once a month) wipe the leaves with a damp sponge or cloth, also with boiled water.
4. White convex dots have appeared on the leaves of my young ficus (plant height about 40 cm), what are they? Is he sick?
Answer: How white are the dots? What size? If they are still light green and small, then everything is fine, all adult specimens have them, look around in stores.
5. How to form Ficus elastica?
Answer: Usually ficus elastica grows with one trunk, this is not very beautiful. Therefore, it is recommended that, after growing the stem to a certain size - whichever size you like - you pinch the top (what is pinched off can be rooted). After this, lateral shoots will appear on the trunk in the axils of the leaves, which will subsequently form a crown. In turn, they can also be pruned so that they branch more strongly.
6. My ficus leaves are falling off.
Answer: If the plant has just been purchased, this is a normal phenomenon, especially in ficus Benjamin - it is simply a reaction to transportation, replanting, etc. Then it will move away, new leaves will grow, but "Epin" of course will not hurt.
7. Ficus "Natasha" does not grow. Tell me what can have such a strong influence on growth. I replanted it several times, but to no avail.
Answer: This ficus belongs to the category of growing very slowly. In this situation, a bright window and moderate watering with POKON "Ficus" fertilizer will help. And, besides, he really does not like rearrangements, drafts and deep pots.
8. What soil mixture should the ficus be replanted into?
Answer: Try replanting it in a mixture of turf, leaves, humus, peat and sand in equal proportions. Just don’t forget that the ficus needs good drainage, because ficus is afraid of stagnant water. But it was advisable to do the transplant in the spring, because... at other times it may shed its leaves.
9. Ficus is sick! The stem below began to darken and wither (about 10 cm already), the lower leaves fell off, and the rest all drooped.
Answer: Signs of overflow. If it is flooded, then the roots are probably rotten. It is necessary to remove it from the pot and replace the soil. Or, at worst, cut the top and root it in water, if it’s completely hopeless. And for better effect you can add some kind of root former to the water where the cuttings stand, succinic acid, for example, or humin. It is worth consulting your nearest flower shop, what they have from root formers, and everything is written on the packages - you’ll figure it out!
10. Filled Ficus Benjamin! It has dropped almost all its leaves!
Answer: Carefully separate all the soil from the plant (at the same time, inspect the roots, most likely they have rotted - they have become like thin gray threads). Replant in light, almost dry soil and place in partial shade (where there is no sun, but it is light). Then only spray the top layer of soil and the plant itself. You can water around (at the very walls of the pot), but only VERY limited.
And it’s best to spray it thoroughly (and the ground too) after transplanting with epin (1 ampoule per 0.75-1 liter of water), pour a little water into the pan, crumble coal (from a match or activated - so as not to rot) onto the ground and seal it tightly in transparent vessel. Then you don’t need to do anything at all with the plant for a couple of weeks, just check it periodically. There is no need to ventilate the condensate. Will come to life!
11. Who knows or maybe did it himself: if you pinch the top of the rubber ficus (with large leaves), will it send out shoots in different directions?
Answer: It definitely will, I checked it myself, and the cut off top very quickly produces roots right in the water. By the way, about 10 leaves is nonsense, although in one smart book I read one restriction regarding pruning this particular ficus: a bare specimen must be cut no lower than 10 cm from the lower healthy leaf, then the old plant will produce new shoots.
12. After transplantation, the ficus fell ill and the leaves fell off:
Answer: Ficus, as a rule, tolerates transplantation very painfully, and it is quite possible that this is why it is sick. Ficus really doesn't like changing places. They say that he may not even like the color of the carpet. And the transplant came additional stress. It seems to me that we should leave it alone - just make sure that there is enough light and water (just don’t flood it). It will calm down and new leaves will grow. Just don’t rearrange it anymore, don’t fertilize it, and don’t replant it.
This is, of course, subject to proper care: enough moisture, shading from direct sun (especially after transplantation), no drafts. And to relieve stress, you can try spraying with Epin.
13. Brown spots began to appear on the edges of large leaves, they increase in size, cover the entire edge, because of this the leaves become wavy, as if corrugated, and then fall off. The leaf itself is very reminiscent of paper, the edges of which have been set on fire - brown round spots and uneven frayed edge. All this has been going on for six months now.
Answer: You need to carefully examine the surface and especially the back side of the leaves: the symptoms you described are similar to an infestation with a red flat mite (not a spider mite!). This infection is very, very small, less than half a millimeter, so it is difficult to detect. In addition, if you don’t find the beast, try spraying the plant with foundationazole or something similar: necrosis of leaf tissue can be caused by anthracnose. In addition, the symptoms resemble false powdery mildew on cucumbers and late blight on tomatoes. These are fungal diseases, and, first of all, you need to reduce the air humidity (do not spray and water very sparingly). Treatment consists of treatment with a copper-containing drug, Oxyx (copper oxychloride), sold freely. Spray all parts of the flower from all sides, water the soil, treat the outer surface of the pot, all the flowerpots and - into the insulator! The infection may already be present on other flowers. In any case, don't give up.
14. How to “braid” a ficus?
Answer: If there are several shoots, they are usually intertwined to make a beautiful stem. If there is only one sprout, plant it, and pretty soon it will grow side shoots. It is necessary to braid only plants of the same development, otherwise the large ones will suppress the small ones. It is necessary to curl immediately (with a height of 13 cm), when growing, immediately do a curl as soon as the size allows. Stay “braid” on the leaves. To prevent this braid from unraveling, wrap the trunk with woolen threads. Try to braid it tighter. The trunk, however, may be damaged in some places (the bark will burst, milky juice will appear), but it’s okay (the main thing is not to break it), then wash the trunk warm water and that’s all... And in order for the threads not to damage the trunk and not grow into it, it is imperative to replace the threads with others every 1-2 months. Plus wrap the barrel at an angle of 45 degrees.
15. How to root a rubber ficus cutting?
Answer: Rubber-bearing ficus It gives roots very slowly precisely because of the milky sap it contains. In addition, after cutting off a branch or stem, this juice quickly hardens in the air. It is usually recommended that just before placing a twig in water for rooting, do the following: rinse the cut area under a small stream of water - just gently remove the frozen juice with your hands, and then immediately put the cutting in the water. You can do this - in a greenhouse made of a transparent plastic box about 20 x 10 with a gap for air access. Wet expanded clay was poured onto the bottom of the greenhouse for moisture, the shoot was placed in a small pot in the ground, not in water, and the entire greenhouse was placed on a radiator. This is for bottom heating, accelerates root formation. Or you can do it this way - you need to cut off the cutting in May - June, the apical cutting with 1 leaf. Roll the sheet into a tube and tie with an elastic band. Dip the cut into the root and plant it in the ground with sand. Maintain soil and air moisture, keep warm. It takes a long time to take root.
Or so - soak in water for a day (so that the tissues are saturated with water), then in a root formation stimulator (heteroauxin, for example), according to the attached instructions, then plant in moist soil under a cover + spraying. When a leaf starts to grow, remove the cap - it has taken root.
16. What conditions does the tiny ficus want?
Answer: The soil can be used like a “palm tree”, it is suitable for both palm trees and ficus trees. Just keep in mind that the tiny ficus has a superficial root system and for him better soil dilute with some lightening additives. After transplantation, keep it warm for the first time and at high humidity air, because During the adaptation period, it may shed leaves. Do not place it close to the battery - it will dry out. Watering is quite rare, as the top layer of soil dries out a few centimeters.
17. The ampelous ficus has dried up. Watered moderately. Sprayed the leaves. What to do?
Answer: Ampelous ficuses do not like direct sunlight. Try changing the location. Apply with Emerald fertilizer. It's quite cheap. It can be combined (but not on the same day) with epin, but it quickly loses its properties in the light. If you water, you can do it at any time, but it’s better to spray when it’s dark.
18. Ficus benjamina is losing its leaves!
Answer: Ficus Benjamin periodically sheds most of its leaves: either overflow or draft. He's too capricious. Lower leaves fall off most often due to excessive waterlogging. The fact that the soil should not DRY (this does not mean that it should not dry out at all, as in a swamp) applies to small creeping ficuses, such as ficus pumila or rooting ficus. Ficus trees, on the contrary, are watered abundantly, and the top layer of soil must dry out between waterings. Roots need air. And on this forum, someone who has a collection of a dozen ficuses said that he waters his ficuses when you stick your finger into the ground on two phalanges and it remains dry. And then you can wait three days. I water it when the soil above becomes dry. In general, Ficus Benjamin loses leaves very easily. They can be thrown off by any changes in conditions of detention. They moved it to a new place and transplanted it. A few leaves are always lost. It's not a disaster. Since it also grows quickly. My Ficus Benjamin has been growing for more than two years and I know from experience that leaf fall very often (or rather, almost always) happens due to:
1) changes in usual conditions: transfer in the fall from the balcony to the room;
2) too much watering in winter - it simply goes catastrophically “bald”. The soil should dry well between waterings;
3) insufficient lighting- my ficus loves the morning sun, and suffers without it in winter. To avoid this, I add iron gelatin to the watering water.
In all these cases, the leaves turn yellow and fall off very quickly.
19. Is it possible to remove some of the roots from Ficus Benjamin when replanting?
Answer: Precisely because it is a tree, I think it’s okay. When forming bonsai, the roots are trimmed a little - and nothing happens. Well, maybe the plant will get sick a little, as a consequence of any transplant.
20. Should I replant ficus from store soil?
Answer: Replant immediately or simply change all the soil. This soil is only suitable for transportation - it retains moisture for a very long time, and, over time, also becomes compacted. When the top layer of soil seems to have dried out, the moisture remains inside for a long time (how else can it be transported?). And ficuses really don’t like waterlogging. It is better to UNDERfill them than to OVERfill them.
Hello, Lyuba!
In fact, the rubber ficus (another name is “elastica”) will grow upward without encountering obstacles. At home, these plants turn into giant trees. At home, they often stop growing only when they hit the ceiling of the room. This plant looks like a long and thin trunk with leaves. If you are like this appearance I’m not happy with the ficus, but I want to get a decorative “tree” of the desired height with a thick and attractive crown, let’s see what can be done.
Stimulating the formation of side shoots
The easiest way to form a crown is to trim the top of the plant. This process must be carried out in the spring. But this is not enough for the ficus to branch. As a result of such pruning, one upper bud on the trunk is activated. For best result Five or six internodes need to be trimmed.
If you wish, the top of a plant that grows too quickly after pruning can be planted in the same pot. Once the shoots reach the desired height, prune them back. This way you can ensure that the ficus will grow lush bush. In addition to planting several plants in one pot, to make the ficus bushy, it should be kept in partial shade. It is important to turn the pot around its axis from time to time. Then the shoots will not stretch in one direction.
You can also try to form a bush from one plant. To do this, you need to provoke the growth of side shoots as described above. Another option for creating a lush ficus is to puncture the trunk. Similar stimulation is done from the top of the plant, and gradually you need to go lower. It is necessary to pierce the trunk to a depth of one third of the thickness.
The third way to achieve the desired goal is to tilt the top young plant perhaps lower and fix it. The bud that is higher than the others will begin to grow. After which you can return the ficus to its normal position.
How to trim ficus
- It is better to do this at the end of February or beginning of March. Active growth will help the ficus quickly heal wounds. Dormant buds will wake up in the spring and young shoots will form, which means that the result of the seedling will be visible faster. If you trim it now, then even if the plant branches, new shoots will grow slowly and look thin and ugly.
- Decide what plant height suits you. The fact is that pinching the central shoot will result in the trunk no longer growing. If you want to keep the current height, pinch off the growth point - the tip of the central shoot. To shorten a plant, you need to cut it 5 centimeters above the desired branch or leaf.
- Cut thin branches in a straight line. The trunk should be cut obliquely. The top of the cut should be above the kidney. The bottom of the cut is at the level of the kidney on the opposite side. Secateurs or a knife must be disinfected before manipulation. This can be done by wiping the instrument with alcohol or heating it over a flame. Do not use scissors when trimming the trunk - you will injure the ficus. With their help you can remove only thin branches.
- After trimming the plant, remove the milky sap with a cloth soaked in water and not wrung out. Such a cloth will stop the release of juice in the future. This will be enough, and fresh sections of elastic will not have to be covered or sprinkled with anything.
- After three or four weeks, the plant needs to be fertilized to stimulate its growth. Branching is also stimulated by transplanting into a larger pot of a couple or three centimeters. Or you can simply renew the topsoil. But you should not do this immediately after pruning - it is too stressful for the ficus. It is worth waiting at least 2 weeks.
- After successful pruning and side branches appear, pinch them out if desired. This will help form a thick and compact crown. Use wire to adjust branches and produce more symmetrical shoots.
- The "elastic" variety is not particularly prone to forming side shoots. It is difficult to predict how successful crown formation will be. Sometimes it works out the first time, and sometimes it takes a while to achieve desired result it may take years. A plant in good shape is more likely to respond to your efforts.
Best regards, Galina.
