Ficus Bonsai Leaf Drop

When I first got interested in Bonsai, my first couple of trees were all bought with the intention of keeping them indoors. My further reading and research around the subject soon led me to the conclusion that this was not the ideal growing environment for the majority of material used for Bonsai. So with this new knowledge, some were moved outside where they were immediately happier, however some were less lucky and did not survive this early mistreatment. This said, there are a number of species that are used for Bonsai that are sub-tropical and therefore would not survive outside in our British weather, and so need to be cultured indoors. Now, a number of years after my initial indoor blunders, I became curious again as to whether I could now grow and indoor Bonsai and keep it both alive and healthy. One species common for indoor growing is that of Ficus, they are a sub-tropical species and like warmer temperatures, usually nothing less than 12 degrees. They are mostly evergreen, and are usually grow quite well in less than perfect growing conditions.

So the subject for my experiment was to be a Ficus. I found myself a cheap little Ficus Microcarpa, and set it up in my bedroom. The tree was ordered over the internet and when it arrived it seemed fairly healthy. It was however in a very small pot, and poor growing medium. The tree was also clearly pot-bound, with roots coming out of the drainage holes at the bottom. So my first job was to repot the tree into a more suitable sized pot and better, free-draining, growing medium. This done I gave it a drip tray underneath filled with a layer of moist gravel to increase the local humidity, which the tree would thank me for. It was placed by the windowsill in my bedroom and left there to settle in.

Ficus, although forgiving, can often be a little temperamental, and when they are moved to a new position, or repotted, can throw a bit of a wobbler and begin to shed leaves. This happened often with my first few trees, and being less experienced I presumed it was something to do with watering and then proceeded to over-water them, resulting in their demise. So when this begun to happen with this new tree, I knew my watering was correct and so had to assume it was just temporary. It is still alarming when any tree loses it’s leaves unexpectedly and so I wanted to remedy the situation as soon as possible.

I had recently read an interesting article by a forum member, who had stated the same problem and actually come up with a solution to the leaf drop problem. The solution found is to cover the tree completely with a plastic bag. This traps in the moist air and provides a humid atmosphere for the tree. So with this new advice to hand, I proceeded to cover my tree with a plastic bag. I left the bag on for a week and have now removed it. Before the bag went on, there were perhaps one or two new yellow leaves daily which then fell off. Now after the “bag treatment” I am yet to see any yellow leaves and the tree appears to be stable again. This has been a very useful technique, you can read the full article here - http://www.mariusz.andrzejak.biz