Can anyone give any advice on my bonsai tree. It was given to me last October as a present. I was told it is 60 years old. Back in October the tree was abundant with lush green leaves. However, it lost leaves at a furious rate just a few weeks after I received it. Also there are some black marks on the remaining leaves. We have it near a window for light, we have not had our gas fire on since as we were told that it would not like it! It has been well watered with rain water. We have just started to feed it - is this right? The temperature of the room is between 19 and 21 degrees. New growth at the ends of the branches but lower down it seems almost dead. The plant also seems to have gone a bit leggy. I would be very grateful for any suggestions. As I am sure that this plant must have cost a fortune.
ficus as a species needs a lot of sunlight as they are a tropical species. having it in a sunny window is ideal, provided the guy is getting fresh air as well. they cant tolerate stale air at all. they need ventilation, but not drafty winds. im assuming the 19 and 21 degrees is C and not F. that should be ideal. make shure you're not over watering your tree. if it isn't out side you shouldn't have to water it to often. you should let the soil "dry out" between waterings and by that i mean check for dampness (you shouldn't let it dry out completely) around the roots below the soil line. if your tree is dropping leaves you should not feed it. never feed a weak tree. you will only shock the poor thing further by giving it fertilizer it cant use. it sounds like it might have a fungus typical of the ficus specie called anthracnose or grey rot. in either case you should cut off all affected areas (leaves or branches) and mist spray with a fungicide. make shure to disinfect your tools as well. you can reinfect a tree with tools not properly sterilized after use. really make shure your soil isn't overly wet as these fungi thrive in that environment. when you prune your tree of infected areas, try to cut back to healthy wood. you'll know you have found it when the cuts ooze milky latex. seal all cuts with a sealant. you can use wood glue if you have to. when shaping for bonsai training wait untill branches have produced five to six pairs of leaves and then prune back to two pair. you can wire ficus any time of the year. as for fertilizer i think that slow acting organics work the best because they lessen the chance of burning the roots from over use. at any rate i would guess that your fugus problem is due to over watering. most bonsai are killed from over watering. this causes the roots to rot, and disease to attack!! hope ive been helpfull, happy growing!!
Thanks, that is great info. I think I over watered my bonsai just after re-potting. hopefully it will not affect the bonsai.
