Propagate Ficus from Cuttings for Bonsai

|How to Propagate a ficus from a Cutting plant propagation is pretty Straightforward and for a ficus phagus Is root so so well you don’t need all This equipment but what i’m going to be Using today is wire cutters one Millimeter aluminium bonsai wire Chapstick a small pot scissors a glass Of water and of course your parent plant The genus of ficus that we’re using Today is called the ficus benjamina also Known as a weeping ficus because the Leaves tend to want to sort of weep Downwards but in any shop they probably Won’t call it this it will just be Called a ficus plant but this method Should work with the majority of ficus Species out there so i actually have a Really cool story about this ficus plant The parent plant that we’re going to be Using here whenever i purchased this it Was just sort of three ficus trees in The one pot together and they were quite Young at the time and what i’ve done was I tried to fuse the three trees together So i had the thickest tree in the middle And then on each side of it the two Thunder trees but i actually cut the Bark off where the trees push against Each other in the hopes that the trees Will fuse together over time and to keep

The trees together just underneath the Soil is a piece of wire wrapped around Them and through each of the trees Joining all three trees together is a Toothpick of wood so when this gets Older it’ll all sort of fuse and grow Into that just wanted to share that Before we get into this if you’re Thinking this looks a little bit strange Here at the base so the first thing you Want to do is decide which branch you Want the cotton to be whenever you cut The branch off the tree you want to Ensure that the branch that you’re Cutting it from still survives so if i Were to cut this right down to the Bottom and leave no leaves on this Branch that branch could die or you Could get lucky and leaves would come From it but when you’re cutting it off The tree just ensure that you leave some Leaves Here and this is the cutting that we’ll Be doing here what i’m going to do is Remove any lower branches that’s coming Off the side of this just like there and I’m going to keep all of these leaves on The top of this cutting because the more Leaves you have i find the quicker the Cotton will root so that’s all we’re Going to do now i just put the cotton Into the water And we’re going to leave this for a few Weeks here i have some curtains that i

Did a few weeks ago from the exact same Parent tree and today i’m going to pot These up and i’m actually thinking of Creating some sort of clump style bonsai With these and just clump them all Together just like the parent plant here And then in the future they will all Fuse at the base because they’re quite Young now they’ll fuse together nicely Bonus part of the video i’m going to Show you guys how to create a clump Style ficus bonsai to do that we’re Going to use this pot now i know this Pot is quite small already but for this To fit into the proportions that i want I’m just going to half the size of this Plastic pot this is only going to be a Temporary pot before i put these into Like a lovely ceramic mommy style pot Yeah a little small Short pot so before i put the soil in I’m just going to wire this pot with the Very thin bonsai wire you don’t need Much of it just a little bit goes a long Way here A little bit there So you put it up through the bottom and Then just pull it over the sides of the Pot to keep it in place just like that I’m going to take these little ficus out Of this glass of water now they’ve been In this glass for maybe two weeks look At how much roots they got it’s also Good to take the curtains when it’s in

The growing season because in winter They may not grow where it’s as quick so To do this i’m just going to cut a Little short length of wire I’m going to position the trees how i Would like them first so so as you can See here this tree has roots grown out To one side of it and i’m actually going To use this to my advantage because if i Find a tree that has is grown in the Same sort of fashion one side and i Place these together and if they’re a Part of the clump style they’re both Root systems going in opposite Directions kind of mix One to bar and that’s that’s what we can Use to our advantage here the clump Style so if you find roots growing out To one side of the tree just place them On the outside of the clump i’m very Happy with how these are fashioned now I’m going to take my wire and just Wrap it around as far down as you can Get it in the clump because if it’s too High up they may not fuse properly at The base so when you’ve got the wire Wrapped around i’m just going to twist The wire This is what i’m going for the wire Twisted around the base of the tree Holding all of them together so you want It tight but not too tight as you can See here it’s nicely holding these trees Together but it’s not so tight that it’s

Digging under the bark i’m just going to Cut this wire a little shorter now to Make it neater And that looks good to go so the soil That i’m going to be using today is Going to be a mix of compost and some Fine grit mama may bonsai soil probably Two to three millimeter grit soil it’s a Mix of academia pumice and lava rock my Reasoning behind this is that i find That pots that are a lot shallower tend To evaporate water so much faster than a Bigger pot that is just this free drain And stuff so by adding some compost will Hold moisture there for a little bit Longer between water and that way i Don’t have to do water in it maybe three Times a day i’m going to start by just Putting some compost in the bottom Some of this Free draining soil mixture i’m just Going to mix them with a chopstick so i Say 50 50 compost and academic hummus And lava rack mix before we place the Tree in i just want to fan the roots out So that they’re all facing out radially That way whenever the roots thicken i’m Not going to have to go and cut big Thick ones and try and figure out which Way they’re going i’m going to give These roots a little trim here so that It fits because i don’t want to push the Roots and curl them inside because that Will just cause a lot more problems

Later on So that’s just perfect the way it sits In here so firstly i’m going to mind up A little bit of soil in the pot Sit the tree and on top of it and i just Want to wrap the wire lightly around the Trunk to stop the tree falling over Again the same as the wrapper in the Trunk you want the wire to be tight Enough to hold it but not so tight that It digs in or hurts any roots i do find That mommy bonsai which is this style of Very miniature bonsai there’s a lot of Different principles in it in terms of How you treat the trees compared to Larger trees they’d be a lot more Delicate with smaller trees like this And i suppose working on smaller trees Like this improves your dexterity in Your fingers i guess it’s beneficial for You too not just the tree just wiring This end with the gen pliers as you Would normally do Just taking these other wires now and Wrapping them around in the same fashion Although it seems like a lot of wire It’s really what the tree needs until it Gets settled in and then you want to Remove the wire when it’s happy okay So that is the little clump now wired in You can test it by just lifting it up Nothing’s going to move we’re just going To finish off by Pouring in more soil more compost and

More of our soil mix you’ll be very Gentle here sometimes it can actually be Better instead of using a chopstick to Take a thicker piece of wire and use That as the thing you use to work the Soil in because of the roots they’re so Small it does seem quite drastic to put It in such a shallow pot i do understand That some people may disagree with this I’ve done this before and the trees have Done quite well but if you do feel more Comfortable putting it in a deeper pot By all means do that just whatever works For you again i can’t emphasize this Enough there is no one way to do bonsai You just sort of push this down with Your thumbs then Can’t rush this repotting stage because This is what really sets the tree up for The next couple of months And there are your little tiny trees Look like small that is i’m going to Give this a little water and i’m Actually going to show you guys how to Water mame bonsai so you can water the Tree the traditional way by pouring it In here in a little tiny watering can or You can do what i do and i have this big Basin that collects rain water and with The momma tree you just Hold it under the water for a few Seconds i do this maybe one or two times And that’s the tree watered Really easy i just want to show off my

Mommy azalea tree that i’m working on at The moment It’s got a beautiful pink flower on it Look at that So that’s how i would water this also i Would just place that In the water And that would be that water too so yeah That was just a little short and sweet Video on how to propagate a ficus from a Cutting if you have any other ways and Methods of propagating ficus that Doesn’t involve just plopping it in Water i know placing it into soil can Also work leave your methods down in the Comments i’d love to hear how you guys Propagate ficus and if you have a better Way of doing it then i do it i’m always Open to new ideas hope this video helped You and thank you so much for watching [Music] Foreign