Ficus Benjamin came to us from tropical regions, this evergreen tree bears on its short trunk with a smooth gray-beige bark, a broadly branched crown, which is supported by numerous aerial roots. There are garden forms of Benjamin’s ficus, including small-leaved trees. Ficus Benjamin, known to many as a houseplant, does not require much maintenance and is quite suitable as a bonsai. Read about the features of growing Benjamin ficus in indoor conditions in our article.
Benjamin’s Variegated Ficus
Contents:
Botanical description of the plant
Ficus Benjamin (Latin Ficus benjamina) – a species of plants from the genus Ficus of the Mulberry family. An evergreen tree or shrub that grows in the wild up to 20-30 m in height. Distributed in India, China, Southeast Asia, the Philippines, and northern Australia.
Ficus Benjamin leaves are glossy, smooth, thinly leathery, oblong-oval with a pointed apex, 6-13 cm long and 2-6 cm wide. The arrangement of leaves on the branches is opposite, the leaves are formed in the same plane. The edge of the sheet is full-edged. The venation is reticulate, the central vein is poorly expressed, with 8-12 pairs of lateral veins. The petiole is about 2 cm.
The bark is gray with sparse brown streaks. The crown is wide, the branches drooping. Ficus Benjamin – syconia – round or oblong, paired, up to 2 cm in diameter, red or orange, inedible.
Caring for ficus Benjamin at room conditions
The first weeks of staying in your home
Try to immediately find a permanent place for Benjamin’s ficus, protected from direct sunlight. Unlike ficuses with lighter leaves, Benjamin’s ficus does not require maximum lighting and will feel great a few meters from a sunny window or in the immediate vicinity of a shady window. Do not place it near batteries or in dry rooms. And also where drafts are possible.
Small-leaved ficus must be sprayed 1-2 times a day. Spraying can be started from the first day. About once a week, Benjamin’s ficus is recommended to be gently shaken, giving air access to the dense foliage of the plant and freeing it from falling foliage.
If Benjamin’s ficus came to you in a plastic transport pot, it must be transplanted after two to three weeks. A universal primer or special primer for ficuses is suitable. If in the first weeks of your stay at your home, the ficus begins to actively shed its leaves, do not be alarmed – this is the plant that reacts to new conditions of detention. Keep sprinkling and watering it, and pretty soon it will adapt and produce new foliage. For better growth, you can spray the foliage with a weak solution of epin. In winter, ficus dumping up to 30% of the foliage is also a normal process.
Watering Ficus Benjamin
Moderate, however, the earthen coma should not be allowed to dry out. It is important to remember that the frequency of watering depends on humidity, air temperature in the room where the plant is located, and a number of other factors. Therefore, we recommend that before watering, check the soil moisture at a depth of about two phalanxes of a finger, especially at first, until you determine in practice how often the ficus will need watering in your home.
Before the next watering of Benjamin’s ficus, the soil should be only slightly moist. If the soil is poorly dry, skip watering and loosen the topsoil thoroughly. It is recommended to loosen the topsoil at least once every two weeks. Watering and daily spraying should be done only with settled water (it must be defended for at least 12 hours) at room temperature.
Lighting
Ficuses with dark foliage are not very demanding on light and can grow in partial shade. However, natural lighting is required; in its absence, the ficus must be supplemented with a phytolamp.
Fertilizing ficus Benjamin
It is necessary in the period from early spring to mid-autumn every two weeks as a universal fertilizer. During the dormant period from November to February, it is enough to fertilize the ficus once a month with a half dose of universal fertilizer. Fertilizer is applied only to wet soil immediately after watering. Foliar dressing (spraying the leaves with a weak fertilizer solution) also works well on Benjamin’s ficus.
Substrate for ficus Benjamin
A mixture of clay granulate, sand and diving earth in equal proportions. Other mixtures have also been used successfully for this plant. The planting substrate is changed once a year. Older plants require replacing the substrate every two years, and the composition of the substrate must remain unchanged.
Transfer
The plant will need replanting every two to three years. It is recommended to transplant Benjamin’s ficus in the spring, laying a large layer of drainage in the pot. The transplant can be replaced by renewing the top layer of the earth (about 3-5 cm). After transplanting, the plant can shed its leaves for several weeks.
What is most dangerous for the ficus Benjamin
- Low humidity of air, which can cause infection by a spider mite and shedding of leaves.
- Drafts, streams of air, both cold and warm, and sharp temperature changes, also provoking the dumping of leaves.
- Over-watering, causing root rot and the appearance of dark spots on the leaves.
- Insufficient irrigation, weakening the plant and provoking the discard of leaves.
- Lack of light, watering with cold water, air temperature below 17 or above 23 degrees – all this can cause the foliage to be dumped by ficus.
Reproduction of ficus Benjamin
Benjamin ficuses propagate by apical cuttings with leaves or pieces of a single-leaf stem. If you put such a stalk in a jar of water on a sunny window and change the water often, then after a while roots will appear on it. Reproduction of ficuses can be achieved in another way: the cuttings are rooted in damp sand. In this case, the stalk is washed from the milky juice that is released from the cut, allowed to dry a little and planted in small pots with wet sand, which are placed in a warm place, preferably in a greenhouse.
If Benjamin’s ficus has lost its foliage, and the leaves are only at the top, it can be updated by resorting to propagation by air layers. In this case, a circular incision is made or a narrow strip of bark is removed under the layering and moss is attached to this place, which is constantly moistened. After 1-2 months, roots develop around the incision. The stalk, along with the roots, is cut off and planted in a pot. The best time to breed ficuses is summer
Plant formation
To obtain a beautiful and healthy plant, it is necessary to form its crown. The vertical shoots of Benjamin’s ficus are weak, they quickly take a horizontal direction, and this causes uneven growth of the ficus and often causes a one-sided crown. To keep the bush in an upright position, several plants are planted in the pot and, as they grow, they intertwine with each other, and eventually grow together at the points of contact. Ficus Benjamin easily tolerates a haircut, and since its foliage is small, you can easily form a beautiful curly crown or, slightly lifting the roots, giving them airiness, form a bonsai tree.
Diseases and pests of ficus Benjamin
Falling leaves
In the fall, when the days become shorter and the light falls, Benjamin’s ficus often sheds a lot of leaves. He loves good light, constant location and temperature. As soon as the leaves begin to fall, or better at the end of September, without waiting for the leaves, move it to the brightest place.
In this case, the crown of the plant should be facing the stream of light with the same side as before. Remember to limit the growth of young leaves in winter by reducing watering.
spider mite
If you notice small spiders on the underside of Benjamin’s ficus leaves, this is a spider mite.
It multiplies very quickly in dry air and at high temperatures. It is destroyed by thorough washing, especially the lower part of the leaves, with a weak infusion of tobacco dust (4 tablespoons per 1 liter of water), to which soap is added, or infusion of Dalmatian chamomile with soap. After two hours, the leaves are washed with warm water. If dots and spots appear on the leaves, it may be a shield aphid. This pest is also destroyed by soap-tobacco infusion, to which it is good to add a little denatured alcohol or kerosene. In this case, it is necessary to carefully examine the plant and remove all the shields from the leaves and stems with a cotton swab. The purity of the leaves is the main protection of ficuses from diseases and pests.
It is believed that ficus leaves clean the air in rooms well, so they not only delight the eye, but also bring tangible benefits. We wish you success!
