Monthly Archives: November 2014

Exposed root styles

One of my favorite styles for tropical bonsai is the exposed root style. This may represent trees whose roots have been gradually exposed by a river washing the soil away from the roots or with trees growing on a hillside which is being eroded away. It also could be the end stages of a tree starting life as a strangler or epiphyte and then having the host trunk die and rot away leaving the strangler exposed by itself.

See how these various figs in this style work for you.

Ficus natalensis

Ficus natalensis

Ficus ‘Mystery’

Ficus ‘Mystery’

Ficus ‘Mystery’

Ficus ‘Mystery’

The definitive reference work on Ficus
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Five years development with a fig

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This bonsai was grown from seed and kept in a small container for its whole life. Development of a bonsai for size will occur most quickly in the ground or in a large container. Although growing in a large container or ground growing can develop large bonsai often the tree will need finer branching and detailing. This should happen once the bonsai is containerized and nearing its final size.

Slant style grown from seed, 2009

Showing some good branching, 2014

Now that the size and branching are nearing a reasonable point, leaf reduction and increasing branch density will be next on the list for development.

Splitting a fig into two future bonsai trees

Sometimes splitting a fig into several parts is the way to go with initial styling to maximize the material’s potential.

The pant is a Ficus natalensis grown from a root cutting and perhaps two years old. The only exciting thing about it is the twisting lower trunk which should make a nice tree using that as the focal point for the future bonsai.

An appropriate spot was chosen to split the tree into two sections. This point was selected since it would leave the top section with a good aerial root to keep it alive. This section will live happily on this one root until it is time to give it a styling.

The start

Close up of the top section of the plant

The two sections are now split apart leaving the top part with a good root to carry it

The top section planted using its one root

The bottom section potted and several branches remain to form the future of this bonsai

The final design is not done but this is just the initial blocking out of the future bonsai. Consider breaking up a tree when the parts are more exciting than the original tree left intact.

Which side do you like the best?

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This is a young Ficus natalensis. Ficus natalensis is one of the best figs for bonsai as it is vigorous, develops aerial roots, tolerates growing in containers as well as growing well in relatively poor light.

Which of the two sides do you prefer?

This is side one, showing a prominent bend in the trunk/root

This is side one, showing a profusion of exposed roots

This is side two showing a major prominent root/trunk movement

Ficus burtt-davyi

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Ficus burtt-davyi is one of the figs that is not too infrequently used for bonsai.

There are many cultivars of this fig differentiated by small, medium or large leaves. Even the large leaf form has leaves that are only two or three inches in length.

One of the great attributes of this fig is that it will form figs nearly every year about the time that the new foliage is getting ready to sprout. Figs/syconia are small in size, start as green in color and mature to red or dark purple. Of course the seed inside is not fertile as the specific pollenating wasp is not present in my plant room.

Ficus burtt-davyi with numerous figs/syconia

Windswept style

A few years back I styled a Willow Leaf cutting into a windswept style. I enjoyed the plant although it was a young and immature plant.

The young cutting shaped out as a windswept style

The tree was re-potted some time ago and looking at the image of the plant revealed the tree was no longer attractive. What was the problem?

The tree in its new pot just isn’t exciting and feels wrong

Often when re-potting a tree I get the angle of the trunk wrong. I get busy selecting a pot, arranging the roots and securing the tree into the pot in the process the tree winds up being potted at the wrong angle or wrong position in the pot or tipped forward or backward and out of position.

Tipped back to the right – the design feels better

Once potted at a better angle I now like the final result much better.

Ficus virens, the White or Spotted Fig

One of my favorite of the larger leaf figs is Ficus virens, commonly called the White or Spotted fig. Although the species has larger leaves that make creating small sized bonsai difficult, it can be done.

Ficus virens is quite suitable for larger bonsai. It has attractive leaves that in some cultivars can be quite red or bronze on the new foliage. Thailand growers have developed some that are very red. The red color in the leaves will persist for a week or two before turning to a deep, deep green color.

In the photos above you can see that the mature leaf color varies from seedling to seedling. Some show a fair amount of red or bronze-tinged foliage. These plants are all about 7-8 years old from seed.

Moving An Aerial Root

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Aerial roots are one of the very useful and impressive features of some fig trees. As with other design elements of a bonsai the aerials must augment the overall design scheme.

In this Ficus virens the aerial root crosses across the trunk and in addition it gives the appearance of a reverse taper to the trunk of this tree. It could be removed or a better option is to move it to the other side of the trunk and use it to improve the taper of the trunk.

The aerial crosses the trunk

Closer view of the crossing aerial

A chisel is used to separate the root from its adherence to the trunk

The aerial is repositioned to the right side of the trunk

Close view showing moss added to the base of the aerial to help promote new hair roots to form

Young root emerging after only two weeks

The moved aerial is wrapped with sphagnum moss and placed into the soil. Within two weeks a new hair root is already formed. The repositioned aerial is now a permanent fixture of the design.

Twisting and turning design

This is an exercise in bonsai creation that is just for fun. The plant is a Ficus salicaria, Willow Leaf fig, grown from a root cutting. This was a very long root, perhaps 2 feet in length. Foliage has sprouted at the cut end but how to design a tree out of it?

One possibility is to place a lot of wire on it and to twist and turn and bend until the trunk is quite contorted. The result is as you see. The foliage canopy will need shaping but for now it is being left untouched to allow the trunk to grow and to hold the shape we have set into it with the wire. Literati or bunjin is the closest shape or style grouping in which this might fall.

I perhaps may change my mind and move the trunk into another shape.

Any thoughts?

The root cutting before it was shaped.

After wiring and twisting a shape emerges

Or is this shape more pleasing?

Another possible shape

Bonsaihunk’s Blog

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Welcome to my Blog.

I hope to post information on growing figs and other tropicals as bonsai. Most of the information will be directed to growers who are keeping their plants indoors for most or all of the year. However, there will also be information useful to bonsai growers of tropicals and sub-tropicals growing out of doors.

Bonsaihunk's Blog

Fig trees and tropicals as bonsai

Monthly Archives: November 2014

Exposed root styles

Five years development with a fig

Splitting a fig into two future bonsai trees

Which side do you like the best?

Ficus burtt-davyi

Windswept style

Ficus virens, the White or Spotted Fig

Moving An Aerial Root

Twisting and turning design

Bonsaihunk’s Blog