Ficus - home care, ficus diseases

Ficus is one of the most popular indoor plants. The main reasons for this choice of gardeners is the unpretentiousness of the plant, its beautiful appearance and useful properties that the flower has.

​​Ficus transplant after purchase in a pot

Indoor or decorative flowers do not require complicated care. Following a few tips, it is possible to grow a healthy and tall tree. The rules for the care of ficus depend on the variety, so you should find out when buying who the plant belongs to. For example, variegated slightly differ in leaving from smooth-leafed.

Ficus flower

After purchase, the plant must be transplanted. If you do not do it on time, the flower may stop in growth and development, and soon die completely.

What you need for landing

For landing you will need:

• Pot. It can be plastic, ceramic or wood. The new pot should be 4-5 cm larger than the old one to the edge.
• Drainage lining. Do not miss this factor, because with the help of drainage, excess water does not accumulate at the bottom and prevents the process of rotting of the root system. Any improvised means are suitable for lining: ordinary expanded clay, pebbles, finely broken brick, even foam balls.
• The soil. Soil for ficus is sold as a ready-made mixture in flower shops, it is filled with the necessary minerals and elements for the development of the flower.

Drainage for indoor plants

How to choose the best place

In the wild, ficus grows in the warm corners of our planet, mainly in Indonesia, Africa, off the coast of the Pacific and Indian oceans. Home plants, like their tropical relatives, prefer to grow on the sunny side. At home, the flowering process does not occur.

Optimal place for the plant:

• warm
• bright and sunny;
• spacious.

In the hot season, you can take the flower out onto the street or balcony, where it will be under blackout. The sun will fill the leaves with color and give them color.

Ficus with dark green leaves, for example rubber-bearing, more resistant to temperature and light changes. While the dwarf species loses its motley color and suffers quite hard to weather changes.

Step-by-step landing process

Complete care consists in watering, top dressing, temperature and light conditions, transplanting. A suitable period for transplantation is called early spring. In the period up to 3 weeks after the manipulations, the ficus can throw off all its leaves, so it responds to stress. This is an absolutely normal condition for him.

In order for the ficus to less endure the adaptation process, it is covered with a plastic bag. This method will create a greenhouse effect and the plant will be more comfortable.

How to plant ficus, step by step instructions:

1. Moisten the soil about 24 hours before transplanting.
2. At the bottom of the pot, pour the drainage mixture (expanded clay, pebbles) into a layer of no higher than 2 cm.
3. Sprinkle with a small amount of soil prepared in advance.
4. Remove the flower from the old pot carefully and slowly. To speed up the process, you can tap on the walls of the pot.
5. Carefully consider the ficus root. Only healthy roots can be transplanted. Injured areas can be covered with charcoal dust.
6. Gently plant the flower in a new pot.
7. Sprinkle on the sides with the required amount of soil.
8. Lightly water the soil itself, without falling onto the plant, with warm, settled water.
9. Put ficus in a bright and warm room.

All flowers are useful transplant every 3-4 years. This is a prerequisite for longevity, health, growth and development of any indoor flower. In spring and autumn, you need to do top dressing to enhance growth and health.

The process of transplanting ficus into a new pot

Ficus propagation

Ficuses are of different types - Rubber, Benjamin, Elastic, Lyrovidny, Binnedika. Each variety can be propagated in two ways: by cuttings and growing from a leaf. Before starting the process of growing a new flower, experts recommend paying attention to some comments:

• choose the warm season - late spring or summer is perfect;
• the newly planted plant is put in the shade, because it does not tolerate a large amount of sunlight;
• Before carrying out the cuttings, you need to know that young shoots do not root.

Propagation by cuttings

You can use cuttings from the middle of the shoot or the top. In order to separate the stalk from the main stem, it is better to use a sharp blade. It is pre-sterilized.

You can cut any length of the handle, but the presence of an internode is a prerequisite. Without this, a new sheet will not be able to appear. The optimal size of the ficus shank varies from 11 to 15 cm. It can have from 5 to 7 leaves. A stalk can take root in water or in the ground.

The process with the finished root system

The process of reproduction in water:

1. Thoroughly wash the edge of the stem from milky juice under running cool water. This juice can prevent the quick rooting of ficus.
2. Dip the tip of the handle into a bottle of warm, clear water. Leaflets should not touch water.
3. In this position, the stalk should be 2-3 weeks in a sunny place.
4. When the first roots appear, the plant is transplanted into the prepared soil. Water lightly.

After 3 weeks, the first sprout will be visible. The appendage preparing for planting can be placed in a tall pot with a thin neck.

Rooting the cuttings in the ground:

1. As in the previous case, the slice from the milk juice is thoroughly washed under running water.
2. Let the edge dry for 30-40 minutes.
3. Several holes are made in a plastic cup.
4. Planted and covered with earth to the neck. To accelerate rooting, you can plant a sprout in the purchased soil - soil mixture.
5. Watering is not necessary. Top cover with a plastic bag.

The first leaves will appear within 3-4 weeks after planting.

Leaf cultivation

There are two ways to grow a full ficus from a leaf:

• grow the root system in water;
• land immediately with soil.

The first way to properly plant ficus is the easiest and most working. In this case, the stem is placed in water so that it does not touch the leaf itself. For a quick effect, you can drip a few drops of a growth accelerator for ficus.

After 2 weeks, the first roots will begin to appear. Planting them right away is not worth it. They may not develop in the ground, but simply fester. Therefore, 1.5-2 cm of the root should be grown, and then transplanted into loose soil.

Leaf rooted in water

The second method takes longer. This method consists in planting only the cut leaf immediately into the ground. Experienced flower growers recommend holding the stem in water with a growth activator for at least 12 hours before planting. If there is no time to wait, you can add the activator in powder form immediately to the soil.

The leaf is wrapped and lightly tied with tape or thread. A wooden stick is inserted into the formed tube as a support. Immerse the stalk in the ground along with the kidney. After 3-5 weeks, the stepson will begin to develop.

Ficus: home care

How to care for ficus at home correctly? This flower loves warmth, good lighting and constantly moistened ground. It’s easy to please him.

How to water ficus

Ficus water consumption varies depending on such factors: weather conditions, season, plant age, soil condition, level and phase of development, the presence of diseases.

In the summer, the remaining water, which the glass through the drainage, is left in the pan. In winter, on the contrary, the liquid is drained.

Dust and dirt deposits on large leaves of ficus, after watering you should always wipe them.

Spraying is an easy way to cleanse the leaves.

Top dressing

Rapid growth in plants begins from the beginning of spring and continues until mid-autumn. At this time, ficus is fertilized every 15-17 days. You need to alternate mineral and complex additives. Thus, in a month the flower will receive both one and the second. In flower shops, a huge selection of organic fertilizers for ficus.

It is possible to water with various kinds of additives only soil, it is forbidden to hit the foliage. Such mixtures can leave burns on the outside of the leaf.

Feeding only transplanted or new flowers is not recommended. The soil contains a sufficient amount of trace elements, glut will only do harm.

Young flowers, during their active growth, are fed with fertilizers with a high nitrogen content. It promotes landscaping and color saturation.

Winter preparations

Ficus is a tropical plant that is used to a warm, even hot climate. The harsh winters of Russia are difficult for them to bear. Care in the colder months of the year should be different.

During the heating period, the humidity in the room decreases, this can adversely affect the general condition of the ficus. To increase humidity, a portable humidifier is installed in the room with the plant. His work will be useful not only to ficus, but also to man.

Freezing is a common problem for gardeners in the winter. Any flowers should be removed from the floor and moved to the insulated window sills.

Ficus on the windowsill

If the tree is tall, then the pot with soil is insulated. To do this, you can put newspapers, magazines, polystyrene. The goal is to protect the roots from freezing.

Draft is another cause of plant death. The slightest flow of cold air can have a detrimental effect on the ficus.

It is worth paying attention that the leaves do not touch cold surfaces, the glass of windows. The result will be twisting of the leaf, suppuration and death of the whole flower.

Diseases and pests of ficus

Ficus does not require special care. But in case of non-observance of the above rules, the flower may wither or dry. Diseases in ficus can occur as a result of improper care, fungal infections, infection by insects.

Short list of diseases:

1. Powdery mildew - a common disease characterized by white dust on the leaves, which can be washed off with soapy water. In the developmental stage, the flower is completely affected and discards the leaves.
2. Cercosporosis is a fungal disease. A sign of infection is brown and black spots on the wrong side of the leaf, and the cause is increased humidity.
3. Scale is an insect that infects and eats indoor plants.

Leaves affected by Cercosporosis

Why do ficus leaves turn yellow

Leaves lose their natural green tint for the following reasons:

1. If the lighting rules are not followed.
2. If the air in the room is dry for a long time.
3. Sunburn.
4. Lack of nutrient fertilizers. Old leaves turn yellow, and new leaves fall off.
5. The soil is too wet. The flower is simply flooded and the leaves begin to rot.
6. In ficuses, foliage may turn yellow - this is normal.

Most often, it is enough to eliminate the cause so that the leaves cease to turn yellow.

How to crop ficus so it is fluffy

Trimming ficuses helps make the crown grow beautiful and voluminous. This is a delicate matter, so all instruments used must be sterile. Before you begin to form a crown, you need to carefully study the general appearance of the ficus.

Cutting off apical shoots stimulates the development of lateral buds. Only need to be cut off above the bud, exactly a young stem. If the stem is thick, it is better to cut it at an angle.

Juice will flow out of the wound, wipe it with a damp and clean cloth until it stops. After sprinkled with a slice of charcoal.

With proper and high-quality care, ficus will give juicy leaves that will decorate the interior, will delight the eye and help with its useful functions. It is the ficus that has the ability to filter air, processing it into sugar and amino acids. Therefore, it will not only give pleasure with its beautiful view, but will also bring many benefits.