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Help with possible problem

11 years ago

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum and bonsai. I got this tiger bar ficus about a month ago. Now it has some strange mottling on some of the leaves. Otherwise, it seems fine. I am hoping it isn't mosaic virus, so if anyone has seen this before any advice or help would be great.

The tree has changed environments since I got it. They had it outside & over-watered it. Since I got it its been indoor under fluorescent lighting. Since the soil was so wet I've only had to water it once but I use distilled water.

Thanks for any help.

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Comments (6)

User
11 years ago
Hi, don't use distilled water, all the micronutrients (chemicals) and everything else is gone and may be needed. You can use tap water (or collected) if you can drink it.
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paulad449
Original Author
11 years ago
Thank you. I was using tap water but it was leaving deposits on the pots so I switched. But I'll go back now.

I was just worried it was mosaic, especially since this ficus is near 16 other plants!

Appreciate your help.

Danielle
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tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
11 years ago
Hi, Danielle - Distilled water, water from a dehumidifier, snowmelt, or water filtered through a reverse osmosis filter are all healthy choices for your plants. Any of those choices allow you to know exactly what ratio of nutrients you're supplying your plant - with no guessing, and that is a good thing.

What are you using for fertilizer? It's very likely the condition is related to over-watering or the recent reduction in light. Ask, if you want the technical reasons for that conclusion. I'm not sure how deep you want to get into the plant's care, but I have a good number of Ficus bonsai (25?), all of which I manage to keep very healthy, so I'm pretty sure I could offer you some guidance if you're still around.

Al
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paulad449
Original Author
11 years ago
Hi Al,

Thanks for commenting. Please give all the technical reasons you want. I need all the help I can get.

I've had the tiger bark ficus for almost a month. It was extremely over-watered at the place I bought it, so you're right there. I just repotted it in your gritty mix. I haven't fertilized yet, as I'm waiting for my foliage pro to be delivered.

I was worried it had mosaic, when I started seeing the mottled leaves. It still has a few of those but there are no deformed leaves, which was noted when I was researching the virus.

In any event - in the hope that it's just chlorosis I did get Bonide liquid iron today. Since you obviously have experience with ficus, what would you suggest I do next? Use the Iron or wait for the foliage pro?

Thank you for any help you can give!
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thehodge
11 years ago
Another thing about ficus is they cant get too much sun . I leave mine out on the porch during the summer and it does great with only 3 hours of direct sunlight. I dont know for sure but its possible that its broad fleshy leaves are getting too much light from your flourecent light.
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thehodge
11 years ago
Another thing about ficus is they cant get too much sun . I leave mine out on the porch during the summer and it does great with only 3 hours of direct sunlight. I dont know for sure but its possible that its broad fleshy leaves are getting too much light from your flourecent light.
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