Need some help with IDs, pruning, and treatment

13 years ago

I was "gifted" these mostly stressed plants. Don't really know anything about them, but would like to get them in good shape. I would say they all need repotted, which I can handle (bought supplies today), but most of them seem quite overgrown and could use a good prune as well. Couple have some sort of pest, as well - any help with treatment would help.

1) One of the few I have a decent idea on. Some sort of ficus. Has a very interesting root system. I would love to prune this way down, if possible, and show off the cool roots in a shallower pot. It's about 6' tall.

2) No clue on the one - looks like it sends roots out and down towards the soil?

3) This one looks the best out of all of them. Would still like to prune it down to a more suitable size. It's about 7'.

4) A Schefflera, I think. This is one with a pest - you can see it in the second photo. The brown spots come off when you rub it.

5)Another big one that's sparse, as far as leaves go. Oversized and barren.

6) This one's in the worst shape. Very little foliage, and very tall. Second shot's a close-up of the leaves.

Any help that can be given is greatly appreciated.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (9)

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years ago
Ficus benjamina
a philodendron
Ficus elastica
a schefflera
another schefflera
unsure about the last plant - others will recognize it

Al
unprofessional
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks - just having the IDs helps a lot.
Related Discussions
Neglected Schefflera in need of some help (prune/repot/etc)
Q
Comments (30)
Hello again everyone, I have completed my repotting and would like to share a couple pictures. Here's a pic of the roots; as you can see the spiraling of the roots had this guy very pot bound (I was shocked to see so few roots overall however): Here's the finished plant: So I removed the plant from it's old pot and got to chopsticking. The dirt removed easily and was definitely very powdery (seemed like pretty much 100% peat moss and very fine). After working all of the old substrate out I washed the roots gently to remove anything trapped. Then I trimmed the roots, and applied a thin coat of rooting hormone to the cut root ends. I mixed a 25/75 orchid mix/ OilDri substrate, put a thin layer of this in the pot, made a little mound of substrate at the center (after finishing I wish I would have made it a bit higher in the center), and then proceeded to add the rest and work it around well. Then I gently submerged the pot in water for 10-15 minutes, then let it drain. As you can see in the final pic I have a weight on the opposite side that the plant is leaning. While it wasn't going to fall on it's own, I decided that since I didn't anchor the plant I'll just keep a bit of weight on this side for a couple weeks until I'm confident new roots have formed to firmly hold the plant. I hadn't originally planned to have the plant tilted, but the combination of that and my pruning has it a bit less balanced than I would like. In the future I would have anchored the roots, but live and learn. :) Thanks again everyone for your help and advice, and I'll report back to this post in a couple of weeks, hopefully with good results and 3 new plants to be trained as actual bonsai from the cuttings!
...See More
Need help with pruning azaleas with some sort of disease
Q
Comments (2)
First, it's fine to prune and shape your azaleas so they are not obscuring your window, but be forewarned that these may not be the right plants for that site...they are going to grow again and eventually be back at the same height that is displeasing you now. Prune immediately after bloom so as not to spoil this years display. Is there something different about the azalea on the end that would cause it to not thrive like the others? More sun, less water? Spider mites can often be controlled, or reduced in numbers, by frequent blasts from the hose, several days in a row, dislodging them and spoiling their preference for dry conditions. Pruning congested plants would make that easier to achieve. Last, the swollen, malformed leaves - azalea leaf gall. If you have just the few you describe, hand pick and dispose of them. Heavier infections may respond to a fungicide spray just as leaves begin to unfurl, but it doesn't sound like you have enough of a problem to warrant spraying. This is common following a wet spring, your post will probably be the first of several this season. :) Here is a link that might be useful: Azalea leaf gall
...See More
Need help ID'ing some native TN plants
Q
Comments (3)
I love wildflowers. I am still discovering blooms I have never seen before here at my place after nearly twenty years. I don't know any of the names but am always pleasantly surprised.
...See More
Need help ID'ing flower, and some bugs :)
Q
Comments (3)
Actually, the fruit of Passion Vine is highly edible -- you've just picked it too soon. Another common name for the vine is Wild Apricot, which should give you some idea of the general taste of the ripe fruit. When it's ripe the skin pales to a soft yellow green and the flesh will be quite soft. The ripe seeds inside will be dark. The black bug might be a leaf footed bug. They suck sap, but don't seem to do too much damage in my garden, unlike their relative the squash bug, which pretty much destroys my squash plantings every year. Marty Here is a link that might be useful: Leaf Footed Bug
...See More
unprofessional
Original Author
13 years ago
The F. benjamina is now about a foot and a half tall, 3/4 of the roots are gone, and it's recovering in the shade. Hopefully it bounces back. Going to have at the F. elastica and the Scheffleras today. Not sure what to do with the Philodendron yet, or the mystery plant, though it looks so terrible a hard prune/root prune might be worth it, without even knowing what it is.
drudadunat
13 years ago
The philodendron is a philodendron selloum.
unprofessional
Original Author
13 years ago
A few updates.

Pruned the f. benjamina hard and took all but maybe 2" of roots off with a saw, then put it in 5/1/1. Here it is right after the prune:

{{gwi:36473}}

It's about a month later and it's putting out new buds daily:

{{gwi:36474}}

Still need to repot the f. elastica, but did prune it down to a better size & shape, and then pruned off all the growing tips. Here it is today:

{{gwi:36475}}

Still need to repot this one, as well, but it's probably showing the most vigor of any of them after being pruned back exceptionally hard (I didn't leave any leaves on it):

{{gwi:36476}}

The schleffera has also responded well to a hard prune, and has half a million buds:

{{gwi:36477}}
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years ago
Strong work! .... no guts - no glory!

Al
unprofessional
Original Author
13 years ago
Yeah; figured they were past the point where being conservative would do them any good. Really liking the leaf coloration on the NOID ficus (I assume from the way it bled it's a ficus, at least) - looks like it'll be a nice, attractive plant.
unprofessional
Original Author
13 years ago
One more update to give before these guys head to their winter home, indoors.

F. benjimina - the turnaround this plant has made is nearly unbelievable, especially when I look at the picture of it right after pruning. In the end, once it started budding out, I took off the few branches/leaves I had left on, so everything green you see here is completely new growth.

{{gwi:36478}}

The schleffera is very happy these days:

{{gwi:36479}}

As is the elastica, which has probably doubled its leaf count.

{{gwi:36480}}

The biggest surprise has to be how nice a plant this variegated ficus has turned out to be, from the thing that was just a few tall sticks with an occasional leaf at the start. I'm excited to see how it will develop in the future. The leaves on it are huge.

{{gwi:36481}}
calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9
13 years ago
The unnamed plant in the original posting, the last plant pictured, looks to me like a Brugmansia. Al

Need some help with IDs, pruning, and treatment

Comments (9)

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)

unprofessional
Original Author

Related Discussions

unprofessional
Original Author

drudadunat

unprofessional
Original Author

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)

unprofessional
Original Author

unprofessional
Original Author

calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Need some help with IDs, pruning, and treatment

Comments (9)

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)

unprofessionalOriginal Author

Related Discussions

unprofessionalOriginal Author

drudadunat

unprofessionalOriginal Author

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)

unprofessionalOriginal Author

unprofessionalOriginal Author

calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

unprofessional
Original Author

unprofessional
Original Author

unprofessional
Original Author

unprofessional
Original Author

unprofessional
Original Author