ficus Benjamina leaves and branches turning brown
ellenar
13 years ago
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tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years agoellenar
13 years agoRelated Discussions
Ficus Nitida leaves turning brown
Comments (1)Hi goldie11, Ficus nitida provide dense shade but as you are aware, are easily damaged by cold temperatures. Because the symptoms you describe appeared before this year's freeze you could have some other issue besides the frost damage. Have you used any herbicides near this tree? Have you done any remodeling or excavating near the tree like adding a patio or sidewalk? You may need to do a little detective work to see if something seems suspicious. For now just provide good deep irrigation and don't apply any more fertilizer. Too much can cause salt burn which causes brown, dry edges on leaves. Don't water too often - a good soaking at the drip line once every 10 days to 2 weeks in summer is ideal. The holes you see on the trunk are most likely caused by sapsuckers. They drill or peck regularly spaced holes around a branch or trunk usually in straight rows or lines. The holes from borer damage will be irregularly spaced and are often accompanied by 'frass', a sawdust-like material that's basically digested wood. I hope this helps. Here's a great resource from the U of A. Besides disease symptoms, it has a section on cultural problems like nutrient issues and salt burn. Here is a link that might be useful: Diseases of Urban Plants in Arizona...See MoreFicus Benjamina: entire branches are drying out and dying
Comments (2)Have you repotted the fig. The roots grow quickly and fill the pot. Also if it is standing in water in the bottom of the pot that can cause root rot. Check for scale also. they are small brown round spots in corners of branches. They suck and kill. Penny...See MoreFicus benjamina has lost over 60% of its leaves since September. Help!
Comments (5)You should put the tree right in front of the large southern facing window. Light coming through the window, even a few feet away is much less intense than right in front of it. I'd place the tree right next to that wooden chair so the leaves are a few inches from that window. Rotate the tree 1/4 turns weekly. as far as pruning, all you're doing here is cutting off the dead parts. scratch a small amount of bark, if it's dead, follow the branch back and keep scratching every inch or so till you see green. Cut the obvious dead branches off. roots should be firm and white to tan. If they are dark and mushy, they've rotted. Bottom line, three tree has been over watered. It may be in too large of a pot so that the soil doesn't dry enough. Remove it from the pot and check to see how wet the soil is at the bottom. Ficus seem to be able to handle drought much better then being over watered. this may give you an idea about their light requirements. Mine, pictured below, is right in front of a southern window with the addition of five 250w lights above and it still could use much more light. I place mine outside in full direct sun from Memorial Day until mid September when temps start to drop. That's the only time it thrives. The rest of the year is just tolerates. I've cut it back pretty heavily since September when it came inside. Outside last summer it was MUCH fuller: the tree above was not much larger than yours prior to being placed outside for the summer. It literally grew a few feet in every direction and produced probably 1000 extra leaves....See MoreFiddle leaf fig (Ficus Lyrata) leaves turning brown
Comments (6)Was it in full direct sun in its former life or in the shade? Light coming through glass is filtered even if the glass is clear, so if got significant outdoor sunlight befdore you got it, overwatering seems more likely than sunburn. So, how do you water? Does the pot have a drain hole? The brown patches look just like the photos in the other FLF threads on the first page of this forum (and dozens more on the pages after that), almost every one of which is due do overwatering, so don't feel like you're the first person to have the issue. I almost feel like starting a thread aimed at new FLF owners! Anyhow, the goal is to control soil moisture so the roots don't die from drought or suffocate from lack of oxygen in saturated soils. I'll bet the soil in that pot is very fine, peaty, water retentive potting soil that stays saturated in the bottom half of the pot long after the top inch or two is bone dry. The good news is that there's an easy, quick and reliable way to check soil moisture and prevent any more drowned roots. Here's a thread about caring for sick plants that will explain what's going on, and here's an excerpt from a post by tapla (Al) specifically about when and how to water. Try his method and your plant will love it. And don't hesitate to ask more questions! "You can tell you've watered too much (or too little - the response is the same - a drought response) when leaves start to turn yellow or you begin to see nutritional deficiencies created by poor root metabolism (usually N and Ca are first evident). You can prevent overwatering by A) testing the soil deep in the container with a wood dowel ... wet & cool - do not water, dry - water. B) feeling the wick & only watering when it's dry C) feel the soil at the drain hole & only water when it feels dry there. Soils feel dry to our touch when they still have 40-45% moisture content. Plants, however, can still extract water from soils until they dry down to about 25-30%, so there is still around a 15% cush in that plants can still absorb considerable moisture after soils first feel dry to us. Water slowly until the soil is saturated but no water (or very little water) has exited the pot drain. Wait 10-15 minutes and water again so at least 15-20% of the volume of water used ion both applications flushes out the accumulating salts. After the pot stops draining, you can return it to its normal spot and arrangmt. Wait until time to water again & repeat the routine."...See Moreellenar
13 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years agothisisme
13 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years agoellenar
13 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years agoellenar
13 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years agoellenar
13 years agotapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
13 years agokasia888
11 years agoharris paul
5 years agoHU-123676048
3 years ago
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ellenarOriginal Author