I wouldn't repot it now (unless you have good supplemental lighting & a warm spot), but I would scrap the bonsai pot (or use one considerably larger) and pot up. The tree is already seriously stressed and going into winter in a weakened state, so it won't tolerate a lot of work. Hopefully, with good light and warm temperatures, you can coax it through the winter and get it outdoors in the early summer so it can store a little energy and be able to tolerate root work in Jun and you can start chasing foliage back closer to the trunk in Jul/Aug. Flush the soil thoroughly several times to ensure soluble salt levels are slow. If you're worried about root rot, set the plant on newspaper for a few hours after you flush the soil. Add a wick to the new pot to help the soil drain (ask, if you don't understand). Tilt the pot at a 45* angle after you water to help drain excess water from the soil. Fertilize with Foliage-Pro 9-3-6 or another soluble fertilizer in the 3:1:2 ratio. 24-8-16 and 12-4-8 are other examples of 3:1:2 ratios. How often and at what rate you should fertilize depends on several factors. How well your soil drains, how robustly the plant is growing, and your watering habits are key elements. W/o some knowledge of these factors, there's no way to offer concrete advice and be sure it's favorable. You might want to inspect very carefully for insects and make SURE it's free of pests. Especially in a weakened state, indoor conditions will usually allow pest numbers to multiply much faster than when the plant is outdoors and under a careful watch by predators usually in short supply indoors. Al

I do ficus cutting all the time and they root easily. That is why I started with 2 and probably have over 20. I work with small branches and put them in sharp sand and pearlite which I keep damp. Given room they grow quickly. you might consider buying a tree and cutting it down - it will send out lots of leaves where you cut and you may get the look you want faster. Penny

Hello all, I am new to this forum, and this is my first post. I am interested in learning as much as possible about the ficus benjamina tree. What I would like to accomplish is, bonsai that can be placed in vivaruims, for the use and enjoyment of crested geckos. The geckos come from New Caledonia, offshore of Australia, and many ficus can be found in Australia as well. In naturalistic setups, cresties have shown ficus benjamina to be a favorite. They live in trees in the Wild. My thinking so far is, There needs to be a good trunk size, for support, and good branches to follow. The growth needs to be more horizontal, with a good thick canopy to hide in. Depending on the cage size, growth may be allowed more vertical. From what I have read about the root growth from healthy trees, and about how regular root care helps vigor, I was thinking it would be best to leave the trees in a pot, as opposed to planting directly in the tank. For the "ready tree", I thought a shallow bonsai pot would look nice, like the "hill " in the landscape. I was also wondering if an Unglazed clay pot would help the roots to "breath "in the more humid inviorment of a terrarium. Lastly (for now :), Ineed to figure out how to grow cuttings as quickly as possible. I'm having trouble finding older stock to work with. I have a greenhouse, but it's not heated yet, so I only have until Oct. To Grow ficus outdoors. Any questions, comments, and sharing of knowledge would be welcome, Thank you :)! Loretta

yet another pic... this shows putting pressure from finger trunks bend.. but only to soil level.. why I think it is 1 plant.