I hope my concern is for naught and the roots weren't as dry as they look in the picture. It's important to keep the roots moist at all times while working on them. I usually work quickly to remove as much soil as I can in a minute or so, then complete the work over a tub of water so I can keep dipping the roots in water as I work. If the roots DID get too dry and you lost most of the fine roots, which are the most important, I don't think your tree will die, but it's likely to defoliate. If you DID keep the roots moist during the repot, disregard what I said or let it serve as reinforcement for when you embark on your next adventure. ;-) The first time is always the hardest. Best luck - keep us posted! Al

It's common to paint/stain palm tree trunks in Florida!!! Here is a paint suggested by my local garden shop in Palm Beach County and sold by Benjamin Moore: Brand: Sikkens Wood Finishes, Cetol 23 Plus, Translucent Satin Wood Top Coat. I have two large Sylvester Palm Trees which, over the years, have developed discolored trunks due to multiple pruning events. Therefore, I selected the Teak color. It has a medium tint, but it is not so dark it will channel sunlight to the trunk and hurt it. I will take before/after pictures. My landscaper suggested I paint the trees. I did not see anything on the internet on this topic, so that is why I decided to post. Here is a link that might be useful: Sikkens This post was edited by cc179 on Tue, Sep 17, 13 at 17:54

Hi, Gina - thank you for the kind words. I now have it in a south facing window, that is mostly covered by a light filtering shade, 4 feet from a west facing window in a fairly bright room, and next to a humidifier. So it's sort of between a S and W window? I wondered if I did a full repot and root trim if I could possibly put it in a slightly smaller pot? I plan to use a mixture of 1:1:1 potting soil, perlite, and repti-bark, and possible put some empty bottles in the bottom as ballast. Yes, you'll be able to put it in a smaller pot after the root reduction, but do make sure you don't cut yourself short insofar as space for roots to run, given you'll be adding ballast. I also hoped to turn it into a standard or “mother/daughter”. It has 6 stems that all seem to be from the same plant and I wonder what the best way to convert it would be? A mother/daughter arrangement would look like the larger tree hovers protectively over the daughter tree. When you select the two trees, be sure the larger doesn't dirsctly overhang the smaller and shade it out. The two should be offset a bit. This can usually be accomplished best by allowing the two trunk lines to be directly above each other for a distance before the daughter's trunk turns toward you. This arrangement has a front and a back for viewing purposes, but it should be rotated regularly so all sides get their share of light. Remove the surplus stems.branches unnecessary to the composition by pruning them back to the trunk. Start them as cuttings if you like. I read about removing stems to accomplish this but also about leaving stems, because those leaves have value to the plant, while you focus on strengthening one stem or binding a few together? Honestly, I just read so much information at once in the past couple days that I am a little overwhelmed :) Not pertinent at this point - save that for later. I would like to give it the correct soil and conditions for it to thrive. I think you can expect good results with what you proposed above, and the ballast will definitely work in your favor. Is it too late for a repot and root pruning in zone 7b? If there was no pressure to get the plant out of the pot/soil it's in now, I'd probably wait. If you think the combination has potential to dump a serious problem before next spring, go ahead and repot. It would be best if, after the repot, the plant could be sited outdoors in dappled or open shade and out of wind while it recovers. You have a longer growing season than I do and I set Aug 1 as my last repot date for Ficus ..... but all my trees are outdoors, which makes a very significant difference. Start fertilizing when you're seeing new growth. Make sure you keep the roots WET for the entire duration of the repotting session. Have everything ready to go before you start. Add a wick to the pot too, if you like. Questions? Al

I've inherited a FLF and not sure what to do. It has about 12 'trunks' or maybe they are called stems, in one pot. Hi, Jil. Either term is appropriate. I've started to make cuttings of some of the smaller ones. What should I do with the remaining? I'm not cracking wise when I say, "Whatever you want to do with them". Among your options are more cuttings, leave them as part of a multi-tree/trunk/stem composition, air-layer them, remove and discard. They look flexible enough that you could braid or plait several for one planting, too ...... not sure what you're up for? Also, it looks like it really needs to be repotted but not sure if I should re-pot all the trunks or...? I think it's pretty much a plant one - plant all kind of a situation. Let me know what you decide and I'll help if you need it. And, the diameter of these stems/trunks are not very large at all. Ken's right in suggesting lack of light has been a tong term limitation for the planting, but that can be resolved by positioning it in a better spot indoors, and even growing it outdoors in summer. Thank you so much for your replies and answers to so many of these questions. You're welcome. I've been reading the forums but haven't found an answer yet to this type of issue. No doubt we'll be able to figure out something that works for you. What do you have in mind, insofar as what you want the planting(s) to look like eventually? Al