braided ficus benjamina?

Ok, so im a noob to bonsai. I have a 3 trunk ficus. I dont like the forest look. What do u think about a braided trunk ficus? It is young and the trunks are still very pliable. And after i did the braided trunk, what else could i do? Windswept? Is that too much going on in one tree? Comments?

You could easily fuse the trunks, but I don't think I'd aim for a "braided" kind of look, unless that's what you like personally. If you did go that way, though, windswept wouldn't suit that kind of look.


Here's a link to fusing Ficus trunks:
http://bonsaihunk.us/ficusforum/FicusTechniques/FigTechnique2.html

Redwood Ryan said:

You could easily fuse the trunks, but I don't think I'd aim for a "braided" kind of look, unless that's what you like personally. If you did go that way, though, windswept wouldn't suit that kind of look.


Here's a link to fusing Ficus trunks:
http://bonsaihunk.us/ficusforum/FicusTechniques/FigTechnique2.html

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That would be work. I just know i dont like the multiple trunks.

Thanks!

Edit to remove asking you to tell me how to fuse

Squeaker said:

That would be work. I just know i dont like the multiple trunks. How do i fuse them? Product reccomendations and step by step tutorial or link to a good site would be nice, if you dont mind :-}

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Well the link I provided does show a little bit of how to do it. All you do is place the trees closely together then wrap with something like electrical tape (sticky side out) and let the trees grow wild.

Redwood Ryan said:

Well the link I provided does show a little bit of how to do it. All you do is place the trees closely together then wrap with something like electrical tape (sticky side out) and let the trees grow wild.

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Sorry bout that, i saw it right after i posted my reply. I think ill definately try fuseing them instead. I braided them earlier today (just before i posted this thread).... hope i didnt weave them too tight and kill them, cause it would be nice to experiment with this smaller one and if it works, i can try it out with the big one i bought. That ones real pretty and would look so nice as one big fat trunk. how many can i fuse together does it matter if theres trunks inside?

You could always twist the trunks, spreading them toward the top, with each of them contributing to the finished canopy.

if you braid them, don't forget to incorporate a golf ball...

(don't braid them)

Brian Van Fleet said:

You could always twist the trunks, spreading them toward the top, with each of them contributing to the finished canopy.

if you braid them, don't forget to incorporate a golf ball...

(don't braid them)

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Lol, thanks i unbraided them and bound them together with green floral ribbon (the non sticky stuff). How long should it take to grow together and should they be bound together until theyre fully grown together or just somewhat tacked together? I wrapped them fairly tight, the ribbon isnt stretching or anything, but its pretty tight, hope thats the right way to do it.

It will depend on how fast your trees grow. The faster they grow the faster they will fuse.
They need to be somewhat well fused before you remove the tape. The tape is forcing them to fuse.

if you click the pic, and then click it again, itll get bigger

anyway, this is my ficus. is it too tall? should i unwrap it a little further down or just let it grow and be a tall bonsai? i know its kinda scrony now, but itll grow back (i clipped off some of the branches that didnt work when i braided it ). what should i do now that i have it like this? suggestions are welcome and much appreciated. id like it to look as good as possible, right now it looks kinda funky to me. as of now, im just learning techniques, so i dont see the outcome yet. its only been like this for a couple hours, so i can unwind it, to make the trunk shorter if need be. hopefully the pot puts it into perspective, the tree is maybe 18-ish inches tall

I am a newbie just like you, but I am a bit good with plants.
It will depend on what style You want to style it as. I think???? the longer it is the longer it will take to fuse. this might be OK for a upright formal.
I like the way you wrapped the branches at different height.I think they are wrapped like that so they can be used as branches later...????
Now if I think logically (I dont know) big branches that high on the tree will not be very useful.
the branches there need to be small.
The reason you are fusing them is to create a bigger trunk, and some tapper but taping them at different height.
If you shoulf decide to use those branches later, I think I would have taped them much lower.
Leave the largest the longest...and perhaps tape the branches and wire them later, in such a manner that perhaps they can be your lowest branches.
But I will wait for experienced people to chip in. I am just reasoning here and dont know how wright I am.
So here it is some idea, for you. That will depend on how high you want you bonsai. Just remember, the higher you make it the thicker the trunk must be...1:6 ????.
divide it into 3, and put your first branch at 1/3 height. That might help You to decide at what height You want to put your first branch. Again that depends on the style you chose...

Neli said:

I am a newbie just like you, but I am a bit good with plants.
It will depend on what style You want to style it as. I think???? the longer it is the longer it will take to fuse. this might be OK for a upright formal.
I like the way you wrapped the branches at different height.I think they are wrapped like that so they can be used as branches later...????
Now if I think logically (I dont know) big branches that high on the tree will not be very useful.
the branches there need to be small.
The reason you are fusing them is to create a bigger trunk, and some tapper but taping them at different height.
If you shoulf decide to use those branches later, I think I would have taped them much lower.
Leave the largest the longest...and perhaps tape the branches and wire them later, in such a manner that perhaps they can be your lowest branches.
But I will wait for experienced people to chip in. I am just reasoning here and dont know how wright I am.

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Yay a fellow newbie Yeah, im thinking the trunks taped at different heights will eventually be branches. I was also thinking that it seemed a bit tall. From what i gather, i should leave a few leaves on the trunk when i cut it? Meaning, if i shorten the trunk, those individual trunks that i bent to make branches would have to be really long and out of proportion for a while until i get some leaves closer to the grouping of taped trunks which is now making up the one main trunk. After i get some more leaves growing closer to the trunk, i can hack away at it and shorten up the branches.... this of course is all from reading, but ive been reading alot lately, so im hoping someone will chime in

He he he! One newbie teaching another...
For what it is worth, I dont think you should leave any leaves on the trunk when fusing it. (on the fused part)
I have never done that...but I am rooting lots of ficus cutting in order to fuse them, just for fun.
You should not cut any of the trunks at the moment. Let it grow freely and fertilize it well.
I suspect when the time comes, if the trunks are not suitable for branches, you will need to cut them at trunk level aesthetically or some distance away from the trunk, depending on what you need them to be.
I dont leave any leaves on the trunks when I cut them and they all shoot/buckbud, unless there are some branches I want to keep.
I plan to try and speed the process on mine. Never seen it done but maybe it is there.
I want to use the approach grafting technique.
Cut the skin at the parts where the branches will touch, and glue them with superglue at some spots so they stay together at the correct position, before I tape them.
Hope it will work????

Neli said:

He he he! One newbie teaching another...
For what it is worth, I dont think you should leave any leaves on the trunk when fusing it. (on the fused part)
I have never done that...but I am rooting lots of ficus cutting in order to fuse them, just for fun.
You should not cut any of the trunks at the moment. Let it grow freely and fertilize it well.
I suspect when the time comes, if the trunks are not suitable for branches, you will need to cut them at trunk level aesthetically or some distance away from the trunk, depending on what you need them to be.
I dont leave any leaves on the trunks when I cut them and they all shoot/buckbud, unless there are some branches I want to keep.
I plan to try and speed the process on mine. Never seen it done but maybe it is there.
I want to use the approach grafting technique.
Cut the skin at the parts where the branches will touch, and glue them with superglue at some spots so they stay together at the correct position, before I tape them.
Hope it will work????

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I didnt mean leave leaves on the part that is in the fusing process. When i shprten the branches, do i need to leave any leaves there? Since i am using the tops of 3 individual trees as new branches for my one fused tree, if i cut all the leaves off a branch, that individual tree will have no leaves on it at all, is that okay or should i leave some there? Sorry, this is really hard to explain

Squeaker said:

I didnt mean leave leaves on the part that is in the fusing process. When i shprten the branches, do i need to leave any leaves there? Since i am using the tops of 3 individual trees as new branches for my one fused tree, if i cut all the leaves off a branch, that individual tree will have no leaves on it at all, is that okay or should i leave some there? Sorry, this is really hard to explain

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You definitely don't want to strip all the leaves off a benjamina. They will hate it and probably die.

Redwood Ryan said:

You definitely don't want to strip all the leaves off a benjamina. They will hate it and probably die.

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thankyou, thats exactly what i needed to know. i thought i had read it somewhere, but i wasnt sure.

i shortened up the trunk a bit by untaping a few inches this morning, the cup is for perspective. its pretty embarrassing to show this little "gem" off as it looks pretty rediculous at the moment but should i clip the branches down to where i leave just the set of leaves closest to the main trunk or should i let it grow out a bit before hacking away at it to shorten up those branches? and do i need to do anything in particular to get it to backbud (im assuming that means getting it to sprout leaves/branches closer to the trunk), or will it just do it on its own?

i know its pretty silly looking right now and it needs to do a bit of growing and ill need to do some pruning to get it to look right, but, am i sorta on the right track with it?

edit: oh and i havent removed the wire yet, but that kinda shows you how much tape i took off, it used to be right next to the trunk

I cut the branches of my ficus B. and leave them without any leaves, but I am in Africa...maybe here it is different. I do a trunk chop on it too, and they dont die, they back bud everywhere.

Neli said:

I cut the branches of my ficus B. and leave them without any leaves, but I am in Africa...maybe here it is different. I do a trunk chop on it too, and they dont die, they back bud everywhere.

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Location location location. That plays a big role.

Sooooo, even though it looks super goofy at the moment, should i let it grow out for a bit or shorten up the branches now leaving one or 2 leaf sets on each branch? Would shortening them up encourage more back budding closer to the trunk? Im kinda stuck in the middle, im embarrassed of it right now, but im not sure which would benefit the tree more.

Squeaker said:

Sooooo, even though it looks super goofy at the moment, should i let it grow out for a bit or shorten up the branches now leaving one or 2 leaf sets on each branch? Would shortening them up encourage more back budding closer to the trunk? Im kinda stuck in the middle, im embarrassed of it right now, but im not sure which would benefit the tree more.

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You want it to grow! You need all the branches you have for it to grow faster. You dont want it to back bud now...you want it to grow. You cut it, you will slow the growth and fusing...Let it grow! IT IS OK THE WAY IT IS.

Redwood Ryan said:

Location location location. That plays a big role.

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humidity plus high temperature...makes a big difference...I agree.
But I must admit I killed ones a FB...how dont know...but it was after trimming it....it was sick, and the leaves were dropping...then I trimmed it.