Ficus Alii water rooted cuttings

[BrazilianMoistWood]

These are two ficus cuttings I took from my grandmothers tree I want to say a month or two ago. She wasn’t sure what kind it was, I did some research and beleive it’s ficus alii, please correct me if I’m mistaken! I plan to let one grow free


I put them both into glass jars and filled with water, and I gave one a couple drops of liquid rooting hormone in its jar just to compare. They both started rooting about the same time but the one without (rooting hormone) seemed to grow roots quicker than the one with but the one with grew more roots.

later the one with seemed to get roots turning brown and I just assumed it was because the roots were more mature. Watched some YouTube videos and turns out it was root rot! So I started changing the water more often and it’s coming back!

I read somewhere that hydrogen peroxide helps fight against root rot but I’ve only seen it used in potted plants when watering but not added to water irrigation.


so, 2 questions I have;

1. Am I safe to pot these cuttings with the amount of roots provided or should I wait until root rot is 100% gone

2. Is it safe to put hydrogen peroxide into the jar with roots and if so how much?

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

I’m assuming that the one with used more oxygen as it was creating more roots drawing more oxygen. Once oxygen started getting low it slowed growth and caused root rot.. one has 4 roots including the high one, and the other has closer to 12-13 at the base but not near the length or amount of feeder roots as the other. First to photos had root root hormone. They were both on the same schedule.

 

[hinmo24t]

i think those are ready to be potted, nice job with the propagation

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

Going to pot today, what would be a good mix to use? Should do a nursery mix to start?

 

[HorseloverFat]

Going to pot today, what would be a good mix to use? Should do a nursery mix to start?

My ficus just get inorganic “bonsai” soil..

But my experiences in potting something up that HAS thrown roots in water is slightly different..... it will “droop” for a period to try to convince you that it’s dying... it’s probably NOT dying...

I would go a little more organic/water retentive when potting them FROM “water prop” (this is what I do with rosemary and serissa).. but a more “snug” pot.. then plan an up-pot at the end of season into your standard inorganic.. this is just what I would do.

Unless it will live as a “decorative houseplant” which is TOTALLY cool.. it would just SLIGHTLY change my $.02

 

[luvinthemountains]

Alii is one of the most beautiful ficus, in my opinion, and you have a great start there. I do not want to discourage you, but the only f. alii/maclellandi bonsai I have seen that I liked were quite large. The leaves are just difficult to reduce to a believable scale, and in Ontario unless you can provide a lot of supplemental light and humidity these cuttings will take may years to get to the size that I think you would need.

I agree you should pot these right away. Consumer-grade hydrogen peroxide is typically diluted to 3% anyway, so adding it to your water would be pointless, and getting the cuttings out of water is what they need anyway. Be careful when potting up, as those white fleshy roots will be fragile - somewhat like new aerial roots. It might not be a bad idea to water the roots of the one with root rot after potting, with 3% hydrogen peroxide.

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

would this work for this season?

saying to put it into a snugger pot, I have a 6” and a 4”, 6” looks too big and 4” looks too small and I was hoping to put this rock under it to help thicken the trunk

If it takes a long time to grow that’s ok, I’m only 23. Not that great at styling anyways so it’s the effort that counts

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

The Miracle Grow Potting Mix will be fine for the first years. I would go with the larger pots. The rock is not really necessary, in of itself the rock does not thicken the trunk.

Your Ficus does indeed look like Ficus alii. The only time I've encountered this species is at the Missouri Botanic Garden in Saint Louis Missouri, USA. It is indeed beautiful species. @luvinthemountains is likely correct in his recommendation to plan on a fairly large tree to get proportions correct for bonsai. I would plan on over one meter. It will take time.

This is a beautiful species, I wish it was more readily available in the USA.

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

I would go with the larger pots. The rock is not really necessary, in of itself the rock does not thicken the trunk.

I ended up going with the bigger pots.

the thought process of the rock is kinda the same way a shallow pot forces roots to grow out and pull the trunk instead of down. The roots will do what they want and may push the stone down or push the tree up. Just Curious to see what happens really!

ok that’s good to know, sounds like a life project then

 

[penumbra]

Consumer-grade hydrogen peroxide is typically diluted to 3% anyway

Still potent stuff. I would use 10% peroxide (3% consumer grade) in water. It will help curb pathogens and increase oxygen. I use is very regularly. Pure peroxide is not available anywhere except maybe in the military or possibly in research. Pure hydrogen peroxide is extremely flammable and explosive and has been used in rocket fuel.

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

Never added an after photo!

I was having a hard time getting them to stand straight with their lob sided foliage, thats

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Still potent stuff. I would use 10% peroxide (3% consumer grade) in water. It will help curb pathogens and increase oxygen. I use is very regularly. Pure peroxide is not available anywhere except maybe in the military or possibly in research. Pure hydrogen peroxide is extremely flammable and explosive and has been used in rocket fuel.

The box store, pharmacy, first aid quality peroxide is 3 % active. Vast majority of plants can soak in it with zero damage to live tissue. Undiluted, it kills a wide array of bacteria,, and "water molds", yeasts, and various protozoans. It normally does not affect mycorrhizal fungi. It will kill many of the blue-green algae, and brown algae,.

You can not have "pure" hydrogen peroxide in liquid form. It must exist as a water based solution. There is an equilibrium between water and peroxide that limits concentration. Maximum concentration possible is roughly 35% active. There is a product sold for commercial public swimming pools, commercial greenhouse use, and industrial applications that is 33% active. Zertol is one brand name sold for greenhouse use. It is somewhat dangerous to handle. Should any splash in one's eyes there could be permanent scarring. It will burn your skin on contact. But if one follows good safety measures handling it, it is more cost effective than buying hundreds of bottles of 3% peroxide bottles from Costco or Walmart.

I've used Zertol in the past. Safety googles are mandatory for eye protection, and gloves, but otherwise it is pretty easy to use just dilute 10 to 1 and you are at box store pharmacy concentration.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Never added an after photo!
View attachment 363611
I was having a hard time getting them to stand straight with their lob sided foliage, thats

Nice, Looking healthy.

I would have potted each cutting separately. Simply because years down the road, the roots will tangle and fuse, making separating the two trunks near impossible. The pot you chose is "just fine" for a single cutting. This will become a robust plant with time.

If they were mine, I would separate them soon, but you can wait until next year to separate them if you want.

 

[luvinthemountains]

I wish it was more readily available in the USA.

I assume you mean readily available as specimen sized trees? I do see f. alii pretty often as houseplants. If they are difficult to get in your area, I would be happy to send you a cutting, but again developing a large tree from a cutting in your area will take a looong time.

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

Nice, Looking healthy.

I would have potted each cutting separately. Simply because years down the road, the roots will tangle and fuse, making separating the two trunks near impossible. The pot you chose is "just fine" for a single cutting. This will become a robust plant with time.

If they were mine, I would separate them soon, but you can wait until next year to separate them if you want.

They are both potted in individual 6” containers but I have them in that outer pot so they don’t soak/stain the windowsill, only had one single pot left so had to place them side by side. Still in nursery mode, will transfer one to bonsai soil and pot either next year or year after amd keep one as a house plant

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

Better view of the setup here

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Ah, I had assumed they were in the same pot. The set up is looking good.

@luvinthemountains - thanks for the offer. I actually don't have room for more tropicals. I got my one Ficus, and it is all I need. I just have not seen many F. alii for sale. Perhaps it was because I was not looking. Saw a striking example at the Missouri Botanic Garden, and that was the only place I recalled seeing the species. But I never sought them out. So I will take your word for it that it is fairly widely available even if it is not common.

So thank you for the offer, but I probably won't be taking you up on it.

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

I think they are happy! Pushing new growth, one more than the other but still progress!

 

[BrazilianMoistWood]

Just a quick update, lots of new growth for these future (30 years) bonsai lol