Leggy ficus

[badatusernames]

My willowleaf ficus has been getting "leggy" - long limbs with no branches. I gather this is due to a lack of light, which makes sense because I keep it indoors during the winter and have limited light beyond cheap UV lights from Amazon.

I also understand that pruning in winter is ideal.

When you see these stretchy branches in your ficus, do you remove the whole branch and start again, or do you trim it a more amenable size and wait for new growth from there?

 

[sorce]

The safest bet is cutting back Everything to the last active bud or intact leaf.

Sorce

 

[Eckhoffw]

I think the environment is your biggest factor.
supplemental lights don’t have to be expensive. I’ve remedied the same issues with an area covered by a 4’ plug in shop light ballast (2 grow tubes) and 2 6$ led grow bulbs. Total of 50$.

fertilize adequately. When plant is happier, chop to desired spot. / one node.
Of course there are other variables such as pot conditions/soil.

 

[Eckhoffw]

 

[badatusernames]

The safest bet is cutting back Everything to the last active bud or intact leaf.

Sorce

cool. that’s what i’ve been leaning towards but wanted to get some opinions before i go rambo on this thing

 

[badatusernames]

now that i’m near em i can share some photos

this one isn’t as bad but it’s pushing out some new buds now so maybe i’ll get ahead of it. this is what i took the protruding root from for the doomed mame / micro bonsai

 

[Carol 83]

My Willow leaf always looks ratty during the winter, even with new growth lights. I know it's a tropical, but seems like in the winter it wants some down time. Not sure I would do any radical pruning in the winter, when it's barely growing. Why not wait until it's back outside and growing well to hack it back?

 

[badatusernames]

My Willow leaf always looks ratty during the winter, even with new growth lights. I know it's a tropical, but seems like in the winter it wants some down time. Not sure I would do any radical pruning in the winter, when it's barely growing. Why not wait until it's back outside and growing well to hack it back?

No reason, I had just found some stuff online saying that pruning ficus during winter was actually ideal. I originally was thinking the same thing as you.

 

[sorce]

pruning ficus during winter was actually ideal

Some folks sleep em over winter so there is a spectrum, you caught one end of it.

Speaking of spectrum.....

Sorce

 

[leatherback]

I also understand that pruning in winter is ideal.

I disagree 100%

I would cut back when it has a chance to recover. Let it grow strong outside in spring. Early summer once it really has started to push, cut back. By fall it will have budded out and have a full crown of leaves. Mid-winter ficus will be at its weakest.

 

[Carol 83]

I disagree 100%

I would cut back when it has a chance to recover. Let it grow strong outside in spring. Early summer once it really has started to push, cut back. By fall it will have budded out and have a full crown of leaves. Mid-winter ficus will be at its weakest.

Kinda' what I said.

 

[badatusernames]

I disagree 100%

I would cut back when it has a chance to recover. Let it grow strong outside in spring. Early summer once it really has started to push, cut back. By fall it will have budded out and have a full crown of leaves. Mid-winter ficus will be at its weakest.

got it

i just noticed colin lewis says winter in the “bonsai survivor manual”, i imagine that’s for plants that can be outdoors all year though...

 

[Forsoothe!]

You trim it to the size you want it to be. To keep a branch the same size, trim off the tip bud.

 

[LanceMac10]

All of us cold-weather climate folk talking about tropicals!!

I'll transition to the outdoors last week of April. They'll go where the cold hardy trees were stored. A spot that gets some light and not below freezing.
They'll go out not long after that, temperature dependent. This year it snowed in May!! So out a little later than normal.
If it's warm enough to place outdoors, do your work then.



Growing season is what? Maybe four months in my area? Not much.
Think about a re-pot before anything else. Looks to have been a spell between root work.

 

[badatusernames]

All of us cold-weather climate folk talking about tropicals!!

I'll transition to the outdoors last week of April. They'll go where the cold hardy trees were stored. A spot that gets some light and not below freezing.
They'll go out not long after that, temperature dependent. This year it snowed in May!! So out a little later than normal.
If it's warm enough to place outdoors, do your work then.



Growing season is what? Maybe four months in my area? Not much.
Think about a re-pot before anything else. Looks to have been a spell between root work.

yeah, the one i posted the full picture of needs repotting this year for sure. covid made it tough to get out and find a pot for it.

the other i posted a closeup of, well, i think it was last winter my cat knocked it off a shelf and broke the pot so it was thrown in a temporary one, and was moved to a better one in spring, but root work was limited. i’m debating if i can get away with addressing that this year once it gets some more vigor outside. i think there’s a fairly severe cut im going be wanting to make when i do it next...

 

[amcoffeegirl]

I agree with others who have said no to cutting back in winter. You only want to work on ficus when it is it’s strongest.
It can recover quickly in late May or early June when outdoors.
I’m not a fan of those pink lights.

 

[Forsoothe!]

Would someone please explain the pink lights to me?

 

[leatherback]

Would someone please explain the pink lights to me?

certain plant ights only emit light at specific wavelengths, rather than a balanced "white" they have red and blue LEDs which show in this off-colour.

 

[Paradox]

I am not a fan of the pink lights either.
I keep my tropicals under daylight 6500K lights
My willow leave ficus dont seem to mind being indoors at all
I do agree that winter is not the time to do major pruning

 

[badatusernames]

certain plant ights only emit light at specific wavelengths, rather than a balanced "white" they have red and blue LEDs which show in this off-colour.

can you point me in the direction of better ones? when i was looking around it basically seemed like the choice was between this or high powered weed lights haha