Content

• Steps
• Tips
• Warnings

Although Benjamin's ficus is notorious for being difficult to grow, it is possible to grow a healthy tree. Just follow a few simple guidelines and your tree will have the best chances of a long life.

Steps

1. 1 Ficus Benjamin likes indirect light, so don't place it by a window where it gets more than an hour or two of suns each day.
2. 2 Water only when the top ball of soil is 2 to 3 cm dry.
3. 3 Fertilize lightly using an instant mix. Well-rotted compost is a good top dressing, but it won't provide all the nutrients your houseplant requires. You should fertilize the plants every two weeks or every month or so during the summer, but not in the winter.
4. 4 Prune only when necessary to keep the tree from overgrowing. Alternatively, you can use sapling ropes to tie the tree up.
5. 5 Once you have braided wood, you can decide whether to keep the braid or not. This braid looks like a typical 3-strand braid. Either cut off the side branches or include them in one of the three main threads.You want to twist a new tree that's flexible enough to bend into a braid. Do not apply force to the branches or they will break. To keep the new braids from getting too loose, you can use sapling ropes.

Tips

• If you need to replant a tree, expect the leaves to fall. Since F. Benjamin does not like to move around, rearranging during transplanting can send the tree into shock. It should recover with new leaf growth within two weeks.
• All F. Benjamin shed their leaves from time to time. Leaf fall usually occurs in the fall, but houseplants can interpret fall at different times. This will depend on the temperature in the house, etc. Just because all the leaves have fallen off does not mean that your plant has died. Keep an eye on your watering and feeding schedule and you should see new leaf growth within a week or two.
• Maintain a fairly consistent room temperature throughout the year, slightly warmer during the day (ideally around 20 ° - 23 ° C) than at night (ideally around 16 ° -18 ° C). Temperatures below 10 ° C can kill the plant.
• If your tree is in a smaller pot (up to 30 cm), water when the top ball of soil is 2 to 3 cm dry. The larger pot should dry out to a greater depth.

Warnings

• If F. Benjamin receives too much sunlight, the leaves will discolor to light green or yellow.
• When buying a new plant, do not buy it on a very cold day - moving it from the store to the car and from the car to the house can kill the plant if the temperature is below 10 ° C. Also, never drive with an uncovered plant in an open pickup truck, speed the wind created by driving will dry up and destroy the leaves.
• F. Benjamin are prone to damage by mealybugs and mealybugs. Look for white clumps that look like cotton on the underside of the leaves and where the branches touch, it is a mealybug. Worms are extremely small brown insects that make the plant sticky and give the leaves a glossy sheen. If you have any of these insects, you can spray your plant every three to five days with a mixture of twenty drops of dishwashing liquid (make sure it's not antibacterial) per liter of water. Spray the entire plant, especially under the leaves, for four to six weeks.
• F. Benjamin doesn't like excessive movement. If you need to move the tree, do it with gentle movements. You don't want to just grab and push the pot.
• DO NOT fill. It is the # 1 killer for most houseplants, including F. Benjamin.