Pruning and repotting an exposed root ficus

It’s been almost one year since I started caring for an exposed root Green Island ficus. I pruned the tree toward the end of summer last year and have been waiting until this year to repot it (see “Cutback and wiring” for photos of last year’s work).

Ficus respond best to repotting when the weather is warm so I figured July would be a good time to work on the tree.

The first step was reducing the branches that had grown since last year.

Green Island ficus

After cutback

Next, I removed the tree from the pot and combed away the soil on the outside of the rootball. While doing this work, I found a pocket of old soil in the center of the rootball which I cleared away with an aluminum pick.

After root-work

After clearing out the old soil in the center of the rootball

Fortunately, the remaining soil was good so I didn’t have to bare-root the tree.

When the rootwork was complete, I started looking for pots. Here are the four candidates I found that were roughly the right size.

Unglazed oval – the pot is OK but it is slightly wide and lacks character

Glazed rectangle – an OK fit for the tree but slightly sturdy looking for the sinuous trunk and roots

Handmade oval – this would be a better match were it narrower and deeper

Unglazed round by Sara Rayner – great color but slightly wide for the tree

I went with the glazed rectangle for this year and will continue to keep my eyes open for different options in the future.

Repotting complete – 7″

Akadama available for bulk orders

Akadama, kanuma, pumice, and Aoki Blend are currently available on the Bonsai Tonight Online Store. For those looking for larger quantities, bulk rates are available for clubs, businesses, or other groups interested in orders of 50 bags or more (any combination of soil qualifies).

For more information on bulk pricing, see “Bonsai Soil” for details.