Skip to main content

Ficus Plant Care

Question: Help! My finicky ficus has lost all of its leaves...What is going on?

Answer:

Ficus trees are fantastic plants and so very easy to care for ... that is if you can prevent them from dropping all of their pretty green leaves all over the floor when you first bring them home. Ficus are notorious for being difficult to acclimate to a new environment. In fact, I would have included it on the list of best house plants if it were not for the problems many people have bringing a Ficus tree successfully through its transition to a new and different environment. Even those of us that work in the interior landscape business know what a pain in the ivy a Ficus tree can be. However, on the positive side, if you know that it will most likely happen (some Ficus trees barely lose a leaf), you may be a little more prepared to deal with it when it does happen.

As an indoor plant care professional for more than twenty years, I have found that houseplants are very adaptable as long as changes are made slowly. This even applies to the fickle Ficus tree. Ficus trees are often difficult to acclimate because they are quite sensitive to environmental changes and will often react by dropping most of their still green leaves quite suddenly. Read more about Ficus plant care and acclimation...

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Pruning Your Umbrella Plant (Schefflera Arboricola)

How to Prune Your Umbrella - Plant  Schefflera Arboricola, Umbrella Plant Schefflera Arboricola I recently received an email from a visitor to my website asking how to prune her Umbrella Plant. She sent along the picture to the right. Here is her email and my answer: Hello, I'm just wondering how to prune an umbrella plant. My plant is getting out of control, growing upwards and I can't seem to get it to grow like a bush. I'm afraid to cut it to shape cause I might kill it. I've had this plant for over 10 years and from the picture I sent you can see it's still growing good. I just want to trim it down but I want to do it properly. Thanks! Hi Julia When pruning an Arboricola (umbrella plant), cut just above a leaf stem or node. I usually cut the tallest stem back into the center of the plant, leaving some leaf nodes for new growth to start. Doing this every once in awhile keeps the plant fuller and shorter. You can cut the really ta...

Dracaena Marginata Houseplants Pruning and Rooting

My Little Dracaena Marginata Question from Gilbert:   I have a marginata house plant, It's about 2 1/2 feet tall, my question is: can I cut it in half and if I do will It continue to grow or will it die? And can I replant the top half? Also, will the trunk grow in diameter?   Answer: Yes you can cut back the trunk of your Dracaena Marginata . It will put out at least one new shoot, if not three to four or more new shoots. It will not die as long as you are taking good care of it. You can re-plant the cut-off top, but Dracaena can be a little harder to root than say, a  Pothos  plant that you can just leave in water and it will grow forever. You can  air-layer your plant . Another option is to root in moist sand. You can lay the piece of Marginata trunk down on its side in moist sand and it should eventually root, although it may take some time. This has worked for me before. If you want to root it in its upright position, try some rooting hormon...

Dracaena Marginata Plant Care

Plant Care for Dracaena Marginata Potted Dracaena Marginata Plant My last post was about the Mother-In-Law Tongue plant, the most searched and researched indoor plant and its care, at least on my website. This post is about Dracaena marginata, the second most searched for indoor plant. The dracaena marginata is sometimes called Dragon Tree. We just call her Marginata or Marg...  Marginata is my favorite Dracaena, I just love the thinner, long, delicate and arching leaves of the marginata. If your Marginata has been growing in really good light in a nursery, the leaves may be thicker and stiff. As it grows in new foliage acclimated to the lower light in your home (or office), the leaves will thin and become more graceful and arching. That is the way I like them best! Dracaenas in general are really easy to care for once you get them settled in and learn how to water them properly. Many of the plants that we use in our interior landscapes are dracaena varieti...