The Art of Bonsai

Tag: Willow Leaf fig

  • Willow Leaf ficus after 20 years

    I started working on this tree nearly 20 years ago. It was a large Ficus salicaria, Willow leaf ficus, purchased from a Florida nursery and selected by my friend and bonsai artist Joe Samuels. Joe passed away some years back and was a great help to me in advancing my bonsai knowledge. The tree was…

  • Ficus salicaria, Willow Leaf fig

    One of the best small leaf fig species to use for bonsai is the Willow Leaf fig, scientifically called Ficus salicaria. It has many great features including aerial roots and wide-spreading surface roots. One possible issue is that it does not like having roots that stay too wet. Water the tree well and make sure…

  • The “Too Heavy” root

    In dealing with a fig that has too heavy a root there are several ways to handle the situation. One, is to simply use soil and moss to partially or completely cover the thick root. Another solution is to cut the large root completely off. After removing the root seal the cut with cut paste…

  • A haircut

    Developing a bonsai requires many steps. One critical step is allowing the bonsai in development to grow wildly. This allows the tree to gain strength and to form branches that will be used in its development. Periodically the overgrown tree will be trimmed back, given a haircut to bring the design back to a more…

  • Reverse taper

    Trees ideally should have a wide root base that tapers up into the trunk. A bulge or lack of proper taper often ruins the visual flow from the rootline to the apex of the tree and is called reverse taper. In this case several root cuttings of Willow Leaf fig, Ficus salicaria, were bound togeter in…

  • Root cuttings

    Some species of Ficus will grow from pieces of root. This is fortunate as repotting of figs is required every few years to maintain the health of the tree. At this time thick and unnecessary roots can be removed and rooted to form new plants. A root cutting is shown from a Willow Leaf fig.…

  • Bar branches, yes or no?

    One of the most basic beginner rules is to avoid bar branches. That is to say remove one of two branches that appear on the same level but directly opposite each other. This rule as all rules for bonsai or any art form is often helpful in designing a basic bonsai for a beginner. In…

  • Windswept style

    A few years back I styled a Willow Leaf cutting into a windswept style. I enjoyed the plant although it was a young and immature plant. The tree was re-potted some time ago and looking at the image of the plant revealed the tree was no longer attractive. What was the problem? Often when re-potting…

  • Twisting and turning design

    This is an exercise in bonsai creation that is just for fun. The plant is a Ficus salicaria, Willow Leaf fig,  grown from a root cutting. This was a very long root, perhaps 2 feet in length. Foliage has sprouted at the cut end but how to design a tree out of it? One possibility is…