could use proper care and tips for some ficus trees

[philscichlids]

Well I lucked out in the last two days and I got 2 medium size and 1 large ficus tree for my new enclosure . I'm looking through the forum for some tips for taking care of them and I'm seeing that ficus are prone to getting small bugs on them . Obviously I know I can't use any pesticide on them in fear of the cham getting to it ,but what other ways can prevent this . As soon as I got them all home it was nice enough for me to wash off all the leaves outside . When I put them in the enclosure I plan on repotting them into New pots with clean soil . Any other tips from you that have care for these trees would be greatly appreciated .

 

[melble68]

I'm a big fan of insecticidal soap. Does a good job on most bugs that will mess with ficus trees. I would spray the plants when they're not in the enclosure. Let the soap do its magic for a week or so, rinse real well, and then put into enclosure. Inseciticidal soap works really well on soft bodied pests. It might be possible to need to do multiple applications. Do one week, and then again a second week kind of a thing.

 

[fluxlizard]

Does that soap work on scales?
When I used ficus, they always were infested badly with scales when purchased.

 

[melble68]

Does that soap work on scales?
When I used ficus, they always were infested badly with scales when purchased.

Here are a cut and paste from Ortho's website.

What it Controls
Insects:
Adelgids, Aphids, Caterpillars (tent), Earwigs, Grasshoppers, Lacebugs, Leafhoppers, Mealybugs, Mites, Plant Bugs, Psyllids, Sawfly Larvae, Scale, Spider Mites, Thrips, Whiteflies, and Wooly aphids*

How often to apply
Repeat treatment weekly or bi-weekly if needed. May be used on edible crops up to and including day of harvest.

 

[melble68]

The most common problem I have, which I'm currently having, is THRIPS. Darn things attack the new leaves and make them fold up in half. Best way to get rid of them in addition to a soap spraying, is then a very aggressive pruning. This is ok for large trees, but not always that effective on small plants due to the amount that you can physically cut off. My tree that I'm working with is nearly 10' tall and 8' wide. Its a biggun, but after this weekend, it aint gonna be that large.

 

[CarlC]

I use a 50/50 mix of water and dish soap and spray daily for a week or two on all new plants especially in warmer month's. No bugs and it also helps with removing the wax that some growers use on their plants to make the leaves look shiny. When the plants are done getting the soap mix I just give them a long shower and the soap is gone.

Carl

 

[philscichlids]

Thanks for the responses , I've now got a few good treatment options . I haven't seen anything on the trees yet but I don't wanna take any chances

 

[philscichlids]

My ficus tree is losing leaves all over ? Is there any kind of plant food or fertilizer that is cam safe ? I water the tree about every 4-5 days . It has sunlight and now I have a uvb bulb on it trying to save it . Any ideas ?

 

[melble68]

My ficus tree is losing leaves all over ? Is there any kind of plant food or fertilizer that is cam safe ? I water the tree about every 4-5 days . It has sunlight and now I have a uvb bulb on it trying to save it . Any ideas ?

Ficus trees will drop leaves like crazy w/ a change in environment. My first thought is that you don't have an issue w/ fertilizer. Have you repotted it or moved it into the enclosure recently? Sorry if that was discussed earlier in the thread. I have C.R.S. Also they don't like to be over watered. To me 4-5 days sounds about right, but is the soil staying moist still on the 5th day?

 

[melble68]

Ok, I'm an idiot. After just asking the question about "when", I just eventually scrolled back up to the top of the thread and saw that it was only a few days ago. I personally think that the leave drop is due to the change in environment. Both re-potting it, and their new home would cause it to drop some leaves. Give it a month to recoup, and then re-evaluate. By that time you should probably start seeing some new growth tips showing.