Fungus on Ficus?

That's what I've read/heard Billy, but I'll give one a try anyway (next season).

Thanks for that information Iris. I am not using peat moss, that's not the brightest idea. The mix I use from Meehans is the deciduous/tropical soil mix, which may actually have too much bark in it. I may repot tomorrow, and I'll use their coniferous soil mix instead, which has much less organic material. I took this one to the local nursery and they told me it may be declining due to a lack of water, and its also got that yellow looking mold in the soil. I don't over water, so I'm not so sure why it may have that. That's another reason I'm thinking about a repot, to take a look at the roots. Whenever I do water, the water runs straight through the soil and right out the drainage holes.

Here's what I plan on repotting into. It's a plastic cement mixer tub that's 2 feet long and 6 inches deep. It is shallower than the trees current pot, and should also help spread the roots laterally.

While repotting today, I noticed that the yellow fuzzy mold was all around the rootball. Not 100% sure as to what it is....

Root aphids maybe??

The only time I've had a fungal problem of my ficus is when scales, mealy bug or another sap sucker has left honeydew on the leaves. I'd look hard for these pests before treating with fungicide. Also, if you're keeping your tree indoor under halides, the only organic material I'd use in the soil is small sized (1/8 - 3/8") orchid grower's bark; and only at 30% max.

C.A. Young wrote:The only time I've had a fungal problem of my ficus is when scales, mealy bug or another sap sucker has left honeydew on the leaves. I'd look hard for these pests before treating with fungicide. Also, if you're keeping your tree indoor under halides, the only organic material I'd use in the soil is small sized (1/8 - 3/8") orchid grower's bark; and only at 30% max.

Thanks! I've looked it over and over again with no traces of bugs anywhere. This tree isn't yet under a halide light, but instead under 4 T5 bulbs. When I repotted I did cut back on the amount of bark used in the soil, in hopes that health improves.

Billy M. Rhodes wrote:I have a lot of Ficus and don't think I have ever had a fungus.

You haven't had a fungus or your Ficus?

For my indoor, enclosed trees I've moved to a mix of turface and lava at about 70/30. I think with all of our humidity, we shouldn't mess with decomposing organics near the roots. That being said, my trees are not exactly an image of health at this point, so take my advice with a grain of Epsom salt.

Ryan wrote:While repotting today, I noticed that the yellow fuzzy mold was all around the rootball. Not 100% sure as to what it is....

From your soil pictures, it looks as if the soil could be sifted to keep out the finer particles. Jim Smith told me that he uses straight Turface for many plantings. Some of the leaf pictures you shared may simply be of older leaves or passing issues. Jerry Meislik wrote that indoor ficus tend to have fewer problems with pests like thrips, etc. The tree looks healthy overall, although I'd cut it back to induce some new growth unless you plan on thickening current branches.

Reading through the thread, I thought it useful to mention that ficus come from varied locations, some behave more like succulents than tropicals.

nickalpin wrote:

From your soil pictures, it looks as if the soil could be sifted to keep out the finer particles. Jim Smith told me that he uses straight Turface for many plantings. Some of the leaf pictures you shared may simply be of older leaves or passing issues. Jerry Meislik wrote that indoor ficus tend to have fewer problems with pests like thrips, etc. The tree looks healthy overall, although I'd cut it back to induce some new growth unless you plan on thickening current branches.

Reading through the thread, I thought it useful to mention that ficus come from varied locations, some behave more like succulents than tropicals.

Oops missed this reply, thank you for the information. I'm hoping those leaves were just old leaves dying off, and I'll focus on getting the finer particles out of the soil.

However, since that update I trimmed the rootball in half, repotted it into another pot, and stuck it in my more efficient greenhouse. I discovered it was a bit too tall though, so I had to trim back some branches. Looking the tree over today, I noticed those branches are now starting to backbud, a wonderful sign

Lots of backbud occurring: