Ficus supposedly graceful

Hello Group,

Yvonne, here is where I get frustrated, how do I keep this proportion of trunk to aerial to rest of tree?

Normally, I get this result and boom in a year it is gone, even in small pots the trees tend to overthicken and lose the grace. I have two others in training and they will probably do me the same wickedness [ pardon my dialect.]

Anyhow, I will grow the canopy over to form a dome and keep opening the spaces under the canopy, but I figure by next year another effort will be gone.

So let us enjoy the image and a little fun. [ A friend just gave me this Angry Bird to match my mood with the tree, and I threw in the hand carved/ filed titanium ring, cored out of a solid rod, just to show off a bit.]
Thanks for looking anyone.
Khaimraj

[ and I thought this guy was so starchy. ]





Close-up of the roots -

Hi Khaimraj

Are you saying the trunk grow fast, and become too long for the arealroots, who does not grow in the lengd after they are formed?
Or was it the angry bird that did this to your tree

I have not seen this problem before..What I did, was building up a fat trunk before adding arealroots...could this be an important diffrence?....and if the trunk on my trees grow higher, will the branches be pulled dawn a little by the arealroots, and the arealroots from the trunk just fuse to the trunk quiker?.

Kind regards Yvonne

Khaimraj
I've never been able to associate aerial roots with thin trunks.
For me the simple fact that there are aerial roots also implies that there are fused roots with the trunk and de facto a thicker trunk.

how do I keep this proportion of trunk to aerial to rest of tree?

I guess the answer is that the aerial roots will form part of your trunk or trunk design in the long run and thus add to bulk of the trunk in the long run.
Since we are working with smaller scale models the disparity may seem too extreme when the initial trunk is too small.
Try to make the same process with a thicker fat trunk like Yvonne suggested ?


Here is what I have as models.

Xavier de Lapeyre wrote:Khaimraj
I've never been able to associate aerial roots with thin trunks.
For me the simple fact that there are aerial roots also implies that there are fused roots with the trunk and de facto a thicker trunk.
I guess the answer is that the aerial roots will form part of your trunk or trunk design in the long run and thus add to bulk of the trunk in the long run.

Khaimraj, the normal "straight" roots on Ficus works fine with straight trunks, but because your tree's trunk has a lot of movement it would be a good idea to wire them to follow the flow of the trunk. Doing this you will instantly have a thicker trunk and the reverse taper and other taper problems will be solved. The mind is a wonderful thing- structures keeping up foliage/branches/canopies equals a trunk and your mind will perceive the outline, as well as with the repetition of the movement, the old trunk and roots as one trunk. Because the original trunk will look even thinner when the tree grow out, it will also be perceived as one of the roots over time. Doing this with new roots it will add to the picture.

To bring balance to the tree you should also encourage roots to the left lower down the trunk - they should look like the are fighting to keep the tree upright or you can bring the balance back by using a longer left hand side lower branch.

And with all the "naturalness" that is going on the tree growing like this can be explained naturally. I can tell you the story of the tree if you want me to

My words into a picture:


Am I making sense?

Lennard

Xavier, Lennard,

thanks for taking the time to reply and show images.

Xavier, you might find this amusing. On our side we have to import those ficus types that have aerial roots. When I really looked, our local types, can strangle a tree, but left on their own prefer to grow into trees and make little use of aerial roots. So I had to go to the botannical gardens to see anything like the beautiful examples you posted.

Okay that said, what I was trying to do was find a way to keep a ficus slender, and graceful, which is what drew me to this cutting originally.
So I have been testing soil mixes and defoliation and pruning. Too soon do ficus shoots go coarse and I didn't want to do as the Chinese do, make a tree penjing out of mostly designed roots and very little foliage.

When I have developed the attempt a good bit more I will show again.
I wanted a full, but airy canopy, on a slender trunk, with equally slender aerial roots.
Something to go with the graceful weep of the Ficus b.'s leaves.
Until later.
Khaimraj

I think Lennard has hit the nail on the head. Putting some movement in the roots so they match the shape (if not the texture) of the trunk will be a big help.

Jim,

hopefully this will clarify, as to where I am going with this effort.
The idea was a slim trunk and a canopy [ upside down bowl ]

What I was trying to work out was if I could get a canopy and keep the present quality of the trunk, aerial roots, as well as the sense of grace and elegance that I first saw in the rooted cutting.
Hence the small and shallow pot with little soil.

I will continue to post as time goes by.
Khaimraj


I have thinned out the canopy to return that airy feel -




Side view - The lowest roots will be allowed to fatten as I keep thinning the canopy for only what gives the effect.