Gnarly Ficus

[waykoolplantz]

[Bennz]

I never get tired of fig pictures. Any idea which species this is, and how it is? It looks a little unusual with its almost disproportional  shape, the base being so thick but tapering quickly in the limbs. I wonder if the top got taken out at some time causing that shape?

[annafl]

So nice to have the space to let this tree do it's thing, Mike.  Are you going to let the aerial roots take hold on the ground?

[Bennz]

8 hours ago, annafl said:

So nice to have the space to let this tree do it's thing, Mike.  Are you going to let the aerial roots take hold on the ground?

The answer to this q. had better be yes! Figs NEED auxiliary trunks!

I planted 200 banyans last year. Who needs space?

[Tracy]

19 hours ago, Bennz said:

I planted 200 banyans last year. Who needs space?

Is this phase 1 of a remodel?  Sounds like you will be moving into a treehouse in phase 2 .  Either that or you have many hectares of property to fit 200 banyans.  While I love the look, I have recognized the tradeoff on my small lot, and opted for none of the large Ficus species.  The only one passing the invasive root test for my lot thus far is Ficus dammaropsis.

[Bennz]

On 3/28/2017, 5:42:50, Tracy said:

Is this phase 1 of a remodel?  Sounds like you will be moving into a treehouse in phase 2 .  Either that or you have many hectares of property to fit 200 banyans.  While I love the look, I have recognized the tradeoff on my small lot, and opted for none of the large Ficus species.  The only one passing the invasive root test for my lot thus far is Ficus dammaropsis.

Some say "invasive" roots, others just think they look cool. And they help hold the hillsides together, not a bad thing in my place with light soils on steep slopes with occaisonal heavy rain (we got 30 inches in 48 hours back in 2011).

I've got 240ha (600 acres), but need to make a living off it as well as grow banyans. Mostly I plant F. columnaris, which has been known to cover 5 acres in one tree in habitat, so I'm  pushing it already! But life is short and so I'll plant the 1000+ seedlings in my nursery and let them compete with one another, and hopefully get to see a massive banyan grove before I die. I've planted 250,000 other trees as well, the banyans are just for character.

[Pando]

On ‎3‎/‎27‎/‎2017‎ ‎9‎:‎42‎:‎50‎, Tracy said:

While I love the look, I have recognized the tradeoff on my small lot, and opted for none of the large Ficus species.  The only one passing the invasive root test for my lot thus far is Ficus dammaropsis.

It's nice to have space for these things. The previous owner of my house planted two Ficus benjaminas 2 feet from a concrete walkway and another one 3 feet from the house. What a genius; probably home depot houseplants that got too big for the pot. I cut them both down as soon as I moved in, but they had already started pushing the walkway slabs up a few inches. For any structure nearby they are slo-mo monster hydraulic lifts.

They look cool, but I'll marvel at them in someone else's yard, thanks.  

[Tracy]

8 hours ago, Pando said:

The previous owner of my house planted two Ficus benjaminas 2 feet from a concrete walkway and another one 3 feet from the house. What a genius;

Yes, I had this experience in my first home too.  I bought one of the models, which they planted a Ficus benjamina in a small atrium with the house on 3 sides.  I dug it out after about 3 years, but the root system had expanded enough that there were more roots under the house than in the atrium.  I was lucky, as I got it before any damage to slab or plumbing which was in the slab. 

9 hours ago, Bennz said:

I've got 240ha (600 acres), but need to make a living off it as well as grow banyans.

Yes, you have enough space for a few banyans and still room to make a living with 240 ha.  Do you use them as windbreaks between other growing areas on your property?  My wife and I just returned from our first trip to NZ, but didn't have enough time to see both islands, so only made a portion of South Island.  It seemed that every agricultural land used large trees to segment areas and create wind breaks down there.

[cagary]

 

Ficus growing in stream bed on my property in Pepeekeo, on the Big Island, Hawaii. I wonder how many years its been growing.

 

[cagary]

Its hopeless trying to get the whole tree in a photo.