Found a money tree!

[TheCrazyPlantLady]

Ficus Benjamina is a very popular houseplant around here. I've got several of them, some of which I'm trying to train into bonsai.

Most of mine live in my little greenhouse, more out of convenience than need, but I have one that spends the entire summer outside. Our winters are fairly mild so I even put it outside during the day in winter.

As has been mentioned, they are evergreen trees, but they have a tendency to drop their leaves when stressed by being moved to unfamiliar conditions. I have one that was kept in my lounge for years and received no sun at all. It grew long and spindly but still remained fairly healthy. One day I decided to try moving it outside. The leaves all got burnt and eventually fell off, but the new growth was far stronger and it's now thriving. As it's now rather big for its pot, I keep it in my greenhouse because I'm afraid it will blow over when it gets windy.

I'm planning to shape this one a little - the way that it is growing brings to mind the wind swept style, so I thought I'd play with it a bit. I want to give it a settling in period first. So far, it's only dropped the leaves that were already yellow, so I think it's happy with the treatment here. I'm also thinking of trying to propagating a cutting from it.

 

[Gina145]

I'm also thinking of trying to propagating a cutting from it.

That's a great idea. They're very easy to propagate. I've had great success just putting the cuttings in a glass of water until they grow roots.

I'm glad it's settling in so well. As long as you protect them from the cold they're really very easy to care for. You were really lucky to find such a big one.

 

[TheCrazyPlantLady]

That's a great idea. They're very easy to propagate. I've had great success just putting the cuttings in a glass of water until they grow roots.

I'm glad it's settling in so well. As long as you protect them from the cold they're really very easy to care for. You were really lucky to find such a big one.

I agree. I would never have bought a mature one - it would have cost more than I would feel comfortable spending on a single plant. I'm more the "get them small and wait for them to grow" type of gal!

 

[Gina145]

The good news is that if you give a ficus benjamina plenty of soil to grow in and good light, they grow pretty quickly. If you can root a few cuttings and plait them yourself, you should be able to grow another big one in a few years. And if you're prepared to sacrifice some large pieces, you stand a good chance of getting them to root either as cuttings or air-layers.

 

[Gardener]

Hey TheCrazyPlantLady! I have that exact same plant, but mine is the one foot one that you would find in stores. If anyone else knows how to caredfor it properly, I will appreciate it as well. The reason being is that my money tree is starting to lose its leaves, but I don't see what I an doing wrong.

 

[Gina145]

Gardener how long have you had your ficus? Has it been moved to a new position recently? They tend to drop leaves when they are moved to unfamiliar conditions. And as Jewell says in comment #10, they don't like cold drafts.