| Life form | Tree |
| Family | Moraceae |
| Origin | Malaysia, India, the Himalayas, Burma, Nepal, Bhutan, Sumatra, Java |
| Ease of cultivation | Easy, suitable for beginners |
| The size | Most often in room conditions from 46 cm to 3 and even up to 10 m |
| Growth rate | High, from 60 cm to 1 m per year |
| Lifespan | Perennial |
| Temperature | In the summer: 64,4-84,2 ° F, in the winter not below 59 ° F. The variegated forms are more thermophilic |
| Humidity | Average. Spraying of plants is required once a week, especially at high temperatures in winter after heating is turned on. Leaves should be regularly wiped with a damp sponge. |
| Lighting | Bright diffused light, it is good to place at a distance of 2-3 m from the window. Particularly in need of light variegated forms. It can adapt to partial shade, but the growth will slow down. |
| The soil | Fertile, weakly acidic or neutral: 1 part of the turf ground, 1 part of the leaf earth, 1/2 part of the sand, you can add a little charcoal. Either 1 part of the turf ground, 1 part peat, 1 part leaf earth, 1 part sand. Requires good drainage, the best option if a lower layer is composed of expanded clay, sand and the upper. |
| Watering | In summer, regular watering with soft warm water (2 times a week), before the next watering the soil should dry slightly. In winter, watering is reduced to 1 time per week.Plants are more likely to suffer from overflow than from lack of moisture. After watering, drain the water from the pan. |
| Fertilizer | From spring to autumn, every 2 weeks, liquid fertilizer, alternating organic and mineral. |
| Reproduction | The apical cuttings of 8 cm long with at least one leaf are rooted in a mixture of peat and perlite or earth with sand, at a temperature of 77 ° F. Before planting, it is necessary to wash off the lactating milky juice or remove it after hardening. The leaf should be folded into a tube and tied. The stalk is stuck into the substrate to a depth of 1 cm and is tied to a peg that is inserted into the tube of the leaf. Then the stalk is watered and sprinkled. Shade from the bright sun. Rooting occurs within 1-1,5 months.Ficus takes root in the same way and in water (the leaf should also be rolled up). You can multiply by one sheet. It should also be rolled into a tube by inserting it into the substrate using a peg, but the leaf petiole should be split and placed in a cleft stone so that it does not grow together. Roots are formed after about 20 days. Aged plants with stretched shoots can be multiplied by layers. Below the leaf on the stem should be a shallow incision with a knife, where to insert a pebble and sprinkle with hormonal powder. Wrap the incision with wet moss and wind it around the rope. Top with polyethylene. When the moss roots appear, the shoot will need to be cut below the winding and plant the new plant in a separate pot. Cut on the bottom of the plant should be treated with petroleum jelly, it can also give lateral shoots. |
| Bloom | In the rooms only adult large plants bloom. In greenhouses, as well as all the rubber plants, forms Seacon – small spherical inflorescences, resembling a berry. |
| Transfer | In February-March, young plants are planted annually, increasing the diameter of the pot by 4-5 cm. In adult plants, it is possible to replace the upper 3 cm of soil. To limit the growth of the ficus, it should not be transplanted into large pots, and must be regularly cut. |
| Features of care | In spring, large plants should be cut off shoots for the formation of the crown. Young plants must be tied to the support. For greater decorativeness, when growing young plants, it is better to plant several cuttings in the pot. In young plants, for better branching, the apical soil should be removed at a height of 40 cm to 1 m. Next, the side shoots should be shortened as they grow. The plant does not like drafts. Ficus should be periodically rotated relative to the light source. In summer, the plant is preferable to keep on the balcony or in the garden. |
| Difficulties | It is affected by a mealybug, as well as a scab, a spider mite. Leaves fall most often because of overmoistening. Falling of the lower leaves in old plants is a natural process.Leaves wither, curl and fall, they appear brown spots at too low a temperature, the leaves wither and sag in case of insufficient watering. The leaves are pale, the plant grows poorly, new leaves are small from the non-nutrient nutrients. The plant is stretched, the leaves are small with a lack of light. |
| Air cleaning | Many species purify the air of harmful substances. |
| Toxicity | Some types of ficus can cause negative reactions in people with an allergy to latex. |
