Contents
religious ficus
Ficus Religiosa is a plant native to China and India which, in its natural environment, can also reach large sizes. In Europe, however, the plant can barely reach thirty meters in height and three in diameter, which it sometimes reaches in its natural environment, even though it is a particularly resistant variety of ficus which can also grow in outside Europe. Ficus Religiosa is a heart-shaped deciduous plant with a thick stem and a very branched development. The flowers of this ficus give rise to small fruits about one cm in diameter, which take on a purple color during the ripening period. The tree has an important cultural value: according to tradition, it was precisely under one of these plants that the Buddha received enlightenment. Even today, the monks meditate under the
Cultivated
Being a plant of tropical origin, Ficus Religiosa needs humid environments and many hours of sun exposure. However, the sun’s rays should not fall directly on the leaves of the plant, to prevent them from burning. In summer, the ficus requires frequent watering, which can be reduced during the winter, when the plant enters its period of vegetative rest. The soil, however, must always be moist, taking care to avoid stagnation of water, which is detrimental to the roots of the plant. In the spring, with the restarting of the vegetative cycle, it is possible to enrich the soil with fertilizers, which will promote the development of the plant and its growth, providing it with all the nutrients necessary for its well-being and health.
ficus religious bonsai
The Ficus Religiosa can also be grown as a bonsai: despite the impressive dimensions that this plant reaches if grown in the traditional way, with the bonsai technique it is possible to create a small ficus, to be grown even in an apartment. The bonsai ficus must be cultivated according to the needs of the plant listed above, so that it develops in good health, but in this case an element becomes even more important: the pruning, which allows the correct growth of the foliage. It is accompanied by the pinching of new shoots, which grow abundantly throughout the year for ficuses and risks deforming the plant. the bonsai of medical ficusIt will also benefit from defoliation: the plant, once deprived of all its leaves, will make a new mold with smaller leaves, to adapt to the general dimensions allowed by bonsai cultivation. In this way, the ficus bonsai will become more proportionate and also more beautiful.