Ficus dammaropsis marcot attempt --HELP!

[Gbarce]

I have this large leaf Ficus that was sold to me as F. dammaropsis ( not really positive on the species).

I am attempting to propagate it by marcotting/air layering and I did the "operation" only about a month and a half ago. I checked on one of the branches today and I noticed that a lot of roots have formed already.

I was wondering if it was already OK to cut it off and pot up at this point?

[Gbarce]

This is what the entire marcotted branch looks like.

It's maybe 3 feet long and the branch is about 3/4 of an inch thick.

Do you think there are enough roots to sustain the branch if I cut it off now?

What else should I do to make sure this cutting survives and establishes well?

[mnorell]

Gene--

If you do cut it now, I would certainly recommend reducing the foliage mass considerably. I personally would remove all but the top two leaves, and then I would cut them to 1/3 of their current length. Just enough for photosynthesis but an amount that can be kept in turgor by the small root mass. I assume you are still in wet season there? The high humidity, cloudiness and rain would certainly help maintain turgor. And knowing how fast most Ficus grow, I would think "better safe than sorry" would be a good approach, and would pretty much guarantee that you will not dehydrate the new plant. That said, those little roots look very healthy...and with not much more room to grow in the wrapper, they would probably love to be in some rich soil with room to explode outward.

[trioderob]

was it easy to do ???

[Gbarce]

Yeah it was simple enough to do. I made cuts around the branches all around about 3 inches apart. It was scary at first but the bark peeled off. Added rooting horomone, covered with moist sphagnum moss then wrapped tightly with plastic.

I was surprise how fast roots formed and I thought it would take a lot longer. Maybe because I live in a tropical climate?

I have read that this tree was challenging to propagate this way but maybe the heat helps a lot.

[JEFF IN MODESTO]

Did you say you girdled the tree with a 3 in wide ring, then u removed the bark?

Looks good, if it were any other plant besides ficus dammaropsis , I'd say remove most of the leaves and pot er up!

However, for some reason, these guys need a full set of roots filling the a pot , before they can take it on there own.

Based on the air layers that I got .....I'd say while the air layer is still attached to the mom, take the plastic off , cut a one gal sized pot in half like clam shell.

Fill both halves with a 50/50 perlite and good damp potting soil mix. Cover the roots and tape the pot shut cover the pot with a plastic bag.

Open it about once every mo to see if it needs water.

Once the pot is filled with roots to the point it's root bound... Then it's time to cut it off.

Notice this root bound air layer in a 4 in pot.

Jeff

[Gbarce]

OOhh that looks like a pretty healthy rootball!

Yeah a 3 inch area was "barked off". I realized it was a bit excessive after the fact. But luckily it seems to have still been ok.

What I realize now is that I should have made the air layer much closer to the tip.

It's going to be a logistical challenge but that pot suggestion is worth a try.

[MattyB]

In my experience, in our dry climate, a 3-5 gallon size root ball is required to ensure success when detaching from the mother plant. I'm sure in your climate a much smaller root mass is necessary. That said, I'd do something like Jeff suggested and try and increase your root mass before trying to cut that large branch off. Maybe just make a larger moss pouch around the outside of the existing one. The roots should fill it up pretty quickly.

Keep us posted.

[Gbarce]

Here's an update.

I sort of did what was advised-- I added a double layer of sphagnum moss to the original "marcotting ball". After several weeks the roots has grown into the new layer of moss so I decided to cut it off and plant it.

The pictures are of the marcots after about 4 days.

The leaves drooped a little but none fell off. The lowest leaf started to turn yellow the day I took this picture

A new leaf is opening up at the top -- which I guess is a good sign.

Is this one "in the clear" already?

[Gbarce]

This is the second one. It is slightly larger and is basically at the same stage as the first.

lowest leaf is yellowing too

But this one already opened a new leaf

[MattyB]

The drooping is a sign of the shock but if you see it perk back up, that's a good sign. They usually perk back up at night or in cooler weather. In my experience, if they're gonna die, they usually die very quickly, in that first day or two and you'll smell a distinctive nasty rotting smell when you water. In the future, you can reduce the shock by cutting off all the lower leaves and only leave 1 or two at the top. Do this before you detach the propagation so the it has a chance to replenish the sap that it looses and drips out before cutting it off. I suspect that you have a great advantage in your humid climate. Keep us updated, I'm interested.

[Gbarce]

Great advice Matty. Much appreciated!

I think the weather is very helpful right now because it is cool and very humid.