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ADdimension Bonsai Web - Azalea
ADdimension Bonsai Collection
A Ficus Airlayer
I airlayered this ficus benjamina in the spring of 1994. The technique I
used was to remove 2-3 inch strip of bark from around the tree, and then spread a
light paste of rooting hormone on the remaining white layer. I then took spagnum
moss that had been soaked in vitamin B solution and placed it around the strip.
A piece of clear plastic was then wrapped around the moss and tied off at the top
and bottom.
I spent the next 2-3 months checking the moss every week and watering it with
vitamin B enough to keep the moss damp. I started noticing the small ends of
roots after about 6 weeks and over the next 6 weeks it developed into this mass
of roots.
The last step was to seperate the layer from the main tree. I did this using a
large pruning saw and being very careful to not shift the moss and roots to any
great extent. Once seperated, I put the layer into a medium size clay put with a
soil mixture I put together that consisted of 70% of fresh water aquarium gravel
and 30% of a coarse pine bark and humus combination. The new ficus has done
wonderful and I look forward to shaping it over the next few years.