Operation Save River

[ChangeTheBuket]

Hello, helpful Gardeners.

This is my little Ficus Microcarpa Giseng “River” and it’s in terrible shape.



I'm afraid it’s going to slowly wither away, if I don't do nothing.
It was still in OK shape when I left for South East Asia last November. But when I came back I found in this sorry state. I had left her in my mothers care, but it looks like my mother didn’t care that much. It’s easy to point fingers, but I was and am a half hearted caretaker too, to be perfectly honest. It’s been almost a month that I came back and I was too obsessed with work to do help out my plant. It struck me a few days ago that I was letting her die in solitude. Like the parent that falls ill you never visit, because of “the kids”, and “work has keeping me busy”. I was a little disgusted by myself,.. yeah.
Anyways, I'm going to try anything to rescue “River”. And maybe you can help me.
Ok lets see this through. This is the state now:

https://imgur.com/a/s7HeL

What should I do?

• 1. First of all, I figured I would take away the moldy surface soil.
  2. Then I will get a 3% hydrogen peroxide and water mix to kill off the white mold.
  
  3. I don't know what I should do with the Pink stuff. Is it just another kind of mold? Is it bugs? Is it an alien life form trying to overtake my bonsai? I don't know what to think.
  
  4a . I read somewhere, that it’s bad to put it next to the radiator. I can’t find where I read that. Is that true? Because then I will move it to the ground and buy a fluorescent light help with the light exposure.
  
  4b. I also read somwhere that it shouldn’t be exposed to the wind (please excuse my lack of sourcing, I didn't save the link.) Moving it to the ground would kill two birds with one stone.
  
  5. Repotting this spring would be probably be a good idea, so that I can double check if the roots are healthy and kill off any surviving mold or bugs. And it's probably time to repot anyways.

Anyways... I don't have a clue how to take care of my plant properly. Please help!


My Questions:
What is the Pink Stuff?
Should I move the pot to the ground?
What kind of lightbulb should I buy for a ficus this size?

UPDATE 1:
1. Used a wet cloth to clean the fuzzy Stuff
2. I removed the top layer of dead leaves, and mold.
3. Tried to remove the pink stuff. Semi-successfully.

Posted this also on Reddit:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Bonsai/comments ... gardening/
https://www.reddit.com/r/gardening/comme ... ave_river/

[rainbowgardener]

I am no kind of bonsai expert and hopefully some of the people that really know this stuff will come by soon, so I will just get this started.

The good news is your ficus is not dead. And ficus are prone to dropping a bunch of leaves under stress, which means they are also good at replacing them, when conditions normalize. So there is still hope.

That's about all the good news. The rest is that it is in pretty bad shape. I don't know what the pink stuff is. I would guess some kind of algae/lichen. It's probably not a good thing that it is there, but I would be much more worried about all that black at the base of the trunk, that shows in that picture. It looks like the trunk is rotting out and that is really bad.

You didn't say where you are located. Are you somewhere where it will be spring soon? In that case as soon as the tree starts (hopefully) showing some signs of new growth, you want to do two things: repot in to good bonsai soil and get your tree outside. I think your soil is way too organic and moisture holding. Good bonsai soil is mostly mineral. The soil staying wet would be what is causing the trunk rot. To get your tree outdoors means (once the weather is warm enough) hardening it off gradually, getting it used to the outdoors a bit at a time. Yes it is very bad for it to be by the radiator and until you can get it outdoors, you should get it away from the radiator. But ultimately the solution to all the radiator/ light issues is to get it outside.

Someone who knows more than me will have to say more about how to treat all the different molds, etc going on. When you mentioned the white fuzzy mold, I was thinking of the soil surface, which is not uncommon. I've never seen a tree actually growing mold like that. Doesn't seem like a good sign, either.

[ChangeTheBuket]

I live in Switzerland, and I figure it won't get warm enough for a month or two... maybe I put it outside during the day.

[rainbowgardener]

No, ficus don't like to be moved. Don't be taking it in and out until the weather is warm enough that with a little hardening off, it can stay out. But in the meantime, do get it away from the radiator.

[tomc]

your "pink" should clear up when its finally time to move your tree outdoors (May?) It is a tropical. Night time temperature should stay at or above 50F at night. it looks chilled and light starved to me.

You need to test for dampness daily with a chopstick, if the chop stick is damp, don't water, if dry top water liberally.

let new growth get well started before fertilizing it.

[rainbowgardener]

Is there anything CTB should do to treat the white fuzzy mold growing on the tree?

[tomc]

The side growths could be the result from overwatering. Strong sunlight and a soft toothbrush should eliminate them. Its going to be well into spring before the sun takes charge.

I'd not use either hydrogen peroxide or bleach in amounts larger than a shaken (or squeezed) out Q-tip. And I'm unsure at even that amount.

Mother nature uses UV rays to police the area.

[ChangeTheBuket]

Ok guys und gals, I cleaned it off as best as I could and now I'm just waiting for the termometer to hit 15°c and then I will move it outside during the day.