Two Audrey Ficus - one sick?

9 years ago

last modified: 9 years ago

Hello,

I've posted about these Ficus before and I know there are 1000 droopy ficus posts already... I've done a lot of reading on past posts but I am a bit stumped here.

Background info:

We are in Oakland, CA and the plant is in a north west facing window - it gets bright direct a few hours a day, and bright indirect light the rest of the day
We got the ficus in May and it has been growing rapidly ever since
Two months ago I removed one of the stalks and planted it in its own container. Both have had new growth since then.
The soil is a loose mix of potting and cactus soil. it drains easily.

Last week the left stalk of the original plant became droopy - i noticed it in the top newest leaf. It had been about a week without water and the soil was really dry so I gave it a sold water (so it came out the drainage hole). Generally, we water a good amount, but I've only totally flushed it in the bath tub a few times.

The water did not seem to help with the droopyness of the left tree and it has dropped a few leaves over the weekend. Today the soil was pretty dry a finger length down into the soil so I watered in the bathtub flushing it out well and then finished some 16-16-16 all purpose fertilizer (which we've only used a few times in the past).

It is still droopy, but the one next to it is totally fine. It even looks like the stalk is.. drying out? If that's possible. From what I've read its usually under water, over water, not enough light, salt build up in the soil, or lack of nutrients. I think i've ruled out a watering issue... but it isn't really bouncing back today after a flush and fertilizer. Wondering if anyone else has any ideas or if I should just see what happens and hope it makes it.

** you can't tell from the photo because the big leave at the bottom is blocking but these are two different trees in one pot.

Thanks

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Comments (6)

tropicofcancer (6b SW-PA)
9 years ago
Does not look too bad. It is possible that there is a zone of dry soil in the medium. If you can dunk the pot in a bucket of plain water for an hour or two. The way I like to do is to water the soil till the water comes up to the level of the soil. Afterwards drain it well. If for some reason the roots are stressed it is not a good idea to fertilize right away. It makes it harder for the roots to absorb water. Fertilize it in the next watering.
shelbyvr
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
yeah I think I might have a mold issue? things have not gotten better and the soil seems oddly moist considering how long ago I watered it .

I've also noticed that one of the areas a leaf fell off seems to be oozing a dark liquid. in the past when it has released liquid it was always white. and there seems to be a yellow mold in the soil? i think i may have to re-pot and remove any infected roots? if anyone can offer any guidance it would be much appreciated.
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shelbyvr
Original Author
9 years ago
i decided root rot must be the issue and decided to prune and repot... used cactus soil this time.

we'll see how it goes. attached a photo of the roots before repotting
tropicofcancer (6b SW-PA)
9 years ago
You will be better off repotting in something like 511 mix which drains much better than cactus soil mix. The roots look OK from the picture though. The fungus that you see in soil is most likely due to the soil retaining too much water. Fungus is always there in soil and sometimes they become more visible if the conditions are right for them. Usually they are not a problem for the plant if the soil is well draining.

The black sap is new to me. Was it like that when freshly injured? When sap dries it does turn a darker color but that seems like way too dark though.
shelbyvr
Original Author
9 years ago
yeah the picture of the roots was after i pruned them.there was a fair amount of very long and kind of... mushy... roots so I think that was the problem.

i added a good amount of pumice to the bottom of the pot and the did a layer of pumice/cactus soil mixed and then the cactus soil. fingers crossed.

the black sap actually started before the leaf fell off and then i noticed it come from the spot where the leaf was. when doing the root pruning I also pruned some of the leaves and one branch toward the top of the plant - and the sap from those was white. but.. the area where the black sap was coming from still looks pretty diseased and feels a little soft.

the current state of things:
HU-972405045
6 years ago
This is quite the stab in the dark but I came across your post because I’m having a similar drooping issue! Would love to know how this turned out for you!