When it comes to home decorating, ficus triangularis is one of the worth-mentioning contenders. Besides accentuating the main aesthetic of the space, its photosynthesis process gives the house more fresh, pollution-free air.
Let’s find out about this highly adaptable and delightful houseplant right now!
What Is Ficus Triangularis?
Ficus triangularis, also known as the triangle ficus, is an ornamental plant in central tropical Africa.
The plant belongs to the Ficus family, comprising up to 800 species, varying from shrubs and epiphytes to vines and trees. Triangle ficus is a shrub and is one of the most sought-after sub-genus these days.
A triangle ficus can reach up to 90 feet in height in the wild, as high as a grown pine tree. However, the size of home-decorating ficus plants is much smaller for easy care and better space fittings.
Specifically, the average height of a ficus plant indoors ranges from 6 feet to 10 feet tall, depending on the quality of the growing environment.
Ficus indoor plants won many people’s hearts as a displaying piece since it is an evergreen species. The deep green shades of the leaves remain the same throughout the years, and they are easy to grow and maintain.
This video explains how to propagate and care for Ficus Triangularis:
Ficus Triangularis Care
Soil
It is an undeniable fact that ficus plant care largely centers around the quality of the soil. By overlooking the soil condition, you are ignoring the most standard element of ficus care.
With that said, before getting further into the caring process, you should make sure that your shrub tree is nurtured by a porous, nutritious, and well-moisturized growing medium.
For the optimum soil condition, it would be best to use liquid houseplant fertilizer in the first few months. Some of the popular ficus fertilizer brands you can consider are Miracle-Gro, Osmocote, EarthPods, and Jobe’s Organics.
It might take a few tryouts to find the best fertilizer for ficus trees that your plants are fully satisfied with.
Watering
Ficus watering is seemingly an easy task, but it can take lots of learning to fulfill the water requirements of your ficus plants. Essentially, it all boils down to the amount of water and the watering frequency.
When the heat shoots up during the summer seasons, it is advisable to moisturize the plants every 3 to 5days. On the other hand, you can lessen the watering times when the weather gets cold; once a week should suffice.
Light
Triangle ficus tends to gravitate towards shaded places. They don’t require constant exposure to direct sunlight to thrive. For that reason, the ideal location for this shrub tree is anywhere in your house with indirect lights.
Humidity
Since triangle ficus is originally from regions with tropical climates, they are the most comfortable with places of high humidity levels. If you are living in a tropical area, humidity is a concern only when winter rolls around.
However, if you live in a dry and hot place most of the time, you may want to get an automatic humidifier. It knows when there is insufficient moisture in the air and provides it immediately, which is beneficial to the plants’ growth.
Temperature
The appropriate temperature for this houseplant varies according to the season. More specifically, you should keep the temperature between 68 to 74 degrees Fahrenheit during summer and spring.
Whereas during the winter season, we recommend placing your triangle ficus in an area with a temperature of around 61 to 63 degrees Fahrenheit.
Additionally, avoid anywhere near the air conditioners or cold drafts to protect the plant’s health since it’s a warm-climate shrub.
Common Problems With Ficus Triangularis
Leaves Turn Yellow
Yellow variegated leaves are one of the most common problems people encounter when tending triangle ficus. The root of this yellow leaves issue stems from poor soil conditions, including dehydration and water cloggings.
To maintain healthy leaves, strictly keeping up with the watering schedule is crucial. By ensuring the soil is fully moisturized, this phenomenon will never show up again.
Besides that, you can use either pine bark or sphagnum peat moss, which are good sources of nutrients to repair the damaged soil.
Leaves Fall Off
Due to adjustments to their locations or growing mediums, Ficus plants tend to lose their foliage in large amounts.
Indeed, dropping leaves is their initial reaction to adapt to the new environment gradually. For that reason, choosing one permanent growing area for your plants might free you from this problem.
Regularly moisturizing and fertilizing the plants will significantly help them recover from environmental change.
Pests And Diseases
This tropical shrub prefers low light, and humid conditions are a breeding ground for bugs and pests, such as aphids, thrips, and mealybugs.
To reduce the chance of your plants catching diseases, we recommend you clean the leaves every day and eliminate any bugs that you notice on the foliage surface. Keeping the plant clean will help to avoid diseased foliage.
Propagating Ficus Triangularis
Propagating ficus triangularis at home has never been a challenge. It only takes a few pieces of equipment, an hour, and a little bit of patience.
Essential Tools And Planting Materials
- A healthy grown plant to take apical cuttings
- 2 pots of choice
- Growing medium
How To Propagating Ficus Triangularis
Step 1: Sterilization
Before getting into the main works, it is essential to carefully disinfect the equipment to eliminate any potentially harmful bacteria from the seedling.
Also, it would be best to wear protective garments to avoid skin irritation since your hands can contact microbes during the planting process.
Step 2: Choosing The Seedling
Take a close observation of the mature plant that you have prepared. Carefully remove a branch of about 15 to 18 inches. The cutout branch should still have some healthy green foliage on it.
Step 3: Prepare The Growing Medium
Before placing the seedling, you need to fill the growing basket with a mixture of a growing medium of your choice (some of the options are perlite, coo coir, clay pebbles), peat, sand, and fertilizer.
Also, your pot should have a drainage hole at the bottom to channel away excess water.
Step 4: Plant The Seedling
Once the pot is prepared, position the cutout branch into the middle of it. Ensuring the temperature around the seedling is consistently above 77 degrees Fahrenheit, and the light condition is always low.
You can use a polyester bag to cover the cutting in the first2 weeks.
Step 5: Changing pot to maintain the desired humidity
Once the cutting has developed roots, replant it in a bigger, more esthetically pleasing pot – it’s a permanent home.
Propagation Timeline For Ficus Triangularis
Taking care of the plants based on a specific propagating timeline is more efficient than relying on intuition. There are plenty of propagation timelines that you can follow, and here is our suggested one.
|
Weeks |
What To Do |
|---|---|
|
Weeks 1 to 2 |
Planting the seedling in the small pot to grow its roots |
|
Weeks 3 to 4 |
At this phase, the root starts developing. You should cover it with a polyester bag or put it in a humidity dome. |
|
Weeks 5 to 7 |
Switching to the bigger basket since the roots have grown nicely. |
|
Months 2 to 4 |
This is the fundamental stage for the plant’s growth. Be patient and stick to the caring schedule for the best results. |
Top Tips For Growing A Healthy Ficus Triangularis
Here are a few tips on how to care for a ficus:
- It would help not to use tap water for watering. Instead, opt for room-temperature distilled water to supply the plants with more nutrients.
- Check for signs of dehydration before watering the plants. Keep in mind to only water the plants if the top two to three inches of the soil is dry.
- Besides giving the plants sufficient water, we suggest choosing well-draining soil to prevent water clogging efficiently.
- Even though triangle ficus doesn’t enjoy bright lights, a small provision of sunlight or artificial light now and then is essential to its growth.
- The ficus propagation process can be challenging at first since it is one of the most slow-growing plants. Yet, you can see noticeable results from the fourth month if you are patient enough.
Conclusion
Hopefully, this article has guided you on the right path if you want to grow a ficus triangularis at home.
When planting this tree, it is imperative to be patient and consistent with the watering schedule. It will take a few months to see the shrub tree thrive, but it is worth the effort.
