On Mar 25, 9:08 am, "Luke" wrote:
When is the best time to prune a standard ficus, I have this very large one
in a half wine barrel however it's canopy is quite spindly, I want to cut it
back to try and make the tree alot denser. How far back should I cut it?

Cheers
Luke

I am not sure what you mean by "standard ficus". If you mean the
elastica type (rubber tree) they are damn near immortal. You can cut
them anytime and almost any amount. Reducing it by half would not be a
problem at all. If you want to be picky wait until August (I assume
you are in Oz) but now would very likely be fine especially in the
warmer districts.

I have one about 3m high in a 40cm pot that has been there for 30
years (not joking). It has so overgrown the pot it falls over unless
wired back to the wall. It is never fertilised or re-potted and rarely
watered, I beat it back randomly as it is likely to escape the pot by
sending a root up over the side looking for victims. Very dangerous
plants ficus elastica, must be disciplined harshly. Keep an eye on
small children and pets in its vicinity, toy dogs have been known to
vanish mysteriously. Never, *ever* even think about planting it out.

If you mean ficus benjamina (weeping fig) they are also tough and deal
well with pruning but I would be less ruthless. Wait until August for
major pruning and prune by up to a third, although you may well get
away with more. If you water it and feed it come Spring it will
respond very well and bush up.

David