It’s easy to water ficus, and in this article, I’ll walk you through my process.
No matter whether the ficus is ficus ginseng, elastica, lyrata, or a regular benjamina, the same technique for watering it applies.
The water needs and watering frequency of these four genera are essentially the same, depending on the plant’s size and kind of substrate.
The same goal may be accomplished using a variety of approaches. Let us get right into it.
How Often Do You Water Ficus?
Ficus plants, including benjamina and lyrata, need to be watered in dry soil in order for their roots to absorb surplus water and oxygen.
Since so many factors interact with one another, it is impossible to determine a single date that applies to everyone. They include some of the following components:
- Season of the year
- Light
- Temperature
- Ambient humidity
- Substrate type
- Pot size
- Time of the last repotting
- Ventilation
- Etc.
The water requirement of the Ficus certainly increases when it is hot, the light is abundant, and the wind blows on its foliage, so watering must be done close together.
In addition to this, the evaporation of water from the soil itself and the quantity of substrate available to the plant must be taken into consideration.
To understand if the soil is dry even inside the block (and not just on the surface), you need to stick a finger inside the root ball. Alternatively, a wooden skewer.
If particles of soil remain attached, it means that the substrate is still moist, and therefore, you need to wait another day or two.
An infallible system, which, however, requires a small investment, are these irrigation indicators that change color depending on the level of humidity in the soil. Wet blue and dry white.
If interested, learn why the monstera leaf is turning yellow by clicking here.
How Much Water Does A Ficus Need?
Watering often, even if with little water, is wrong because, in this way, you seriously risk keeping the upper area of the earthen block constantly moist, the one near the collar, with the risk of making it rot.
Only water When the soil is dry, you need to water the ficus (whether ginseng or benjamina) with an abundant quantity of water.
Doing so as to fill the crevices in the soil and facilitate absorption by the roots.
Basically, you wait for the root ball to be nice and dry, and then you wet it thoroughly.
Only in this way can the roots be given both the water and oxygen they need.
In the meantime, most of the roots wither and dry, triggering a series of other phenomena, such as yellowing and loss of foliage.
The right question to ask is, therefore, not how much water to give to the ficus because that must always be abundant.
Rather, it is important to understand how to water it so as to achieve good saturation of the medium.
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What Are The Watering Techniques, And How Do You Water Ficus?
There are essentially three watering techniques: the classic one (or from above), sub-irrigation, and immersion. Let’s look at them briefly.
Watering From Above
Watering the ficus from above or from the edge of the pot is the most common technique, but it does not always lead to good results.
The problem lies in the characteristics of the peat of which the soil is made, which tends to shrink and compact a lot when it dries.
Over time, this leads to a very hard lump that struggles to hydrate. Cavities are created along the edges of the vase, which causes the water to drain without actually being absorbed.
The result is that the substrate does not get wet (except on the surface), and the ficus begins to suffer.
To counteract this phenomenon, you need to scrape the surface of the root ball with a fork so as to make it soft and plug the air spaces created along the perimeter of the pot.
Then, lightly wet the soil so as to reactivate the peat’s absorption capacity.
After 5–10 minutes, proceed with the actual watering, pouring in plenty of water—more than the pot can hold.
Finally, it is necessary to remove the excess water from the saucer so that the air can circulate again inside the mixture.
Sub-Irrigation
Subirrigation consists of pouring the water inside the saucer (or basin in the case of small ficus) so that the soil absorbs it and rises by capillarity.
Depending on the size of the pot, it can take 10–20 minutes before the substrate “sucks up” all the water it is able to absorb.
If you see that the soil quickly absorbs all the water, add more until it reaches the maximum saturation point.
Once the plant (or rather, the substrate) stops absorbing water, empty the remainder from the saucer.
After a few waterings, you will understand exactly how much water to give to the ficus without exaggerating, and it will not be necessary to remove the excess from the saucer.
This is welcome in the case of large, heavy, and difficult-to-lift plants such as many well-grown Benjamina, robusta, or lyrata.
Immersion
Immersion watering consists of immersing the pot for 5–10 minutes inside a large container full of water until it reaches the surface layer of the soil.
This technique allows you to homogeneously wet the root ball and bring it to full saturation.
Obviously, it is applicable only to small plants and is light and easy to handle.
It is my favorite technique for watering Ficus ginseng bonsai, where the lump of soil usually becomes very hard and difficult to rehydrate.
Once the soil is thoroughly wet, let the excess water drip off and place the plant back in its place until the next watering when the substrate is completely dry.
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What Water Should I Use For Watering Ficus?
The ideal irrigation water for Ficus grown in pots must be low in chlorine and limestone.
It is proven that ficus grow healthier and more lush if you pay attention to the quality of the water. Although these plants are particularly resistant,
Ultimately, a few small adjustments are enough.
To dechlorinate tap water, let it rest in a container for 24 hours.
You will notice that air bubbles (chlorine, to be more precise) are created along the perimeter of the container.
Mix the water so that it comes to the surface and disperses into the environment.
The ability of limestone (calcium and magnesium carbonate) to dissolve in tap water depends on the location.
On the internet, you can easily find the chemical characteristics of the water in your municipality. Pay attention to the hardness.
If the water is soft, medium-hard, or fairly hard, you can use it without any problem (from 0°F to 18°F).
If it is hard or very hard (from 18° to 30° or more), you need to filter it or dilute it with an air conditioner, rain, or demineralized water.
| Parameter | Detected value | Limit value | Maximum recommended value | Unit of measure |
| Hydrogen ion concentration (pH) | 7,6 | 6,5-9,5 | pH unit | |
| Fixed residual (from calculation) | 437 | 1500 | mg/l | |
| Total hardness | 31 | 15-50 | F | |
| Electrical conductivity at 200C | 623 | 2500 | µS/cm | |
| Soccer | 94,0 | mg/l | ||
| Magnesium | 19,2 | mg/l | ||
| Ammonium | <0,1 | 0,5 | mg/l | |
| Chloride | 28 | 250 | mg/l | |
| Sulphate | 29 | 250 | mg/ | |
| Potassium | 1,9 | mg/l | ||
| Sodium | 20 | 200 | mg/l | |
| Arsenic | <1 | 10 | Ug/1 | |
| Bicarbonate | 299 | mg/l | ||
| Free residual chlorine | <0,1 | 0,2 | mg/l |
As you can see, in my municipality, the tap water is very hard, and I ensure to filter it or dilute it with demineralized water.
In the case of small quantities of water (3 litres), you can use this very effective filter jug.
For larger volumes, I recommend cutting the tap water with 50% demineralized, filtered, or rainwater.
During the winter, make sure to wet the ficus with warm water around 20–25 °C.
Obviously, it would help if you also fertilized the ficus, especially during the growing season. Click read now for more information.
Conclusion
Since you know how to water a ficus, all the advice provided earlier is still valid for Lyrata, Elastica, Ginseng, and Benjamin.
Water well, wait for the soil to dry, and water again. Don’t water too often or at a fixed interval because there is a serious risk that water stagnation will cause the leaves to yellow and (even worse) the roots to rot.
Have you seen my other article on how to prune a ficus? Click here to read.
Or are you interested in Monstera? Click here to learn how to care for them. [link]
