If you encountered ficus benjamina in the wild, mostly in Asia or Australia, you could expect it to be as tall as 30 metres. Don’t panic that you’re going to need to smash a hole in your roof. Our indoor version is much more compact.
With its abundance of glossy variegated leaves it makes a very stylish houseplant. It’s pretty simple to take care of too. This plant prefers bright, indirect light, it just asks that it not be allowed to dry out. You can also encourage it to grow more strongly by giving it a feed with plant fertiliser once a month in spring and summer.
In the wild it will bear small orange-red edible fruit, but don’t expect yours to fruit indoors. Enjoy it for its leafy handsomeness.
If it sheds some leaves shortly after delivery, don't worry. It's just its way of adjusting to new light and temperature levels. A bit of leaf drop throughout the year is normal, especially in winter. It has so many leaves that it can spare losing a few.
Did you know?
There are 800 different species of ficus that have evolved into different shapes and sizes.