ficus free range

[ckmazdaspeed3]

Well, I have not been on here in about six months, but wanted to do some research on ficus care cuz i am getting some brown leaves on my 8 month old ficus. So of course i have been wasting my evening browsing this place and figured that I would post a picture of our free range.

This is only a temporary free range. We let our male Veiled (Elvis) hang out usually one to two full weekend days if we are around the house, and maybe once or twice when I get home from work during the week for a few hours. It does not have a uvb bulb, but he does spend the majority of his time in his cage with the proper lighting.

I am sure that he loves this plant because ever since I started putting him on it, he comes to the door of his cage if I walk in the room where he is kept. I always feel bad when I stop by around lunch during the weekdays to feed him, because he climbs on my arm (even when I try to keep it from his reach) and I have to put him right back in his cage.

I know that chameleons can scare easily, but he does not mind us hanging out in the living room with him. He just hangs out on the branches watching us. He is quite insouciant and we really lucked out.

He has only left the tree a few times. Once, he climbed the christmas tree which was right next to it and was hanging out on the top by the star (I do not know why I did not take a photo . The other times he climbs a branch that I used to make a bridge from the pot to the windowsill. He will hang out there sometimes on sunny days, but generally he likes to hang out high up in the branches.

I think the perfect free range would be this tree in a pot within a much larger pot so he could not leave. Then hang the correct lighting and a misting nozzle from the ceiling and put a food bowl on a limb, and bam! perfect... too bad the gf would not allow that. At least she is cool with the tree and the branch to the window.


... We have a female veiled too. I have put her in the tree a couple times when I am the only one home, but she is the super timid and just holds still when she is on the tree. It is too bad that she does not really get a chance to enjoy it... at least she has the larger and prettier cage with more hiding places.

Edit: He is near the top of the picture at about the 1:00 position. I hate when people show pics of enclosures and do not point out where the cham is if one is in the picture!

and a picture of elvis... does not even care when I am in his face taking photos.

And it seems that I am just not giving enough water and fertilizer to the tree.

 

[millsamus]

I heard ficus are hard to keep. Very picky plant. This advise came from my mother whom has many many orchids, which are a skill to keep!

 

[EvilLost]

where are you getting the brown leaves? All in one place/side or sporadically throughout the plant?

the occasional dead leaf is natural and you can just prune them away. if an excess number are forming in one generalized location, I would check for signs of excess heat


also are they browning throughout, or from the outside tips first? outside tips, again i'd worry heat or water

also how long has it been planted in that pot? do you ever fertilize it in any way?

 

[jannb]

My ficus don't do so well inside for very long and I have to use several and rotate them to the outside for some sunshine. As soon as they start dropping leaves I know it's time for some sun. Your little man sure looks happy.