bonsaiTALK Community - View Single Post - Indoor Ficus And Juniper

Or if you want real light output may I suggest a 430w high pressure sodium fixture on a light mover and set to a timer for fourteen hours of light?

Just kidding. I've been growing tropicals indoors for fifteen years and that's what I actually use. All trees can thrive and push growth indoors. It just depends on what you're willing to put into it. My set up isn't cheap to buy or run.

Nevertheless, I made the mistake of bringing my crabapple indoors because the temps were dropping below freezing. It budded in two days and then bloomed in a week.

Anything can be grown indoors and anything can thrive indoors. The chief problems with indoor growing is humidity and light. Your house is dry, very very very dry. There is no substitue for a humidifier. Spraying doesn't get the job done. A desert is 20-30% realtive humidity. In the winter my house is 15-18%. A spray bottle won't fix that.

And light. Flourescents work fine, especially the T5s mentioned above if you have enough of them. I use T5s in my office where I also display trees from time to time. T5s have a nicer profile and that pass for a decorative light. Regular shoplight flourescents don't push near the same lumens as T5s and in order to compensate, you need several of them to do it right, like 6-8 of them. That's a lot and their ugly hanging in your house.

The truth is that most people try to grow indoors under a shop light or two, never humidify their trees and put their trees near drafty windows. Then when they fail or their trees suffer horribly, they (surprisingly) claim it can't be done. Utter hogwash.

Yes, it can. It just takes a little thought and persistence.

I will admit. All my tropicals are placed outdoors when the temps are consistently above 50F. But, they typically don't suffer a bit overwinter. I am constantly trimming new growth over the winter months.

I grow several varieties of ficus as well. And when it gets really cold I bring my junipers indoors and set them on the floor where the temps hover around 55F in the sunroom.

I will, however, also admit I need a better set up for overwintering outdoor trees because I really need a cold frame to do it right. Instead, I'm constantly balancing between too cold outside and too warm inside. I don't have a garage or basement either.

I suspect you will have the same problem growing junipers where you are because your junipers will need a dormancy period and it is going to b too cold outside in your area.