These types of tree are much more suitable as landscape or park trees. In the proper conditions or with the aid of park maintenance. Aerial roots can be grown from the limbs that help to sustain the weight of the tree. These roots are not suitable for this kind of space but the roots provide an easy fix to all the limb failure.
All you have to do is top the trees, every 5 years or so, this makes the tree much stronger above ground and encourages further slow and sustained root development below ground.
This isn’t a diversity issue it’s a wrong tree for the wrong place and improper care throughout the trees life. The fact the trees have codominant leaders tells me no one addressed it when the trees were smaller and younger. Some simple pruning would have diminished the issue of bark inclusion. I’m in south Florida and ficus grows wild here (multiple species) but our problems with them are roots destroying everything and hurricanes. They will topple over entirely in a storm.
They could be stumped..at least cut back to with 3 ' to 4' of the trunk. Now the trunk itself is not cut back..so it can still be a tall tree..but with much,much,less weight in the canopy for a couple of decades. Plus,not complicated. There are also smaller versions of Ficus nitida like green island that will never be large tree's. Heck,I know Ficus benjamina would do well as a street tree with some minor irrigation in San Francisco- Global Warming. They are a natural lollipop shape in Hayward and Fremont where homeowners planted them as street trees. Look great at 15 -20' tops.
Ficus benjamina if not regularly pruned can become a very large tree. The spread of the branches is greater than the trees height. As with Ficus microcarpa var. hillii the root system is shallow and very aggressive. Cracking pavements, roads, undermining foundations and blocking drains. Both species are unsuitable as street trees unless the city has an open ended budget for tree maintenance. Choices made 20, 30, 60 years ago become big cost items. The decision maker never sees the damage their choice can make. People need horticultural training and to research trees prior to selection. That would save every city huge dollars.
@@geoffbreen2386 In cool San Francisco F. benjamina gets no more than 20' or so in a couple of decades. At least they should try them. But I think Ficus,like Eucalyptus, is a dirty word in the city.
@@StanTheObserver-lo8rx It's a shame the people who decide to plant street trees do not consider other trees that are native to Australia. There are a lot which do not grow that big and would grow in that climate with little care once established. Bottlebrush (Callistemon species) would give that city some beautiful colour.
@@solano760 are you asking if a stump will continue to grow? probably not. You need leaves on the tree for it to live. Although I have seen shoots grow from a stump but I doubt we will ever see it become a tree again in our lifetime. Trees take 30-50 years to mature.
@@ana-bananainca790 there was a bradford pair tree outside my parents home where about 15 years ago majority of it fell on the house during an ice storm. it was chopped down to a stump about 5 feet tall and now its primary branches coming from that stump are about 10-16 inches around. its again taller than the house. its actually pretty common for trees to shoot out new branches after severe pruning. bonsai growers often do this and the trees recover. (assuming the tree is healthy) i threw a live branch into a cup of water from 2 different species on my kitchen table both sprouted leaves after a month or two in the water. that is to say theres plenty of energy left to grow in a stump assuming the roots are left intact.
The failure is not on the tree but ON THE TREE MAINTENANCE.... CITY HAS MONEY FOR MANAGER OF THE MANAGER AND SECRETERAY OF THE SECRETARY AND "INVENTED" POSITIONS. Give maintenance
@@Eastbaypisces could be wrong but maybe theres not enough humidity for them to make aerial roots. i know when i put my ficus in an aquarium tank they started growing aerial roots like crazy.
This form of Ficus microcarpa originates in Eastern Australia and it is known as F. microcarpa var.(variety) hillii. Commonly known here as Hill's Fig or Hill's Weeping Fig. Although it doesn't weep. It is planted extensively in the Canary Islands, Spain. There it is pruned hard every few years to maintain a more compact shape. The dark green leaves offset the grey/whitish trunk for a great colour contrast. They can produce aerial roots in high humidity, but this variety is not known to support its branches with aerial root structures. That is common in a lot of Southeast Asian tropical Ficus species. Ficus microcarpa is a species occurring throughout Southeast Asia including the Philippines south to Eastern Australia. Because of its huge natural range it is highly variable. There are varieties that grow as groundcovers and as 3 metre tall mature plants suitable for hedging. The species is most often seen as very large trees in moist forests with wide spreading shallow roots that form buttresses to help support the trunk.
No sympathy from me. Hopefully SF bans eucalyptus and ficus. They have been proven to be too much of a hazard for humans and the ecosystem. Hopefully theyre all replaced by something that invokes the true character of SF’s historic landscape. Like a Coast live oak
The roots are not AGGRESSIVE ! They are following their natural growth system. Don't blame the poor tree for some ignorant human planting it in the wrong place. The leaves are dying because of traffic pollution. Humans are the culprit here. Not the trees.
Public Safety in San Fran? You guys still don't get it there. Poop and syringes everywhere and decisions made with zero thought and climate is always changing. I could go on but San Fran is a lost cause.
These types of tree are much more suitable as landscape or park trees. In the proper conditions or with the aid of park maintenance. Aerial roots can be grown from the limbs that help to sustain the weight of the tree. These roots are not suitable for this kind of space but the roots provide an easy fix to all the limb failure.
Easy solution, just prune them severely, the are one of the most resilient tree species, they will always come back.
All you have to do is top the trees, every 5 years or so, this makes the tree much stronger above ground and encourages further slow and sustained root development below ground.
there are many other urban friendly tree options.
This isn’t a diversity issue it’s a wrong tree for the wrong place and improper care throughout the trees life. The fact the trees have codominant leaders tells me no one addressed it when the trees were smaller and younger. Some simple pruning would have diminished the issue of bark inclusion. I’m in south Florida and ficus grows wild here (multiple species) but our problems with them are roots destroying everything and hurricanes. They will topple over entirely in a storm.
Beautiful trees, I got a couple, getting more, they are over sf too , lots of shade!
THE PROBLEM IS NOT THE TREES BUT THE LOCK OF MAINTENANCE.
Ahhh, you've been introduced to South Florida living....enjoy.
They could be stumped..at least cut back to with 3 ' to 4' of the trunk. Now the trunk itself is not cut back..so it can still be a tall tree..but with much,much,less weight in the canopy for a couple of decades. Plus,not complicated.
There are also smaller versions of Ficus nitida like green island that will never be large tree's.
Heck,I know Ficus benjamina would do well as a street tree with some minor irrigation in San Francisco- Global Warming. They are a natural lollipop shape in Hayward and Fremont where homeowners planted them as street trees. Look great at 15 -20' tops.
Ficus benjamina if not regularly pruned can become a very large tree. The spread of the branches is greater than the trees height.
As with Ficus microcarpa var. hillii the root system is shallow and very aggressive. Cracking pavements, roads, undermining foundations and blocking drains.
Both species are unsuitable as street trees unless the city has an open ended budget for tree maintenance.
Choices made 20, 30, 60 years ago become big cost items. The decision maker never sees the damage their choice can make.
People need horticultural training and to research trees prior to selection.
That would save every city huge dollars.
@@geoffbreen2386 In cool San Francisco F. benjamina gets no more than 20' or so in a couple of decades. At least they should try them. But I think Ficus,like Eucalyptus, is a dirty word in the city.
@@StanTheObserver-lo8rx It's a shame the people who decide to plant street trees do not consider other trees that are native to Australia.
There are a lot which do not grow that big and would grow in that climate with little care once established.
Bottlebrush (Callistemon species) would give that city some beautiful colour.
Why not just prune them way down?
dumb question but it you cut it like 6 feet from the grown do the roots still grow? I'm buying a house and someone did this
@@solano760 are you asking if a stump will continue to grow? probably not. You need leaves on the tree for it to live. Although I have seen shoots grow from a stump but I doubt we will ever see it become a tree again in our lifetime. Trees take 30-50 years to mature.
@@ana-bananainca790 there was a bradford pair tree outside my parents home where about 15 years ago majority of it fell on the house during an ice storm. it was chopped down to a stump about 5 feet tall and now its primary branches coming from that stump are about 10-16 inches around. its again taller than the house. its actually pretty common for trees to shoot out new branches after severe pruning. bonsai growers often do this and the trees recover. (assuming the tree is healthy) i threw a live branch into a cup of water from 2 different species on my kitchen table both sprouted leaves after a month or two in the water. that is to say theres plenty of energy left to grow in a stump assuming the roots are left intact.
@@solano760 if roots are intact and other factors arent at play yes it will grow back.
They were planted in the first place because you have people working for the city they don’t know what they’re doing!!
Ficus is illegal in fl
The failure is not on the tree but ON THE TREE MAINTENANCE.... CITY HAS MONEY FOR MANAGER OF THE MANAGER AND SECRETERAY OF THE SECRETARY AND "INVENTED" POSITIONS. Give maintenance
Ask someone about PRUNING !
What species of Ficus? They do not have ariel roots.
Ficus microcarpa nitida
@@Eastbaypisces could be wrong but maybe theres not enough humidity for them to make aerial roots. i know when i put my ficus in an aquarium tank they started growing aerial roots like crazy.
This form of Ficus microcarpa originates in Eastern Australia and it is known as F. microcarpa var.(variety) hillii.
Commonly known here as Hill's Fig or Hill's Weeping Fig. Although it doesn't weep.
It is planted extensively in the Canary Islands, Spain.
There it is pruned hard every few years to maintain a more compact shape.
The dark green leaves offset the grey/whitish trunk for a great colour contrast.
They can produce aerial roots in high humidity, but this variety is not known to support its branches with aerial root structures.
That is common in a lot of Southeast Asian tropical Ficus species.
Ficus microcarpa is a species occurring throughout Southeast Asia including the Philippines south to Eastern Australia.
Because of its huge natural range it is highly variable.
There are varieties that grow as groundcovers and as 3 metre tall mature plants suitable for hedging.
The species is most often seen as very large trees in moist forests with wide spreading shallow roots that form buttresses to help support the trunk.
why not prune the trees? why pay to remove them. cut them to stumps and start over. if done right they will recover easily.
Lousy ..not the best choice..
Only a idiot would plant this on a sidewalk
Its a nice park tree
sad
The roots are AGGRESSIVE.
Should be grown in parks or houses with large yard areas that are not near house or irrigation or sidewalks.
No sympathy from me. Hopefully SF bans eucalyptus and ficus. They have been proven to be too much of a hazard for humans and the ecosystem.
Hopefully theyre all replaced by something that invokes the true character of SF’s historic landscape. Like a Coast live oak
The roots are not AGGRESSIVE ! They are following their natural growth system. Don't blame the poor tree for some ignorant human planting it in the wrong place. The leaves are dying because of traffic pollution. Humans are the culprit here. Not the trees.
The roots are AGGRESSIVE.
Should be grown in parks or houses with large yard areas that are not near house or irrigation or sidewalks.
@@RicardoLopez-ub2hs Duh...thanks for mansplaining your point of view...so aggressively !
Public Safety in San Fran? You guys still don't get it there. Poop and syringes everywhere and decisions made with zero thought and climate is always changing. I could go on but San Fran is a lost cause.