Monthly Progress #85

Here comes the rain... But the ficus tree needs time to soak up the new water. We need to be patient with this very slowly growing tree. But... what's the rush? It has been raining more often, and more copious as the hurricane season is fast approaching. New cycads are being planted around this area as can be seen in this photo. They will rapidly change the view from this vantage.

Monthly Progress #84

Here is the Ficus religiosa, exactly 7 years from the date of its planting on April 17th, 2011. It's incredible how time flows through one's life. 100 years is nothing at all... This area is finally liberated from the weeds that aggressively took over since hurricane Irma. This ficus tree is really taking its time to grow big. It looks like the growth wants to concentrate on the bottom. Trees can do that, taking time to grow, especially this species. It can outlive many of us, mere humans. My goal is to see this tree 10 years from now... Let's plan on that.

Monthly Progress #83

Weeds are still king here. It is simply just too much work and not enough manpower... eventually though... The ficus tree is putting out many new growths that hopefully will be able to take advantage of the new spring coming next month... when rain is expected...

Monthly Progress Report #82

The ficus is still in its dormant state, looking quite lethargic, but at closeup, new growths are trying to emerge from the trunk and smaller branches. One got to be patient for growth to take its sweet time... Spring is coming in a few months and rain will come in due time. For the first time in months, some cleaning up are beginning in this area, but it is still "a jungle out there!"

Monthly Progress #81

Here is a photo of the Ficus religiosa taken today. This area is still immersed in the aftermath of hurricane Irma. The work to clean up this botanical center is overwhelming and it is progressing very slowly and very expensively. It will be a while before the workers can clear weeds away from this area. The ficus looks bare again at this time and is expected to resume its slow growth (at least for now) in the early spring.

Monthly Progress #80

It has been a full 7 years... Today is the 7th anniversary of December 17th, 2010. Time has a way to travel faster than one can imagine. You look away, and one year has silently gone by... year after year, month after month, week after week, day after day, hour after hour... a new year has arrived. Here we are at the waning days of 2017. A new year is dawning in just 2 weeks. The ficus tree is dormant, putting out still young growths just to prove that it is full of life inside its trunk and branches. Seven years? Consider this: "The oldest verified age for an angiosperm tree is 2293 years for the Sri Maha Bodhi Sacred Fig (Ficus religiosa) planted in 288 BC at Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka; this is also the oldest human-planted tree with a known planting date." Ref.: "http://scienceline.ucsb.edu/getkey.php?key=1181." So, our infant tree here has a lot to look up to and we certainly will not be around to see how it will fare about 23 centuries in the future, in the year of 4,310!.

Monthly Progress #79

Two months after hurricane Irma hit the Miami area, creating havoc felt today and beyond. The ficus survived and life goes on... It is in the familiar dormant stage this time of the year, but many new growths have already sprouted, however slowly. Work around here is overwhelming and the tall grass has been tamed somewhat... but lots more work is awaiting.

Monthly Progress #78

Here is the ficus tree today. It has survived hurricane Irma as well as can be expected. It does look bare but that is usually the case at the end of the year. The Montgomery botanical center has suffered quite a bit from the winds of Irma and many large trees were uprooted, including the heart breaking death of the state of FLorida champion tree, the Cananga odorata. Work to recover is hard and time consuming. This particular area is waiting for its turn... and the grass is knee high as seen in this photo. we are happy the hurricane season is nearing its end.

Monthly Progress #77

September is the most active month for hurricanes in Miami. This year, we had the visit of hurricane Irma! Miami was very lucky when Irma, a powerful category 4 or 5 hurricane could have come and hit it directly. Instead, Irma hit the Florida keys with full force, while Miami only suffered from her fringes, with wind force equivalent to a category 1 hurricane. We lost power for about 2 weeks, and many, many trees were down. Fortunately, the Ficus religiosa escaped and is still standing. Sadly, a Cananga odorata, our state champion, and my favorite tree here was down!

Monthly Progress #76

The ficus tree continues its growth now that it is established. This area is hot and humid today and well populated with mosquitoes hungry for blood. Weed is growing wild as maintenance is lagging due to aggressive growth of grass and anything else. One can see the explosive growth of weed by comparing this photo with the photo of last month.

Monthly Progress #75

At three months in addition to a grueling 6 years of struggle, this Ficus religiosa is finally established. It's about time. Now, this tree looks very healthy and many new growths are rounding its shape nicely. Ficus trees are long living and this tree has many more years to grow to a large shade tree at this location in the future.

Monthly Progress #74

Look at this ficus tree today. It looks magnificent. We had copious amount of rain for the past few weeks... and the tree has received some extra tender loving care in form of welcome nutrient supplement... Thank you, Christine!

Monthly Progress #73

This is the first month of the 7th year. Time goes on like clockwork and no one can stop it... This tree has never looked as good as it does today. New growths came out in force as predicted last month when the tree was bare. It does look very good, and I am happy!

Monthly Progress #72

This is Monthly Progress #72! That is 12 x 6! It has been 6 years since this tree was planted at this location. Year in, year out, this tree has struggled to grow ever so slowly. But it is here to stay. Decidedly, this Ficus religiosa is semi deciduous. All the leaves on the upper branches have fallen. The bottom is growing, not vigorously but patiently. New leaves should start any day now... The seventh year has begun counting...

Monthly Progress #70 & #71

The clock ticks on, and it is again time to rest for this ficus tree. Growth has slowed to a crawl and last month's report was skipped. Now, the tree still looks dormant and it is definitely semi-deciduous in nature because many leaves have fallen off. This tree is taking its time to grow...

Monthly Progress #69

This is the beginning of a new year, January of 2017. We are in the dry season of the year in Miami and trees will need to wait until April for the rain to come... This ficus tree is pampered and it gets some water once weekly. Although it has sprouted many small branches in the bottom of its trunk, new growth probably will have to wait until April to make further progress. What's a few months... Let's wait.

Monthly Progress #68

Time waits for no one! It has been six years... and at times, it seems only like yesterday. Memory is a mysterious thing that will never be understood... It lingers... It outlasts... even time...

Monthly Progress #67

This area must have had quite a bit of rain a few days ago. It is quite soaked. In this view, the ficus tree is seen in the direction of the newly planted (over a year ago) Alstonia scholaris, showing that it is still quite inundated. This tree needs adapting to this low lying area prone to flooding before it can grow and catch up with the other two planted in locations with higher elevations in this center. The ficus has now adapted because it was planted almost 6 years ago, and because its location is not as low as that of the Alstonia.

Monthly Progress #66

Here is the ficus tree, at about 10 feet tall as of today. I now think I understand why this tree took so long to get established: that is because of its being in the area prone to intruding salt water from Biscayne bay. I could have chosen a different location at higher ground, but this place is secluded, which I like better. There is another ficus tree ( I am not sure its species name) nearby that is thriving so hopefully this tree will perform as well. 5 years down, many more to count...

Monthly Progress #65

Everyone around here is surprised this ficus took so long to finally decide to move on, five years and five months if you count the months as I do. In this area, there is no limit to how large it can get. Let's wait and see.

Monthly Progress #64

With the rain falling almost every day, the ficus is happy happy happy, and it grows to show. The weeds in this are have finally been dealt with and all the cycads are liberated. But today... mosquitoes, mosquitoes everywhere and I had to run for cover.

Monthly Progress #63

The ficus tree is now growing vigorously. In about a month, the main branch has grown to about 10 feet. Several other branches also are competing for the show. It looks great. I can't say the same for the weeds surrounding this area. Compare to last month to see how much the weeds have taken over... All the poor cycads have been swamped and must be suffocating underneath. This area is begging for some trimming... Hopefully it will be done soon. Return to see how this ficus tree fares from now on.

Monthly Progress #62

I was absent and missed progress report #61 for May 2016. Progress report #62 for June is late, and it is posted today... After about six weeks of irregular but copious rain, the ficus tree responded in kind and it looks vigorous, about 8 feet tall with several new branches from the base. I'd say it is now well established.

Five Years and Counting...

Here is Ficus religiosa exactly five years after it was planted here. After several years of slow growth and a few recent broken branches from animals and strong wind, this tree is displaying many new strong growths starting from its base. It's looking good...

Monthly Progress #59

Here is how the ficus tree looks today, small but is now resuming its quite vigorous growth from the base. Next month will mark the fifth year after this tree was planted at this location. Time flies...

Monthly Progress #58

This ficus had another setback when its top was recently broken... It could have been because of a strong gust of wind... or perhaps of other unknown cause. It will need to grow again from a base that appears to be very strong. It has all the time in the world that it needs... eventually becoming a big tree at this location.

Monthly Progress #57

This is the first time in many years that this ficus tree looks this good in January. This species is supposed to be non-deciduous, meaning it should not shed its leaves during the winter months... but this is the first time that seems so. Hopefully it has emerged to be non-deciduous after all, and continue to grow faster from now on.

Monthly Progress #56

Today is the 5th anniversary. The clock keeps ticking, adding more days to the calendar that grows older, heavier and greyer with age. Finally, finally, this Ficus religiosa decides to resume life by seemingly growing normally now and this is a photo taken today. According to its genes, it should grow into a sizable evergreen tree here, but only time can tell...

Monthly Progress #55

Here is a photo of the ficus tree taken today. It does look nice and seems to keep a well sustained growth. A couple weeks ago, a good growing lateral branch was broken, supposedly by a night prowler trying to climb the tree. The broken branch was trimmed away without any adverse effect. Let's hope that it stay in this growing mode from now on.

Monthly Progress #54

This tree finally seems to take "roots" and the new growths have actually kept on growing. Let's hope it has turned "a new leaf" and continues this trend from now on.

Monthly Progress #53

Look, new growths! Usually, at this time, this ficus goes into its dormant stage.. but right now, it has several new strong growths. Granted, there were lots of rain recently, more than the previous years and may be that is what it wanted. Let's hope that is the trigger required for a steady growth from now on.

Monthly Progress #52

Spring came and gone, Summer turning into Fall... and the Ficus is still refusing to grow. Here it is, 52 months after planting. We have decided to leave it here a while longer to see what will happen. Who knows if it will decide to take off in a year or two...

Monthly Progress #51

Here is a photo of the Ficus religiosa taken today, July 17th, 2015. It looks fine with many new leaves, but there are concerns about the slow growth of this tree. It is feared that the roots may be too close to the salt water intrusion due to its location's proximity to the estuaries. If that is the case, we may want to consider moving it further to the West. During this new planting season (to last throughout August,) many trees found their new homes around this area. Among those are two Alstonia scholaris that I planted from seeds. They are about 3 years old. One of the Alstonia can be seen at the far distance, to the left of the ficus. The other one is to the right, but not seen in this photo. These two Alstonia are planted to be companion of the ficus.

Monthly Progress #50

Here is the Ficus religiosa as of today, June 17th, 2015. Weeds grow wild now that the heat is intense and they are being dealt with today in this area. Tick tock...

Monthly Progress #49

After a few rainy days... although still very few and far in between, the ficus is putting out many new growths and looks very handsome today. This is the new planting time, and several new trees will occupy new sites that have been drilled and marked at a stone throw from this location. Among new trees being planned, two Alstonia scholaris will be the new comers. They came from seeds that I sowed two years ago and I can't wait to watch them grow as well. Come back next month to see how we are doing.

Fourth Anniversary After Planting

Here it is, the Ficus religiosa exactly 4 years after being planted here. Year after year, it loses all of its leaves during the "cold" months, then generates new growths as seen today. One thing for sure, it is taking its sweet time to grow bigger and/or taller. Experts here are somtimes concerned and one theory is it is quite close to the estuaries and the tree must deal with the salt intrusion. As long as it does this every year, I think it's doing fine. Let's wait a few more years.

Monthly Progress # 47

It will be one more month until the fourth anniversary of the planting of this ficus here. This tree is very slow growing and definitely deciduous because it is bare right now... but the wait was worthwhile as new growths are budding as it can be seen in this shot taken this morning. I would like to learn how this tree will grow to be very large as it should. I think I have the time to wait...

Monthly Progress #46

This year has very few cold days, and a weak cold front came and left us a few days ago. It is sunny today. The ficus tree still looks bare... patiently awaiting Spring to put out new growths. Let's wait...

Monthly Progress #45

This is now 2015. Another year has dawned upon us. The ficus is bare on top but there is a small branch with green leaves at the lower trunk due to the warmer than usual "winter" in this sub-tropical Florida. It is sunny and nice today in the upper 60's. Nice weather.

4th Anniversary

It's incredible to contemplate the passing of time. It goes on, tic by toc without any regards to human feelings. It has been exactly four years that I lost Maryse. Her memory still here, coming to visit now and then. Now I think I have a better understanding of the word "unforgettable." But... here is her Ficus religiosa, standing here 4 months shy of a full four year after being planted. It looks bare now as it does every year at this time, but it is full of life within, waiting to push out new growths in the spring. Today, the weather is very nice, but this ficus is sleeping so I just water it silently in solitude.

Monthly Progress #43

It is now November, a month shy of the 4 year mark. Time flies... The ficus does not grow by much this year but it now has numerous new buddings on many of its branches. It is not sure if new growths will push out now, or it will soon go into hibernation to wait until April of next year. I've got plenty of time to wait...

Monthly Progress # 42

We had some heavy rain a few days ago but not quite enough and this area dried up rather quickly. The ficus only put out some small new leaves to show it is still trying to grow, but very slowly. Fall has begun and time ticks on...

Monthly Progress # 41

This is how the ficus tree looks today. This year is marked with extremely slow growth. Although new leaves have returned in the early spring, no new branches have developed. Lacking the rain, this area is quite dry and weekly watering is really needed. We just have to wait and see.

Monthly Progress #40

July came and is now gone. We are in August already and here is how our ficus tree looks today. It is healthy, but the growth has been slow. Maintenance at this location is performed regularly and weeds are kept at bay. There is not much rain this year but the ficus is happy with dependable weekly watering. September is traditionally the peak of the hurricanes season so more rain may come then to promote more vigorous growth. But we are patient.

Monthly Progress #39

It is mid July... and the rain is copious this year. This photo was taken at about 11 AM under a threatening sky with possible thunderstorm and rain. But it is hot and humid, and hot and humid and hot and humid... with mosquitoes. It is no fun to keep the ground tidy and it can be seen here that this area needs a good trim. The Ficus religiosa is happy among its cycad friends.

Monthly Progress #38

It is now growing season again and the F. religiosa has pushed out new growths, slowly but steadily. This has been a wet week with thunder storms that arrive almost every afternoon. The extra water is very welcome and the surrounding vegetation is happy.. and so are the juvenile crabs.

Monthly Progress #37

As expected, the ficus tree has resumed growing activities. Many branches have emerged from hibernation. The tree now looks more furnished and very healthy. More cicad plants are being added to this area... and once a week watering will help this tree sustaining continuous growth throughout the summer months.

Progress Report 3 year anniversary

This is the ficus tree as it appears today, exactly 3 years after it was planted on April 17th, 2011. Behaving as a true deciduous tree at this location, it shed all of the leaves of last year. Now, the new growths are sprouting from many old leaf nodes, some are still only tiny green bumps trying to break out from the hardened bark. Rain is still very scarce this year. Hopefully we will not have a drought. As one says, April showers bring May flowers. That is yet to happen. Come back next month to see where the new branches will have materialized.

Monthly Progress #35

Some rain is coming to Miami, but not enough to awaken this ficus tree. It looks bare now, but it will resume growing again soon.

Monthly Progress #34

It is now February. March and April will bring showers and by that time the ficus will awake to grow again. This is a slow and long process, watching a tree grow.