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I'm looking for a tree-like houseplant, maybe 3-5 feet tall? All I know of is ficus, and I'm not sure what their care requirements are. Any suggestions?
Norfolk Island Pine is another choice, as is fiddle-leaf fig, which is a cousin to the ficus benjamina. I personally love Norfolk pines, and they enjoy being outdoors in warm weather. Fiddle leaf figs are quite dramatic.
The Ficus Benjamina: [HYPERLINK@davesgarden.com] makes a great house plant but they do get tall! You could keep it pruned to a reasonable size. One thing I've found about the benjamina over the years is that they hate being moved around. It doesn't hurt them but they will begin to get a bit shocky when moved from one location to another and you will have yellow and falling leaves all over the place! I had one that if I moved it 2 feet, from one location to another it would drop every single leaf and be totally bare! Eventually they re-sprout new foliage but in my experience, unless you want a partially bare or sometimes totally bare tree, it's best to decide where you want it and then leave it in that spot.
False aralia (schefflera elegantissima) is pretty and grows very tall, up to 40 ft. according to PlantFiles. However, I've seen these as house plants. [HYPERLINK@davesgarden.com]
I didn't mention s. elegantissima because when she said "treelike" I assumed she wanted something with a "trunk." They are fabulous plants with several canes that are leafed from the ground level up. They can take temp. extremes from Texas heat down to the high 20's if they are somewhat protected. Being outdoors (in a good bit of shade) during the summer into the fall is good for them. In the winter, they will do all right indoors. Outdoors is better because of the light and the higher humidity. Turn occasionally to prevent the plant from leaning to the light, and water only when the soil is dry when you stick your finger down in it. Most houseplant "trees" get much taller in their natural habitats. Thankfully, s.e. is a relatively slow grower. When it gets too tall, don't prune. Cut the entire plant to ground level and let it come back. Pruning of any kind will ruin the shape. It takes several years for it to get so tall it needs to be cut back. Insect pests are rare outdoors. Inside, watch for spider mites.
The tree-like plants I have are the Corn Plant Dracaena and the Madagascar Dragon Tree Dracaena. They are eventually going to become very large almost 6-7 ft tall. Try them because dracaenas are pretty easy to grow and very beautiful.
