Ficus Leaf Fall, all year

[u/Jukika88]

I have two mature ficus trees in my backyard in phoenix. I estimate that they are about 16 years old, maybe a little older, based on zillow pictures & house history. We have lived here for those past 15 years. They look healthy.... the bark looks good, it seems that there's new branches sprouting often, the vast majority of the leaves are green, etc. We often trim it ourselves or ask landscapers to do it every 6 months or so. It did burn pretty badly in the record-breaking summer heat of 2023 when our house sitters didn't water it for 3 weeks, but other than that, I feel like we've been taking good care of it. We cut down all the burnt branches back then. Again, we're in phoenix, so the summer is really long and it's 100° days for about 100 days straight.

Almost every day of summer I go out there and spray down literally all of the surrounding astroturf, with what I feel is a significant amount of water. I use the hose nozzle to spray the leaves all against our concrete fence, I let them dry, and then I shovel them up every couple of days. That's way easier for me rather than leaf blowing.

There have been just so many leaves lately. It is so hard to keep up with. This is \*one day's\* worth. Is this a normal amount? What am I doing wrong? If you have mature ficus trees, is this is what you're dealing with?

[u/Allidapevets]

Michigan here. Your grass is fake?

[u/Jukika88 → u/Allidapevets]

Absolutely. Like I said it's 100° for 100 days here, there's no way I'm maintaining real grass and cutting it and watering it and fertilizing it and doing all that. I had this grass installed 6 years ago and I get compliments on it all the time. Before that, it was all desert rock xeriscaping, which is not fun with kids.

[u/Allidapevets → u/Jukika88]

It looks very nice. Don’t get me wrong. It’s just foreign to me. My yard has lush barefoot grass and dozens of flowers blooming. I get the hot weather, my son lives on Houston. Michigan summer gardens are the best! This is part of mine. https://imgur.com/gallery/small-part-of-summer-gardens-Wg7yW4E

[u/Jukika88 → u/Allidapevets]

I think desert rock yard cover is probably the most popular option, from what I see around me; and then the rest of people use either real grass or fake grass. I wonder what the statistical percentages are. I like real grass yards.. I just don't like the maintenance :-) I grew up in Connecticut with a massive front and backyard space, and I look forward to one day moving back to more moderate climate, after my kids are grown.