As I indicated earlier, many growers like to cultivate a traditional tree shape, complete with a distinct canopy and trunk. However, F. lyrata tends to grow in a columnar or bushy shape when kept as a houseplant.
In the wild, F. lyrata does this on its own by losing its lower leaves and growing into its original shape as a banyan tree.
like the renowned “Wild F. lyrata and ordinary banyan, F. benghalensis, both start out their lives as epiphytes. When a seed falls into another tree’s canopy, it germinates, develops, and eventually strangles its host plant as it descends to the ground.
Your houseplant won’t do this, of course, but the tree shape is attractive. How can a rambunctious F. lyrata be transformed into a tall, graceful specimen?
First off, if you’ve recently acquired a highly sought-after fiddle-leaf, hold off on starting to prune it into a tree shape.
Whatever two-thirds of the intended height means to you within the boundaries of your space, let it grow to that point. The trunk might become strong and thick as a result.
It’s advisable to top the tree out at least eight to ten inches away from the ceiling if you want it to grow tall.
This not only improves the appearance but also prevents the top leaves from bending and slamming against your ceiling.
Say, for instance, that you want to top your tree off at about seven or eight feet and that your home has nine-foot ceilings. You shouldn’t begin trimming for lateral growth until the trunk is at least five feet tall based on these measurements.
Wait until spring or summer when the plant is actively growing before pruning your fiddle-leaf fig to generate a tree form with branching lateral growth. Then, make a cut at least six inches down from the tip of the tree.
You can preserve and grow this cutting! Cut in an internodal space, if possible.
Don’t remove the leaves that are below the cut. So that the plant can photosynthesize and generate energy to grow those lateral branches, you want them to stay.
Within a few weeks, your F. lyrata will start to branch from the cut. Although this tree occasionally produces just one branch, it frequently produces two or three additional lateral branches.
You can remove one or two leaves from the tree’s base once the new branches have developed leaves.
The hue of the leaves and emerging branches will deepen as the canopy ages. Feel free to remove one or two more leaves from the bottom part of the trunk once you become aware of this.
You can continue to prune leaves away from the tree’s trunk as the canopy grows over time. You’ll eventually grow a tidy trunk that supports a Y-shaped canopy.
Note: Some knowledgeable gardeners enjoy using a technique called “creating lateral branches by notching. Using this technique, the gardener carefully cuts through two nodes. This cut is supposed to encourage the tree to generate lateral branches without losing height.
Because of the fast growth of F. lyrata and the fact that we are confident that pruning for lateral branch growth yields reliable results, we advise using this technique to produce that attractive canopy.
After pruning, give your plant the best care possible by providing it with the right amount of water, fertilizer, and light, which will hasten the healing of its wounds.
What causes fiddle leaf figs to change shape?
When notching, a precise cut is made above a node as opposed to clipping the top sprout. Only if you don’t want to lower the height of your fiddle leaf would I advise employing notching over pruning, which is a sophisticated method.
Another way that notching functions is by obstructing the hormones that control growth—again, auxin. The impact is gone as the wound calluses over, and hormones will start to flow once more.
How to notch your fiddle leaf fig
First, some dexterity is needed for notching. If the incision is made too deeply, you run the danger of amputating the limb. (But hey, even if you accidently cut off the head of your ficus, there will still be branching.) If you make the cut too shallow, it might not heal.
It doesn’t yield reliable outcomes like pruning. Though it can result in less-than-ideal gaps in your fiddle leaf branches, think about cutting a few more notches than you desire branches. (Again, pruning doesn’t have a problem here because it works best on the nodes closest to the incision.)
It works better on a woody stem than on more recent, softer green growth.
This is how you do it:
Make an incision above a node using a clean, sharp blade. I applied a brand-new X-Acto knife blade’s tip edge. (The kind where the old blades can be removed with a snap.) I was able to secure the internode because of this. If using pruners makes you more comfortable, do so.
Make an incision that goes 1/3 of the way around the stem and no deeper than 1/3 of the stem just ABOVE the node. There will be some latex sap, which you should brush away in case any children or animals decide to taste it because it does like milk.
Making the incision above the node as opposed to below it prevents auxin, a hormone that controls growth, from functioning properly. By switching the flow of carbohydrates from vegetative development to reproductive growth when a node is cut just below it, blooming and fruiting are encouraged (flowers & fruit).
Leave it alone to recover, and maybe after a few weeks you’ll have buds that develop into branches. As with pruning, your chances of success will increase if you attempt this during your fiddle leaf’s prime growing season, which is in the spring or early summer.
One last piece of advice: wait to remove leaves from the trunk of your fiddle leaf until the new branches have begun to grow. Your plant should be as robust as possible because those leaves aid in the development of the new lateral buds.
So that’s pretty much it. Your single-stalk fiddle leaf can easily be transformed into a full, tree-like canopy. Waiting for those branches to appear after you’ve finished your trimming or notching just requires patience.
How do you feel? Do you favor single-stalked fiddle leafs grown singly, in clusters, or as a single-trunked tree?
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I need to know how to make my fiddle leaf fig stand up straight.
You can stake the trunk of a fiddle leaf fig to keep it upright if you need a quick fix to save it. By no means is this a long-term fix because staking will prevent your tree from developing the necessary strength to maintain itself.
While you do other things to strengthen the trunk, such fertilizing, correctly watering, offering lots of light, and regularly wiggling, staking can at least train your fiddle to grow straight.
To stake your tree, buy a stake the same length as the trunk of your tree and drive it into the ground near the trunk. Then use plant tape or ties to fasten the trunk to the stake.
Every few weeks or whenever you wriggle the trunk to test whether it can stand on its own, remove the stake. With regular maintenance, your trunk should begin to strengthen after a few months.
How should a fig tree be shaped?
Whether you have a fig tree or a fig bush in your backyard garden, pruning it each year will promote growth. Think about some general advice for this procedure.
- 1. In the tree’s first year, prune it. When you first plant a young fig tree or fig shrub that you purchased from a nursery, trim it. When pruning for the first time, you should remove roughly 50% of the branches. This will enable the tree to concentrate its efforts on developing a solid root system.
- 2. During the tree’s first winter, prune it once more. Winter trimming should be done every year, beginning with the first winter your tree experiences. The end of the tree’s dormant season in late winter is the ideal time to use pruning shears. By early spring, new branches will begin to grow as a result.
- 3. Continue to prune your tree every year after that. It’s crucial to prune your fig tree in its first year, but remember to continue pruning it the following year and the year after that. Fresh fruit will start to ripen in early summer if your fig tree is pruned while it is dormant. This will result in a more fruitful growth season.
- 4. Decide which branches should bear fruit. It’s time to go strategic now that you’ve finished your first pruning. Search for five to six exceptionally sturdy branches that branch off from the main trunk as you prune the tree in its second year. Your main branches for fruit production will be these. Remove the rest of the tinier branches from the main trunk.
Should I remove the fiddle leaf fig’s bottom leaves?
You should be aware of what those bottom leaves do before selecting when to remove them.
Lower foliage has the same function as that fresh, vibrant growth up top: the leaves work to mix that green chlorophyll, commonly known as “the meat of the leaf,” with sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water to produce sap, the plant’s own sweet food.
So let them alone if you want the trunk, roots, and new growth to continue receiving energy from the sun through the foliar producers and absorbing it.
Another advantage of the lower leaves is that this is typically where the most frequent watering issues show up. To put it another way, many owners of fiddles may detect overwatering and underwatering based on early warning indicators from these bottom leaves. You lose access to one of the plant’s early warning systems if you remove them.
Keep in mind that the lower leaves should be saved for the very last stage of shaping because they AID in giving the tree its characteristic shape.
Once more, deciding whether or not to remove these lower leaves depends on what they do for the plant.
What makes your fiddle leaf fig worth shaking?
“To keep my fiddle upright while it was young and immature, I used a wooden dowel. I was able to remove the dowel and it no longer need extra support because it was able to strengthen itself over time as it grew and with frequent shakings, Paige added.
So even though I wouldn’t advise you to shake your plants firmly, giving them a gently rock would not harm them. In addition to your FLF, I can see this idea working well for Rubber plants, Monsteras, Alocasia, and Pilea plants. They all have thick stems that frequently need to support a lot of weight as the leaves enlarge. This will probably become a regular component of how I take care of my plants. Play some music, get moving, and invite my plants to join in. It seems like it would be enjoyable.
How is a fig tree fan trained?
Although figs can produce multiple phases of harvest at once, in the UK climate just one crop typically ripens in September or October. The fig crop for the following year will be produced by the small, pea-sized embryo fruitlets that were developed in the autumn. In the UK climate, figs that were planted in the spring and early summer but hadn’t ripened by October would still grow but won’t ripen. Remove them in the late fall.
Every few weeks after the fruits begin to form, feed with a liquid tomato feed.
Fig trees may need to be protected in some regions during the winter, particularly if the tree is young. Cover your tree with horticultural fleece once the leaves have fallen, or if your tree is fan-trained, pack straw around the branches. Fig trees in pots should be moved into a cool shed or other covered space, such as a greenhouse.
Remove the cover in the spring, feed the tree well, and mulch with well-rotted manure, or replant potted figs outside.
Every two to three years, repot fig plants cultivated in containers. When the tree grows too big to be replanted, scrape off as much compost as you can from the surface and refill it with fresh.
Training and pruning fig trees
In order to control growth and provide room and light for the fruit to ripen, outdoor figs can be fan-trained.
Train against the wall using horizontal wires while tying the stems together to form a fan-shaped formation. To promote development lower down, pinch out half of the developing points on the fan’s primary frame in the early summer. As the fresh shoots emerge, tuck them in. To retain the tree’s open framework, remove any dead or crooked stems in the late winter.
Similar pruning techniques can be used on fig trees planted in containers, such as cutting weak and dead branches in late winter and fresh shoot tips in summer.
They must be regularly pruned each year to keep them under control because they are also very vigorous. You can cut your tree back hard if it is getting too big for its place, but keep in mind that you will temporarily lose fruit in the process.
Pruning fig trees in the spring can make them bleed sap, which can make the tree weak or even kill it. Wear gloves because the sap from figs irritates the hands.
What is causing my fiddle leaf to collapse?
Lover of Fiddle Leaf Figs, welcome back! Recently, people have been asking me more and more questions about their FLFs, which is fantastic because I love assisting you guys! In terms of what people require assistance with, I’ve begun to see some themes over time.
How to reinforce a fiddle leaf fig trunk that is weak or leaning is one of the most frequent queries I receive. Perhaps your FLF is sagging or is reluctant to stand up straight. The good news is that getting children to stand straight and strongly won’t take as long as you would think.
I brought my first FLF outside to rinse off the leaves when it was about 3 feet tall. It was upright within on its own. However, when it was exposed to the light breeze outside, it stooped almost to the ground. I had to keep it outside until the hose-down leak stopped, but I was terrified it might just break in half. I made an effort to keep it upright, but anytime I let go, it always appeared to want to touch the ground. “Weeping face” If only I had a picture to show you!
So I picked up a few bamboo stakes and set it back upright. Staking is excellent for an immediate, short-term repair like this. The bad news is that staking won’t make your plant stronger! Additionally, you won’t want to stake your plant in place indefinitely.
When a plant is staked, it never really strengthens because it doesn’t have to try to maintain itself. The good news is that you can get your ficus growing well on its own by following a few easy steps.
Here’s my steps on How to Strengthen a
Fiddle Leaf Fig Leaning:
1. FLFs are fans of light!
Your FLF’s health depends greatly on light. The leaves on your FLF will cluster together when it receives enough light. The trunk is greatly supported by this. They will’search’ for more light when they don’t have enough. If there is more than about an inch between leaves (referred to as the “inter-nodal space”), you will notice this. Your FLF can appear lanky or perhaps lean towards the direction of the closest window.
More chance for bending exists when there is more space between the leaves. Older growth won’t be fixed by giving your plant more light, but any new growth that appears should be stronger and more closely spaced.
Make sure your FLF is getting enough light first, then! They typically require more than we realize, I’ve discovered. If they’re indoors, it’s preferable to place them directly before a window. They can even grow in full-day sunlight in the natural world.
One fast hint is that reducing the inter-nodal distance can also be accomplished by using a fertilizer that has been carefully designed. For FLFs, I suggest Botanicare Grow Fertilizer.
To promote even growth, turn the pot as you water it each week. You might want to use a grow light to supplement some of the light if you can’t move your FLF closer to natural illumination. Read this simple tutorial to grow lights.
Because the leaves are so dispersed throughout the stem, you can tell that this FLF below needed additional light:
2. The Trunk’s Air Flow Will Be Trained
You won’t find a FLF that is unable to sustain itself in nature. Why? owing to air flow! A FLF must learn to endure the power of the wind when it is outdoors. It grows straighter and stronger as a result, with stronger trunks and stems.
Recall how my poor FLF hunched over the moment a breeze appeared? It is now taller and stronger than ever and spends half the year outside!
The majority of our beloved FLFs spend their lives indoors, which prevents them from having enough airflow to strengthen their trunks. Fiddle Leaf Figs eventually risk leaning due to the weight of their large leaves. FLFs are naturally top-heavy since the leaves get bigger and bigger as they ascend.
A new FLF that I recently purchased had a stem that was buckling beneath the weight of its fresh, big leaves. I placed it outside, and after a couple of weeks, the stem had become much stronger and straighter. Really, the breeze gets to work in no time at all!
Don’t be reluctant to let your FLF spend some time outside in a gentle breeze because they can withstand quite a bit of bending. You might want to loosely stake it while outside to keep it upright if it’s significantly crooked like my first one was or if you’re concerned that it’s too frail.
You should keep in mind that your FLF will require favorable outdoor circumstances. They prefer temperatures over 65°F (18°C), so be cautious to gradually acclimate them to any more sun exposure.
I hear you asking, “What if you can’t get your FLF outside?” There is a solution for it as well!
3. Make the trunk move
Are you serious? Of course! Many success tales of folks who strengthened their FLF trunks by wriggling them have been told to me.
The trunk basically imitates the wind by wriggling. This may require a little more work if you can’t get your FLF outside, but it will still work.
Take your FLF trunk and start to jiggle it from side to side two to three times every day. They can withstand quite an amount of movement, as I have indicated. Therefore, don’t be frightened to bend quite a bit! Spend around ten minutes on this.
Your FLF may take longer to strengthen with this procedure than it would under normal circumstances, but you should see benefits in a few weeks.