Fiddle Leaf Figs are infamously difficult to grow. There are a few typical maladies of this plant, like brown spots and leaf drop, that can make it sick or, worse, fast bring about its demise. The secret to keeping your plant happy and healthy is to keep an eye out for them and catch them early. Keep an eye out for these indications of a possibly sick fiddle leaf fig.
Brown spots on the leaves
The leaves of fiddle leaf figs are incredibly prone to browning. Brown spots that start to form and spread should be investigated even though a few small markings here and there are not a cause for concern.
Due to two opposing factors—either overwatering or underwatering—most brown patches on fiddles are unfortunately difficult to diagnose. Here’s how to distinguish between them:
Overwatering, which results in root rot, is probably to blame for brown patches that appear in the center of the leaf and spread outward. A fungal illness called root rot will eventually kill your plant by spreading to the leaves. You should repot your plant as soon as possible if it has root rot. Take the plant out of the ground, wash the roots thoroughly, and cut off any that are brown or mushy. After that, repot the plant in new soil with adequate drainage and remove the damaged leaves.
Are the brown spots on your fiddle beginning at the outside border of the leaves and moving inside? The plant is probably too dry for this to be the cause. Give your Fiddle a thorough rinse, and make sure it’s not too close to any heaters or air vents because that will likely cause the plant to dry out more quickly than is desired.
Finally, trauma may cause brown spots to form at random. A plant can suffer trauma just by changing homes (i.e. changing environments). If only one or two of your plant’s brown, damaged leaves are present, remove them at the stem and give your plant some time to heal.
The new growth is smaller than the older leaves
A healthy plant always shows new development, and if your Fiddle’s leaves are getting big and strong, your plant is doing fine.
The presence of little, stunted new leaves, however, may indicate that your plant is deficient in nutrients. Consider repotting your plant if it has been a while since you gave it fresh soil, or just fertilize it in the spring and summer to give it the extra nutrients it requires.
Dropping leaves
Fiddle Leaf Figs can appear to drop their leaves out of nowhere. One leaf here and there is normal; but, if several leaves have fallen off in a short period of time, you must act quickly to rescue the tree. Once more, underwatering or overwatering are the most likely causes of leaf drop in fiddle leaf figs. How then can you distinguish between them? Look at the direction in which the leaves are falling from the plant: if the older leaves (at the bottom) are dropping first, overwatering is probably the cause. On the other hand, if the plant’s leaves are falling off all around, it’s probably not getting enough water. Here are a few more techniques for differentiating.
Leaves turning yellow
Do your fiddle leaf fig’s leaves appear to be yellow? There are several potential reasons:
inadequate lighting Fiddle Leaf Figs require as much direct, strong light as they can get. Even a little direct sunshine is acceptable, but stay away from locations with medium or low light. Remember that a Fiddle that receives insufficient light is more likely to overwater.
a lackluster diet. Due to a deficiency of nutrients in the soil, your Fiddle plant may have yellow leaves. You may want to attempt fertilizing it with liquid fertilizer.
Pests. If fiddles are being attacked by insects, their leaves may also turn yellow. If you have a suspicion that this is the case, thoroughly check the leaves’ top and bottom surfaces for any potential bugs.
Stunted or slowed growth
During the spring and summer, healthy fiddles typically produce new leaves every four to six weeks. It’s possible to see your plant add numerous new leaves in only a few days or weeks because growth usually occurs in spurts. It’s typical for there to be no new growth during the winter. Again, if you don’t observe the expected growth in this plant, it may require new nutrients in the form of a quality plant fertilizer.
Dirty or dusty leaves
When was the last time you washed your plant’s leaves? Plants breathe through their leaves in addition to absorbing sunlight through them. Your plant won’t be able to carry out either of these tasks as effectively as we’d like if a layer of dust is present on its huge leaves. A fantastic technique to keep your Fiddle Leaf Fig plant bright, healthy, and vibrant is to clean the leaves every few months. You may read about various cleaning techniques for your fiddle leaf fig here.
Fiddle Leaf Figs are known to be pickier than most plants, despite the fact that they can be quite low maintenance. Maintain a regular watering routine, fertilize in the spring and summer, and most importantly, ensure that your plant receives enough light year-round (yes, this may require moving it in the winter!). Keep a watch out for any of these symptoms since treating them quickly is essential to keeping your plant healthy and looking nice.
This article was modified from Claire Akin’s Fiddle Leaf Fig Plant Resource. For additional information on how to take care of the fiddle leaf fig, see their website.
Fiddle leaf figs have a season?
When grown inside, the ficus lyrata is renowned for escaping winter dormancy or, at most, just “slowing down” a little.
Therefore, you might observe a period of delayed growth followed by the emergence of one or two new leaves, then a burst of remarkable winter maturation, particularly if your fiddle leaf fig is under a year old.
Compared to their younger, more perplexing cousins, older indoor trees have a tendency to develop evenly throughout the year, providing carers with more assurance and consistency.
If so, do they lose their leaves in the winter?
We questioned our farmer about the Fiddle Leaf Fig and the Alocasia, two plants that are particularly prone to winter leaf drop. It is well known that these plants require a little more care.
The absence of sunlight, coupled with cool temperatures and low humidity, are the most frequent causes of aloe leaf drop. Consider purchasing a humidifier and grow light to help it survive the colder months.
Alocasia plants receive increased heat and humidity in the greenhouse, therefore it seems sense that these plants would struggle in the winter when indoor temperatures and humidity are significantly lower.
When transplanted from their preferred location, Fiddle Leaf Fig plants can experience shock, but our smaller variety, Ficus lyrata bambino, is less picky. However, if it changes its environment for the winter, it might still be a little cranky. Additionally, fiddles are picky about their water and humidity conditions. Similar to how Alocasia leaf drop can be treated, Fiddle Leaf Fig leaf drop can be treated by providing additional lighting and humidity for plant health.
What kind of climate are fiddle leaf figs tolerant to?
Since houseplants gained popularity, the Fiddle Leaf Fig has been the indoor plant that has dominated fashion and design trends (Ficus lyrata).
This plant can be found as a tree or in its younger, more shrubby stage. It has huge, glossy green leaves on a substantial-sized plant that can grow to be at least 8 feet tall. The ficus family, which is made up of many species that have long been popular indoor plants, includes various species, including the fiddle leaf, which has some of the biggest leaves of any of them. It can be difficult at first to keep a fiddle leaf fig happy at home, but after you learn some of its fundamental preferences, you can maintain your temperamental fiddle’s happiness and health!
Let’s just clear up one thing first.
The fiddle leaf fig is a drama queen in general. In other words, these plants consistently prefer certain conditions, and if those requirements are not met, they sulk by shedding leaves. You guessed it: Your plant will drop leaves if it is moved, turned, or repotted. It will also drop leaves if exposed to frequent drafts or intense heat.
However, your fiddle leaf fig may still live on even though its leaves are falling. In the first 24 weeks after getting your new Ficus plant, some leaf loss is typical. If, however, the leaf falling is severe or continues, check your plant’s hydration and lighting needs to see if it is growing in the best conditions.
The fiddle leaf is not the simplest indoor fig to maintain, so if you have had trouble with one in the past or want to take a shallower dive into the Ficus world, we advise trying one of the simpler figs first. If you’re worried that your house or workplace may not have enough light, consider growing a Ficus Audrey (Ficus benghalensis), which can tolerate lower light levels, or the Rubber Plant (Ficus elastica), which is just as cool but distinct from the fiddle leaf.
Light
The best lighting is consistent bright or filtered light, but avoid extended direct sunlight; place yourself in an east-facing window or a few feet from a south or west-facing window. To maintain balanced growth, rotate the plant every so often.
Water
In general, most Ficus prefer consistently moist soil—never soggy soil. Prior to watering, the top 24 inches of the soil should always be dry. Water until the water runs out the drainage holes. It’s preferable to err on the side of too little watering than too much as you learn more about your plant’s watering requirements. The majority of problems are caused by overwatering, especially in the winter when development is slower. Be sure to tailor your watering frequency to the season and water roughly half as frequently in the winter. Additionally, plants growing in lower light levels could need less water than the same plants growing in higher light levels.
Soil
To ensure the success of your fiddle leaf fig plants, use a high-quality, rich, well-draining potting soil. Fiddle leaf figs don’t like their soil to be too wet or too dry.
Temperature & Humidity
The ideal temperature range for fiddle leaf figs is between 60 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. But watch out for drafts from windows or doors, fans, or heating vents when planting a fiddle leaf fig. Higher humidity is favorable for fickle fiddles. There are several ways to increase the humidity in your home, including:
- Add a sizable humidifier to increase the humidity in the entire space, or use a smaller tabletop humidifier to target specific plants.
- Misting: Misting can be a terrific way to increase humidity, but if done improperly, it can promote leaf diseases. Use a fine mister and only spray in the morning to give the water time to evaporate during the day.
Fertilizer
To maintain healthy growth and vibrant color, use a basic indoor plant food diluted to half strength. Use fertilizer from March through September, but avoid feeding during the winter. When watering newly transplanted plants for the first time, Malibu Compost Tea for Houseplants can be used to stimulate stressed plants or assist prevent transplant shock.
Toxicity
If consumed, the plant is harmful to both people and animals in all parts. Being in contact with sap while handling plant parts might cause moderate skin irritation; use caution and gloves when handling.
Pruning
Pruning is best done in the spring when the plant is actively growing again because it encourages branching or horizontal development (many Ficus species will “bleed from cut areas with a white sap that is sticky and contains latexprotect floors and furniture with paper, cloth, or plastic sheeting before pruning indoors, and wear gloves for protection).
Troubleshooting
One of the main issues that farmers face is leaf browning, which can result from a variety of issues. It is useful to make a note of the shape, pattern, and color of the spots as well as where on the plant the damaged leaves are located (i.e. toward the top or bottom of the plant). Due in part to their big size, fiddle leaf figs’ leaf issues can often be the most striking; each damaged leaf has a significant effect. They can be vulnerable to environmental shock and transplant shock, as was previously noted, and will likely exhibit some degree of leaf drop for the first 24 weeks after being brought into your home. If brown patches appear or dropping persists, one of the following factors may be to blame:
- Older leaves (toward the interior and lower parts of the plant) are typically harmed first by root rot brought on by overwatering; the damage appears as a black area in the middle of the leaf or sporadic dark blotches.
- prolonged dryness/underwatering
- Most damage occurs to the newest leaves, which are on the leaf’s edges.
- infection with bacteria
- regions of new growth that are worse off may become yellow, appear unnaturally tiny, or have spots that are more brown or reddish in hue than black.
- Pest-specific insect damage varies; keep an eye out for exceptionally shiny or sticky leaves as a sign of pests nearby and conduct a closer inspection.
Scale and fungus gnats: Regrettably, Ficus plants are virtually as common among insects as they are among people. Scale can be hard to see, especially in the beginning phases of the “infestation,” and when they are, they can be numerous and challenging to get rid of. They resemble tiny tan lumps that can be removed with a fingernail or small tool. They are typically seen along the midrib of a leaf (top or bottom) or on a stem at the point where a leaf is joined. You may identify issues early and get back on the road to recovery by regularly inspecting your plant and cleaning its foliage. Find out how to spot scale and get rid of it here.
If you start to experience fungus gnat issues, top-dress with Mosquito Bits or lightly dust the top of the soil with Diatomaceous Earth. Avoiding overwatering your plants and waiting until the top 2 or 3 inches are dry before watering again are the best ways to keep fungus gnats away.
The Little Fiddle
The ficus in this image is a “Little Fiddle,” which is a smaller variation of the fiddle leaf fig. It doesn’t just have a cute growth pattern; it also has a tendency to be a little bit more resilient than the bigger fiddles. Fiddle leaf figs can grow in a variety of shapes, such as trees, bushes, and columns.