After some years the lower leaves can drop off by themselves. This past winter season, I was able to keep my FLFs growing new leaves with no negative wintery symptoms. Pruning activates branches, so you should start to see some buds forming on the stem below where it was pruned 🙂. I find it’s best to wait until the top inch or two of soil is dry before watering again. I read not to stake the plants. A single leaf will often grow roots when placed in water, but … Don’t expect to see any improvement before April (and warmer temperatures). Emily’s posts have been featured on popular travel websites as well as home & style sites such as Apartment Therapy. I thought the bush variety was a different plant than the tree, so I was happy to hear that it just takes time! Dossier Blog is a collection of notes on and about creativity, travel & style. Founded in 2015, Dossier started as a place to record notes from Emily’s travels. Is this a lack of humidity or maybe misting with hard water from the hose? Grow lights are great for this purpose and also for helping plants through winter in colder climates like yours. And I will be very thankful too of course! What would you recommend? If there is, it sounds like it needs to be repotted! Is there any way that I can turn this half tree-half bush into a thriving tree? A good tip may be that if your Compacta is already putting out new growth, it will likely respond well to pinching or pruning. Thanks Ruth! Because of this, your Fiddle Leaf Fig won’t have the same fertilizer requirements as it would during Spring or Summer. If you want screaming success with your fiddle leaf fig, read on my friend! It may take a little trial and error to figure out. If they do get direct sunlight, they just need to be acclimatised slowly so their leaves don’t burn. These forums go into a lot of depth about FLFs and are a great resource! Thanks. Two of the branches have dropped all leaves and have shriveled now. All trunks are brown and woody looking. Your site is so hopeful – caring doe FLF can be confusing with all the info out there. Hi! Make a Mid-Century Modern Greenhouse from Photo Frames. This is when they appear to stop growing, because of less-than-ideal environmental conditions (Fiddle Leafs are tropical plants!). I've read that FLFs are very tempermental and I'm hoping for some help re: timing in helping promote branch growth. 🙂. With less leaves to support up top, it won’t be as bendy. Its possible the white bits could be part of the soil (like perlite) or maybe some kind of funghus, which shouldn’t be harmful for the plant. Thanks for all the great info on FLF. I put the flf nearer to the window. And you can definitely propagate what you prune – more info on propagation here. Similarly, you can prune any unwanted branches, but just be aware of the affect it will have on the plant – don’t leave your plant too bare. As FLFs are tropical plants, they like to have upwards of 60% humidity. Notching. Click to read exactly how to do each one! Dry air means low humidity, which can result in dimpled leaves or even crispy leaf edges. So unless you’re planning on quitting your day job to become a full-time plant mister, it’s really not worth it! There both 2-3ft tall and put out leaves constantly. But I would say that while this is happening, the plant probably wouldn’t respond well to notching. I bought a bushy, 4.5 foot three trunk FLF six weeks ago. Hope that helps! I recently removed few leaved from my FLF because they had big hole or had big brown spot. More FLFs is always better, haha. It’s only got 3 healthy leaves left now and I’m very scared it’s going to die. I don’t think I am strong enough to carry the tree outside and divide it. You must be logged in to post a comment. When multiple stems share the one root system, its riskier to separate them and may cause more harm to the plant if you do. Hi Anne, unfortunately if you trim the edges of the leaves, they won’t grow back! Maybe you can help me, my FLF is doing great, the only thing, it’s getting really tall and starting to lean pretty bad. Is it better to leave those leaves for now if the spots are relatively small, or should I prune them off? The fiddle-leaf fig tree is a slow grower; in winter it goes dormant. This makes them somewhat challenging for the home grower, who is likely to have trouble duplicating these steamy conditions. If your leaves look yellow, it means that your plant is overwatered. HI! Hi Chad, that’s amazing growth! Maybe you’ve found a smaller, bushy FLF to bring home. Winter often means less light for our plants. Hope that helps! All the best! Thanks for any help you might be able to give! growing and pruning your Fiddle Leaf Fig. I’d recommend starting once Spring hits. You can always find another single FLF in a pot to train into a tree-shape. I have it facing North West in my bedroom in Camarillo, California. I would hate to do something too dramatic and damage my plant. Trending: Indoor Plants with Pink Foliage. If it doesn’t, try it again. Do you think placing the humidifier might near it might help? Instead, it’s energy would be focused on rebuilding the roots. If your Fiddle Leaf Fig normally lives outdoors and you live in a place that gets cooler than 55F (12C) at night, it’s best that it comes indoors to get out of the cold. Should I start the braiding now? I found this post while searching for an answer for my leaning branches. To promote a fruiting spur or fruiting bud, notch below a node or bud. Hi Katrina, notching is a way you can encourage branching without impeding growth from the top. Notching Your Fiddle Leaf Fig The notching method is a method of forming new branches but not pruning them or not removing the height of the plant. I’m wondering, what do you think is the minimum amount of direct light a FLF needs in order to survive? A good way to know is if your FLF is regularly pushing out new leaves at the top or not. FLFs do love light but they’ll do fine without any direct light. I find they often need a lot more light than they’re getting, so consider if yours is getting enough! Misting only helps with humidity for the minute or so that the water particles are sprayed into the air. Have you had success notching? They are the same type of plant, but to get a bushy look you’d need to start with a plant that has multiple trunks growing out of the soil. Hosing the plant to remove dust is another option, although this is obviously best left to the warmer months when it’s safe to take plants outside! Let your single-stalk fiddle leaf fig grow to about 6 or 7 feet and then begin notching right around where you’d like your first lowest, largest, most prominent crevice, also known as the crotch. It would definitely be possible to seperate your plant. Pinching is literally using your thumb and finger to pull out a new bud before it develops (similar effect to pruning). This means you’ll need to water less often (and not on a schedule!) Hi Emily, first of all thank you for creating this blog, it gives hopes to a black thumb like me 😉 Remember its always best to prune with the tree’s natural shape in mind! Would love your input. Hey Ana, if the branches themselves appear to have died, you can prune back the branches to a spot where the inside is white/green and there’s sap. Yes, there was an issue with the image in the link but hopefully it will be fixed. I’ve got an amazing mature FLF tree, but I wondered as it only has leaves on the top third (it’s about 5ft tall)if I notch on a lower part of the trunk will it encourage lower leaves/new stems, or does it not work like that? Make sure you are ready to prune these leaves as a last resort. It’s finally thriving now. Email. Follow Emily on Instagram (@dossierblog) to stay up to date! Patience is key 🙂 hopefully you will get some growth soon! Hey Melissa, pruning and pinching will encourage a bushier growth and branching, but if you’re wanting your FLF to grow tall, just make sure its getting enough light, water and nutrients 🙂 Pruning uses sharp secateurs to cut branches when they are growing too big and need to be trimmed, or to encourage other branches and leaves to grow. I bought a fiddle leaf fig, probably 2 years ago. This is also why they can suffer when you first bring your Fiddle home. Because they are tropical rainforest plants, they don’t do too well in cold environments. 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