Hello, it's your Fiddle Leaf Fig here. I know I can be a bit dramatic, but when my leaves start to drop or turn brown, I'm trying to tell you something is wrong. From my perspective, here are the biggest mistakes that hurt me and what you can do to make me truly thrive.
This is the most common issue. My roots are very sensitive. When you give me too much water too often, the soil stays soggy. My roots can't breathe in this environment; they suffocate and begin to rot. Once root rot sets in, they can't absorb water or nutrients, and I will wilt, drop leaves, and eventually die. On the other hand, if you forget about me for weeks, the soil becomes a dry brick. My cells shrivel, and I will sacrifice my oldest leaves first to conserve water, causing them to turn crispy brown and fall off. The key is consistency. Please only water me when the top 2-3 inches of soil are dry. Stick your finger in to check!
Where you put me in your home is everything. I am a tree that evolved to grow beneath the canopy of taller trees in West Africa. This means I need very bright, filtered light to photosynthesize and produce energy for my large, beautiful leaves. A dark corner is like a cave to me; I will become leggy, my growth will stunt, and I'll drop leaves in protest. However, please do not put me directly in a hot, south-facing window where the intense, direct sun will scorch my leaves, leaving ugly brown, crispy spots. My ideal spot is right in front of an east or north-facing window, or a few feet back from a south or west window.
I am a tropical plant, and I am not built for your climate-controlled extremes. I thrive in stable, warm conditions and appreciate humidity. Blasts of hot, dry air from heating vents in winter or freezing drafts from an air conditioner or a frequently opened door in summer put me under immense stress. This stress manifests as sudden leaf drop. Similarly, the very low humidity in most homes during winter is unnatural for me and can cause the edges of my leaves to turn brown and crispy. Please keep me away from vents and drafts, and consider grouping me with other plants or using a humidifier to increase moisture in the air.
I am a large plant, and the pot you brought me home in will not suit me forever. If my roots become pot-bound, with no room to grow, I will become stressed and my growth will halt. Please repot me into a container that is only 2-3 inches larger in diameter every 1-2 years. Furthermore, the soil in my pot contains a finite amount of nutrients. As I grow, I use them up. Without supplemental feeding during my active growing season (spring and summer), I will lack the resources to produce new, healthy leaves. Please feed me with a balanced, water-soluble fertilizer diluted to half-strength once a month during this period.
