Just about everyone knows there are many, many different types of plants that people can love and care for. Some people prefer to have a flourishing garden in their backyards, full of different kinds of plant life of all different colors.
Other people might be more comfortable caring for a few houseplants. No matter what kind of plant you prefer to care for, it is important that you make sure you have a good understanding of its health.
For instance, you can consider the fiddle leaf fig plant. These plants are beloved for their leaves.
Because their leaves are such a prominent feature of the plant, it is incredibly important to make sure you have a good understanding of their health, what can go wrong, and what you can do to help your plant out.
Caring for a fiddle leaf fig can be challenging at times, especially if you have never owned a plant before. However, with enough time and research put into caring for the plant, you will be able to form a solid understanding of what you can do to ensure the plant is a beautiful addition to your home.
In fact, some people equate the fickleness of these plants to the common teenager, as a slight change in their condition can have results in the plant’s health and appearance. There are many things you will want to learn when you take in a fiddle leaf plant.
First things first, you should start by understanding their leaves.
Knowing the Anatomy of the Plant
Before you can learn what to do when your fiddle leaf isn’t looking right, you will first need to understand how it should look when it is healthy.
This will help you form a good understanding of how your plant should look, and when to know if the plant is throwing a teenager’s tantrum or if there is something seriously wrong with its health.
The leaves of this plant will emerge from the brown stalks near the root of the plant. The stalks themselves are dry, and brown, so the emerging leaf may resemble the stalks slightly in its first moments as it comes from the plant. Typically, they should be a light green as they emerge from the stalk.
The leaves themselves, as many people know, are long, wide, and shaped quite like a paddle. From the light green that they start out as, they will begin to deepen in color as the leaves age, turning into a rich dark green as the plant becomes older and more mature.
Now that you have a good idea of how the leaves should look, you should then begin to learn about what happens to the leaves as they reach their maturity, how a fiddle leaf can lose its leaves completely, and then what you can do to prevent this from happening as much as possible.
Problems with the Leaves
With plants as fickle as the fiddle leaf, there are many problems that can occur. Many of the problems center around the plant’s leaves becoming discolored in one way or another.
In some cases, the discoloration may take form in dark spots that start at the leaf’s base, and in other cases, it may take the form of light blotches on the leaves.
The majority of these problems are caused by too much (or too little) water, as well as too much (or too little) sunlight. Generally, you can gauge the health of your fiddle leaf through its leaves.
With that being said, when your fiddle leaf begins dropping its own leaves, this can be immediate cause for concern. There are two main situations where your fiddle leaf will begin dropping leaves.
New owners of fiddle leaf plants may become concerned when they notice the lower leaves of the plant falling off on occasion.
Typically, the lower leaves of the plant will turn yellow in color and will simply fall off the plant. In some cases, this can also include the leaves beginning to dry up as well.
Another common problem with fiddle leaf plants is that they will begin to drop seemingly healthy leaves. These fallen leaves will be fully green (sometimes a lighter green if the leaves are younger), with no spots, discoloration, or markings on the leaves where there shouldn’t be.
To any plant owner, this can be incredibly confusing. To fiddle leaf enthusiasts, this is commonly known as the plant throwing a tantrum.
Fixing the Problems
While it might be startling to see your plant losing leaves, and the leaves it is losing being a different color and seemingly unhealthy, this is actually a common thing that fiddle leaf figs do.
As long as this is only happening on the rare occasion, and your plant is losing no more than two leaves, then this is a completely normal part of the plant adapting to its environment. All you would need to do is pick up the dropped leaves and dispose of them.
However, if it is happening more often, or the fiddle leaf is losing more than one or two leaves at a time, then it can also be a sign that you are watering your plant too much. In some cases, this can also be a precursor to root rot, and it can be a sign that you need to cut back on the watering soon.
In this case, you will first need to let the soil dry out a bit so that there is no excess water left standing. Once you have done this, you will then want to search for a watering guide, adhere to it, and check to make sure your fiddle leaf’s soil is as fast-draining as it needs to be.
While you are doing this, you should also make sure the planter it is in has good drainage, as without proper drainage, even the right amount of water can become too much for your fickle fiddle leaf.
As for your plant throwing a tantrum, there is good reason why these plants are known as the floral equivalent of a teenager. The most common causes for your fiddle leaf to do this can be due to it being moved recently, a change in temperature, or a change in lighting.
To fix the problem, you will need to determine what change is making the plant unhappy. In some cases, the plant is simply unhappy because it was moved to a location that was better for it and it is acclimating to the new light and temperature.
In these cases, you will generally just need to ride it out and make sure that the fiddle leaf stops dropping leaves after it gets used to its environment.
In other cases, it could be that your plant is too close to a door, meaning that it gets hit with a gust of wind whenever someone enters the room. This alone can be cause for the plant to begin dropping its leaves out of anger.
Similarly, places in your house that have temperature changes or where there is an increase in light (compared to what there used to be) can also be problematic.
The way to fix these situations is to move your fiddle leaf to a part of the house where its environment is more stable. While this move might also prompt it to drop leaves, you can rest comfortably knowing that once it acclimates to its new, stable environment, the leaves will be there to stay.
Ultimately, as long as your fickle fiddle leaf is given time to acclimate to its environment, and any problems with watering are taken care of, you can rest assured knowing that its dropped leaves will eventually grow back, leaving you with a lush houseplant.
Growing up with a mom who filled her home (inside and out) with all sorts of plants, Lisa got her start in gardening at a young age. Living now on her own with a home and yard full of plants (including an indoor greenhouse), she shares all the gardening tips she’s gained over the years.