Fiddle leaf figs have become the ultimate Pinterest houseplant. You want a Pinterest-esque living room? A FIDDLE LEAF is the answer, obviously! You might know that I’m completely and utterly in love with fig plants – my life goal is to collect all 500 species. Yes, I know, that’s a lot of figs but you gotta dream big, right? I’ve had my two fiddle leaf figs for a few months now (in fact it’s probably close to a year!) and, touch wood, they are making their momma proud! Today I thought I’d show you how I’m pruning them to get the oh so pinnable tree-like trunk with a large crown & humongous leaves.
🌿 Despite the general belief that it’s dangerously easy to overwater a fiddle leaf fig, I water mine very very generously (to say the least!). I believe that you need to take into consideration how dry the air in your room is and how much sunlight the fig gets. Mine are right next to the window sill and the house is quite cold so we often have the heating on – this means that the soil dries out very quickly!
🌿 I’ve repotted mine once since I got them but I do think they will need bigger pots before winter comes, they are getting pretty damn big & I can now see their roots poking out of the soil a little bit!
🌿 Don’t be afraid of pruning! I was dead scared the first time around. Horrified, to be honest. They grew so big & beautiful but started bending because they were essentially just a long stick with loads of large heavy leaves on it. In June I took the plunge and chopped off the tops off. I took at least 3-4 leaves worth off the top (aim the cut just above the leaf or one knuckle up)! The figs branched out almost immediately!! It took me by surprised how quickly they grew their new side branches.
🌿 The second time I pruned was a few weeks ago. The side branches started growing really tall again bending the stem to the side. I just chopped off the tops of the side branches just like I did during my first pruning. It’s important you prune your fiddle leaf when it’s in the growth period which is apparently June-August.
🌿 I also chopped off a few leaves from the bottom to allow the stem to grow stronger & wider to get the signature crown shape at the top.
🌿 Now the hardest thing for me was to throw away those beautiful leaves. Well, it was so hard I didn’t. I thought – if you can propagate one kind of fig tree (see my post on the full process here) then you can surely do the same with another kind. And you can!!! I’ve put the leaves in a cup full of water for a few weeks and boom! I’ve got about 20 new fiddle leaf plants!
Don’t forget to check out my guide to fig plants here! There’s also a picture of my fiddle leaf from a few months back.
