fiddle leaf fig love

I would never call myself a green thumb.  In fact, I have never been that great at keeping real plants alive.  Yet, each year I plant a garden with high hopes and every now and then something grows.  Several years ago, I decided to try my hand at a fiddle leaf fig tree.  I mean, it looks so cool in all those instagram home pictures.  Plus, I had just read The Nesting Place, by Myquellin Smith (aka the Nester) and she had mentioned that spending a little bit of money on a plant and dividing it by how long it lived is pretty inexpensive home decor.  So, when I heard that Lowes had some in stock, I rushed out and bought one! (I think it costed $30).  I figured it if lasted 3 months, that's 10 bucks a month for a pretty tree.

I thought I had high hopes that I would be able to keep this sucker alive for 2 months.  I was going to call that impressive.  I mean, I couldn't even keep a maidenhair fern alive for a few weeks! But, friends, I stand before you today (well, really I'm just sitting here at my computer) to tell you that this very same fiddle leaf I bought is 3 years old! 

Please excuse me for a minute while I do a happy dance. 

Okay, I think I'm good. 

Everyday I look at my friend Figgie, and mentally give her a high five. . . she deserves it!  I don't do much at all.  She's the one doing most of the work, standing there, oh so still, soaking in sweet rays of sun and drinking up water from her moist soil.

I've had a lot of questions about how I even managed to do it, so I thought I would jot down some things I have learned about how to take care of Fiddle Leaf Fig plants. I really  hope that this helps you to take a risk and try a house plant or not to get discouraged if you've already killed one. . . or two or even think your killing your current plant.  There's hope! 

:: Fiddle leaf fig plants are VERY finicky.  They don't like to be moved around a lot.  It puts them in a little bit of shock.  This means, don't put them next to a door that will open up and send a lot of air movement back and forth or put it right next to your air conditioner vent where it will blow air on to it.  They really just like to stay still. 

:: They like sunlight.  If you scroll back to the picture up at the top, I had originally had it in our family room next next to a rather large window.  But, because there is an awning over the patio just on the other side of that window, not as much indirect light came through.  After a few weeks there, Figgie really started to struggle.  So, I moved her to our front room where she lives in our front window.  There is the perfect amount of indirect light that she loves.  At Christmas, she gets moved to a wall farther away, but because it's winter and only temporary, she struggles, but survives. 

::  They love a moist soil and consistent watering.  I pour 2 cups of water in my plant's soil every Thursday (thirsty Thursday!).  If your leaves are turning brown, they aren't getting enough water or you are over watering.  But also don't freak out by occasionally losing older leaves from the bottom (eventually older leaves will fall off) and also when you move it. . . it goes into shock a little and may lose a leaf or two as a result. If you loose more than one or two leaves here and there, that's when you should worry.  In the above picture, there were some signs that I wasn't watering enough.  Once I started implementing Thirsty Thursdays, she did much better! 

A lot of hints are to water only when soil is dry to the touch.  Water well and consistently and only water when the soil is dry.  Experiment and see what works best for your plant.

:: Take care of those leaves!  Because it's just hanging out in your house collecting all the dust, those leaves need to be cleaned off every now and then.  I like to take a slightly damp rag and wipe them down every now and then.  This allows more sunlight to hit those gorgeous leaves! 

I also like to pour a little bit of milk in a cup and wipe the leaves with that.  This gives them some nourishment and helps them to thrive. 

Last month, I tried melted (and cooled) coconut oil (as recommended by Nesting with Grace) and it made my leaves so clean and green. . . it almost looked fake!  But, it's thriving!

:: Name your tree.  Spend some time talking to it and giving it some love and encouragement. (only part joking here).

I hope that this helps you take a risk and try fiddle leaf figs in your own home.  Let me know if you have any other questions or helpful hints.  I am by no means an expert and if you could see my most recent dead fern (I really just need to stop with the ferns), you would believe me when I say that I am not an expert.  But, I am trying and learning as I am going.  It's definitely a fun journey to be on and I love the natural color it brings to our home with out any foo-foo decor.  It's simple and fun all at the same time. 

Oooh! And before I forget, I should mention that one of the things that I has made me fall in love with houseplants is that they help purify the air within your home.  There is only so much your air filter can do and no matter how hard we try, impurities come into our house (I'm not going to get all science-y on you. . . that's my husband's job) and one of the best ways to clean that air is by having real plants in your home.  Plus, they really add so much natural beauty to your decor.  I am definitely on team house plant. . . even though some (read ferns!) don't always survive!

Have a great weekend!