How to Take Care of The Fiddle Leaf Fig, Ficus Lyrata, in Canada

We think the Ficus lyrata is misunderstood. It gets a bad rap for being a hard plant to take care of. Fiddle Leafs just needs the right amount of water, humidity, food (fertilizer), and light to thrive. They aren't complicated, they are complex just like you, they want to be given what they need to be successful.

Since it is one of our most popular plants so we want to make sure that feel confident that you can do more than just keep it alive, we want you to feel like you are going to be able to give it everything it needs to thrive. 

Water your Fiddle Leaf Fig when the top layer of soil is dry

The rule of thumb for the Fiddle Leaf Fig is to make sure that the soil is dry up to about an inch or two, so stick your thumb in and make sure it's dry. This should mean watering it as frequently as every 5 days during the spring and every 10-12 days during the winter

How to water your Fiddle leaf

  1. Pour your water into the container you'll use to water it 24 hours before you water the plant. 
  2. Pour the water over the soil evenly and slowly.
  3. Add water until water starts to come out of the drainage holes
  4. Remove the collected water within 30 minutes of watering the plant.   

Make sure your Fiddle Leaf Fig is an a humid part of your house

Often overlooked, humidity is a huge factor in your Fiddle Leaf Fig living comfortably in your home. Our suggestion is to get a humidifier. Even if it is just a small one like this one from Amazon. If you aren't sure about the humidity in your home we use this temperature and humidity gauge in our shop to help us make sure the climate is just right for our moisture living friends.

Some people will mist plants in order to help with humidity. If you go this route we would suggest you mist it every 2 days. Misting helps, but nothing is good as increasing the relative humidity near the plant with a humidifier or putting in a place that has a lot of natural humidity. 

From our team: One thing we've tried that worked really well at home is to put your fiddle leaf in a warm shower for 30 minutes when you need to water it. 

Start fertilizing your Fiddle Leaf Fig within 6 months of purchasing it.

For fertilizer you can use something highly specialized like this Fiddle Leaf Fig plant food with a 3-1-2 ration of Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium. We cary a plant food with a 3-1-3 ratio which is ideal for palms but can also be used for the Fiddle Leaf.

From our team:  Our team's personal preference for general fertilizing is to sprinkle worm castings on as a tops soil because they are a simple and effective slow release fertilization method that is 100% natural. 🐛💩

Give your Fiddle Leaf Fig bright indirect light.

If you would get a sun tan sitting where the plant is all day, that is too much sun. If you couldn't read a book where the plant is sitting all day then that's definitely not enough light.

 

Our Top 3 Fiddle Leaf Fig Youtube Care Guides:

Planterina: Fiddle Leaf Fig Success in 8 Steps

 Summer Rayne Oaks: Ficus lyrata ( Fiddle Leaf Fig) Houseplant Care

The Plant Doctor: Fiddle Leaf Fig Ultimate Care Guide

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