Help! Root fungus on Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree
I just bought a new Ficus Lyrata from a nursery about a week ago and have noticed some fungus growing on the roots. The tree has been planted in mulch and I was hoping to repot it in soil but am now not sure what to do?? Can this plant be saved ? It wasn't cheap! And looks good from the mulch up. It has not been watered in over a week so the mulch is dry... I haven't dealt with this before and am a bit out of my depth...Any advice is much welcomed. Thanks so much!
Comments (13)
tropicbreezent
8 years ago
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
8 years agoRelated Discussions
Fungus or insects on fiddle leaf fig?
Comments (57)Not sure if the poster you addressed will reply, given his post is a year old. His images appear to be symptomatic of the physiological disorder, oedema - see below. Given your issue is in the upper (youngest) leaves, it might not be the same. It's not unusual for leaves of F. lyrata to emerge with pinhead or slightly smaller size dots covering the leaf surface nearly entirely. This often occurs when the air is dry, as it usually is in winter or when air conditioning is operating for days on end. That particular condition is simply expression of the purple pigment anthocyanin, and it will fade as the leaves mature. That's said w/o my being able to see an image of what you're describing, which would be very helpful. Oedema Oedema is a physiological disorder that can affect all plants. It occurs when the plant takes up more water than it can rid itself of via the process of transpiration. The word itself means 'swelling', which is usually the first symptom, and comes in the form of pale blisters or water-filled bumps on foliage. Under a variety of circumstances/cultural conditions, a plant's internal water pressure (turgidity) can become so high that some leaf cells rupture and leak their contents into inter-cellular spaces in leaf tissue, creating wet or weepy areas. Symptoms vary by plant, but as the malady progresses, areas of the leaf turn yellow, brown, brown with reddish overtones or even black, with older damage appearing as corky/ scaly/ ridged patches, or wart/gall-like bumpy growth. Symptoms are seen more frequently in plants that are fleshy, are usually more pronounced on the underside of leaves, and older/lower leaves are more likely to be affected than younger/upper leaves. Oedema is most common in houseplants during the winter/early spring months, is driven primarily by excessive water retention in the soil, and can be intensified via several additional cultural influences. Cool temperatures, high humidity levels, low light conditions, or partial defoliation can individually or collectively act to intensify the problem, as can anything else that slows transpiration. Nutritional deficiencies of Ca and Mg are also known contributors to the malady. Some things that can help you prevent oedema: * Increase light levels and temperature * Monitor water needs carefully – avoid over-watering. I'd heartily recommend a soil with drainage so sharp (fast) that when you to water to beyond the saturation point you needn't worry about prolonged periods of soil saturation wrecking root health/function. Your soil choice should be a key that unlocks the solutions to many potential problems. * Avoid misting or getting water on foliage. It slows transpiration and increases turgidity. * Water as soon as you get up in the AM. When stomata close in preparation for the dark cycle, turgidity builds. If you water early in the day, it gives the plant an opportunity to remove (for its own needs) some of the excess water in the soil. * Put a fan in the room or otherwise increase air flow/circulation. Avoid over-crowding your plants. Questions? Al...See MoreRooting a single leaf cutting from a fiddle leaf fig
Comments (10)I have written about how to propagate fiddle leaf fig here- https://www.apieceofrainbow.com/fiddle-leaf-fig/ I rooted 4 stem cuttings and 1 leaf, shown above. the leaf did not survive, but i think it is because of competition- i planted it in the same pot as 2 other stem cuttings, which grew rapidly. the african violet leaves i rooted has grown into plants. what happens is that small bud will grow from the roots and turn into branches. i think FLF works the same =) https://www.apieceofrainbow.com/grow-african-violet/...See MoreFiddle Leaf Fig Drooping After Repot/Root Pruning- Help!
Comments (64)Hey guys, first of all, thanks to everyone that's helping. I've learned so much in the past two days. Specially Dave and Al...thank you teachers! :) So sorry about in the instrusion, I'm another one with fiddle leaf problems. I think I was sold a sick FLF...the guys just told me that it was in direct light all day long, so I thought the brown spots were justified. Until I got home and realized the soil was really compact...really....compact and soggy...and loads of rocks on top, which probably wouldn't help. So what I've did pretty fast, I went into despair...I've tried to repot it...and..of course I the roots just broke in half, and they were almost black and quite smelly... I didn't have anything around other than regular soil with perlite, so I just moved the lyrata and the now shorter roots too a new dry vase with some brick pieces at the bottom and that soil...the soil it's very loose and didn't compressed whatsoever. Didn't watered since, two days now. So after reading all of your kind info, Tomorrow I'm going too: 1. Clean the remaining roots as well as I can without damaging it more.. 2 .Repot, with 5:1:1 mix...Pine bark, Turf (should I?), Perlite; and some brick pieces in the bottom. 3. Water the lyrata once like flushing, right? And then again.. 4. The bottom leaves are very very rigid almost like they are about to break, I've read one Al's comment about "the end of life" process of these leaves...Should I cut the last leave and put the trunk deeper so it forms new healthy roots? (if this makes any sense at all) 5. Pruning, I was thinking about cutting the top (last picture), but as the bottom leaves are so stiff, maybe they aren't able to produce that much "food" and I should keep the top one for now? (I'm I thinking stupid??) 6. The only I had to cover the pot was sawdust, with which I have been lucky in protecting my plants from pests and mould. Again...in a despair act..should I maintain this? Can you help me please?? I'm based in Sintra,Portugal; very warm and humid location, actually humidity is a problem around here. Any advice is most welcome! thanks!...See MoreFiddle leaf fig - Are these early symptoms of fungus or root rot?
Comments (4)It's ok for roots to be visible at the surface. In fact, exposed roots are often intentionally cultivated as a point of interest, especially in bonsai. The image shows a very young schefflera being trained in the root-over-rock style. Your tree appears to have a combination of mechanical damage (like cuts and bruises would be to a human) and some symptoms related to root health - likely over-watering, or perhaps a high level of salts in the soil, or even both. How to prevent the mechanical damage is self evident. The cultural conditions you provide are central to preventing the necrosis at leaf tips and margins. Soil choice, watering habits, light and temperature levels, and your fertilization program should be reviewed to determine what aspect(s) of those influences are forcing the plant to operate at or near the limits of what it's genetically programmed to tolerate. Figuring it out isn't that difficult, and simply hitting the reset button and embarking on a course that eliminates limitations affecting the plant to the greatest degree possible is probably the wise choice. My suggestion is that you take advantage of every learning opportunity you come across, because learning by trial and error is a painfully slow process, one that very often leaves us in a rut and thinking mediocrity is a destiny rather than a phase we're passing through and about to leave behind. Al...See Morelj_b
8 years agoOh my gosh! I'm really not sure. I've googled root mealybugs and although some the fungus on my plant looks similar I'm not 100% sure. The fungus on the top and sides of the roots is a very light green with a powdery moss like appearance but on the bottom it's more cotton like (mealybug looking) .... I've attached some closer photos. If it is a root mealybug infestation, can the plant be saved ? I've read dipping the roots in hot water is a good natural treatment ? Or is chemical soaking a better solution? Thanks again.
Mentha (East TN, Zone 6B-7A)
8 years ago
Photo Synthesis
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoI can't say whether or not it's mealybugs or fungus, but I did want to chime in. Not all fungi are bad. In fact our rainforests wouldn't be able to exist if it weren't for the fungi that break down dead organic matter and recycle the nutrients back into the ecosystem. That's why archaeologists have discovered entire petrified forests from our ancient past. Because all of these massive trees had no way of decaying back down into reusable nutrients. These ancient trees just lingered there for so long that they eventually petrified into stone. It wasn't until many millions of years later, when fungi were able to evolve and take up their role in recycling dead organic matter back into our environment.
For the longest time, orchid growers could never get their orchids' microscopic seeds to germinate. They would just sprinkle the very fine orchid seed "dust" down close to the parent plants' roots and just hope for the best. It wasn't until a botanist figured out that they needed a specific fungus to "infect" the seeds and get them to germinate. After that discovery, orchid growing and hybridization essentially exploded onto the market. Now we have literally hundreds of thousands of hybrids, with ever more newer varieties being introduced all of the time. All thanks to the symbiotic relationship between orchids and their beneficial fungi.
I've found fungi growing in many of my plants in the past. And not once do I ever remember any of them being adversely affected from it. In fact, it always seemed to be quite the opposite. My plants were/are doing great. And from what I can tell, your Fiddle Leaf fig seems to be doing great as well, and doesn't seem stressed out at all.
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
8 years agolj_b
8 years ago
Shaun Metzger
6 years agotlbean2004
6 years ago
Cheri
6 years ago
Just found this thread after some searching...when I went to water one of my fiddle leaf figs this morning, I saw some white on the top of the soil. Nothing seemed to be "moving" and I dabbed it with a cotton swab dipped in alcohol to make sure it wasn't mealy bugs... and it doesn't look like it, at least to me, but it definitely looks like a fungus or mold or something. My flf's seems to be a lot more widespread than the one in the OP, and maybe it's has something entirely different going on that a better trained eye can see...so I just wanted to hopefully get some opinions/advice/reassurance.
The plant looks very healthy (from above the roots) otherwise and I've had no other issues with it. I always do the dowel test before watering, and this guy actually hasn't been watered in almost two weeks, but it usually needs water after @ 1 1/2. I water according to Al's advice (water, flush, tilt) and am fertilizing with Foliage Pro ("maintenance" dose.) However, it has been a very muggy, hot and rainy summer here in Pennsylvania zone 6B. They have spent the summer (when it's not raining) outdoors under the canopy of a large maple. The plant is still unfortunately in the plastic pot I bought it in and I have not repotted yet, but had planned to do so next June. My other two fiddles do not have this issue. They all look otherwise healthy to me and have been growing nicely. The fig in question is on the far right.
Thank you in advance!! I love this forum!!
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
6 years agoCheri
6 years ago
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)