Just to make sure I understand... if a plant, such as
my pineapple scented geranium, is having a really hard time... I may
as well go ahead and re-pot, right? Ideally, we'd be ahead of the game by repotting before decline from poor soils or root congestion gets to the point we're rousing the plant from its deathbed and praying over it in the hope we can reverse the trend. Call it the same type of preventative maintenance as changing the oil. Changing a vehicles oil repeatedly and in timely fashion is a much wiser choice than waiting until clouds of blue smoke signal need for extensive work. It's easy to say my plant is looking pretty healthy, therefore it doesn't need repotting, so I'll put bit off until next summer, which might be 11-12 months of steady decline away. Repot em while they're healthy because healthy plants have a much stronger hold on the spirit than those that've had nearly a year's practice circling the drain.

At some point, you'll decide the plant has such a tenuous grip on life there's nothing to lose from repotting. That's also the point when you realize you've waited much too long to start being proactive.

Otherwise, it probably won't
make it. It's been a couple weeks since the heatwave and it is pushing
some new leaves but overall I don't see it as being vigorous like it
was. The color's not great, the leaves seem a little crepe-y (well,
more than normally so).

It has been in not-great soil for a
while... (there was another plant ahead of it in line for a re-pot,
which was itself waiting on some cuttings to root, in case the worst
happened in the re-pot. Unfortunately they didn't take so I'll have to
start over.) Up until the heat wave, it was still doing pretty
marvelously well. One of my favorites.

Sorry this is so long! I need to learn more about roots. I am looking at your "Basics" thread too.

Oh,
just in case there are others like me who can't do a re-pot of everyone
at once, and have to triage... it doesn't hurt a plant to get it out
of its pot and look at the roots, right? Right. Most people, for some reason, are very predisposed to thinking that messing with a plant's roots is taboo. It's not. I've done houseplant demos where every person in the group was convinced the plant would not live because I bare-rooted and removed 2/3 of the root mass. I ALWAYS keep track of the plant and send pictures of the plant, well along in its recovery, to someone who will send them to other members of the group. Somehow I am reluctant to do
that until I am actually re-potting... but maybe I should be checking
all my root systems every so often, just to see how they're doing? Yes - if the root/soil mass can be lifted from the pot intact - no question the plant will approve of a repot. Also, you can grab the trunk and move it from side to side to tell if the plant is root bound. NOT root bound = little resistance to your pressure - you'll see the soil and plant are still sort of flexible. A rootbound plant won't want to flex at the soil line, and the central part of the root mass will be tight around the plant. That's how I tell, + rootbound plants often resist absorbing water. Once you start using an appropriate soil (one you can water w/o worry about negatives associated with effects of prolonged saturation) and repotting in a timely fashion, you'll develop a feel for when it's time, and particularly when it's not prudent to wait another year, to repot

Also, just to be clear... unless it's really obvious to me what to
do, I may not cut any roots. It is in such a bad state. (I saw that
circling roots, and too many thick roots, and roots that go straight up
and down can be problematic... but right now I will be happy if there
are any roots in there at all.) If, during the first repot you do, ALL you do is bare-root, do a cursory perimeter pruning of the long roots, and remove any obvious broblem roots and get the plant into an appropriate soil, you'll be well pleased with your efforts. I try to stay right on top of my repots ....... and I STILL stand up and take note of the rapid increase in vitality brought on by repotting plants almost everyone would consider extremely healthy.

Are roots supposed to be a certain color? I thought lighter color was better but I'm not sure. Genetics, growth rates, and even the season has a lot to do with what roots look like. I like light colored (off-white to tan) roots (especially the tips) that are nice & plump.

A healthy root system, not yet pruned, and grown in the gritty mix:

Al

Al!!! Thanks so much! This is *extremely helpful* advice. I too have been leery of peeking at roots but I'm not going to be anymore. And the wiggle technique will be useful too.

And what a *gorgeous* picture of roots!!! I am going to try to someday see something like that when I re-pot!

Hi Al, Thanks for your advice. I really appreciate it. My plant has stopped growing (meaning no new leaf) since I don't know when. Three relatively new leaves that came out more than 6 months ago are pretty small and have brown dots on their backs. My plant is about 4.5' tall. My apt is facing north with low light levels (I live in California). I've attached two photos for your information. Any additional advice would be great. Thank you again.

I would love to repot my plant, but I am really bad at repotting plants and do not have any room or garage in my small apt to do such work. I might have to find a nursery to help me with this.

A nursery isn't likely to know the difference between repotting and potting up. Repotting includes root pruning and a change of soil, while potting up entails moving the root mass with all its issues and congestion to a bigger pot w/o resolving any of those issues that inhibit the plant's ability to realize its potential. Your plant needs repotting sometime in the near future, but no one will judge you if that can't happen. Things are as they are, and that's fine. I can help you by supplying info that allows you to make an informed decision, but beyond that, I can't help much, except perhaps by offering encouragement or an 'I get where you're coming from' remark here & there.

Obviously, you're willing to invest some time in figuring out your best course. I'll tell you what I think it is and you can decide if it sounds reasonable. Basically, what you CAN do for the plant now is ensure that the level of soluble mineral salts (dissolved solids) in the soil (solution) are not so concentrated that they inhibit the plant's ability to take up water. On one end of the "salt spectrum", you have distilled water, which has no dissolved solids in it and is easiest for the plant to take up by the process of osmosis. On the opposite end, you have a concentration of salts so high it can actually pull water right out of plant cells as opposed to the natural movement of water into cells. This is exactly the same process that occurs when curing salt pulls water from the cells of meat. To make sure the level of salts in the soil isn't too high, and also to ensure the balance of nutrients in the soil isn't so skewed it makes it impossible for the plant to absorb nutrients in a favorable ratio, you should flush the soil, which is covered in the opening post. After that, you should fertilize with an appropriate fertilizer, also covered upthread at the top. After that, you should try to give the plant as much light as it wants, keep it warm, and very importantly, keep your watering under control.

If you're still interested in what I have to say, we can talk about some tricks that will help you reduce water retention until you can do something along the lines of repotting - if that's even in the cards. As an alternate, you might be able to saw off the bottom 1/3 of the roots loosen some of the remaining soil around the perimeter of the root mass, and make some deep vertical cuts with a utility knife in the remaining root mass before returning the plant to the same pot or a larger pot with some ballast to help reduce the volume of excess water the plant CAN hold.

Thoughts?

Al

Thank you Al. Before I saw your reply, I brought the plant to a nursery and asked a nursery staff to repot it. The staff person thought the plant didn't need repotting but better watering. After reading your post and his suggestion, I realized I had been under watering it. I will try to flush the soil next time when I water it. I will see if the plant gets better with this new watering method, then maybe I will try to prune the roots.. Thanks for all of your help. I will probably ask for more help later.

The open space in the rooms in my smallish apartment is pretty small, so if I can't work on the porch because of heat or wind I move whatever I use 2" wide blue painter's tape to join two 6' x 4' pieces of heavy duty plastic to end up with a rugged waterproof 6' x 8' surface that you can fold to fit into the space I'm using. When done I either let it dry where it is (in winter) or let it dry on the porch (the rest of the year).

You can buy the tape and plastic anywhere that sells paint, and the painter's tape comes off easily so you can reuse the plastic.

Al, can you please write a book so I can have all of this fantastic info at hand and can I have your cell number so I can call you when I need help? Lol, just kidding, thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience!

Lol - thanks for the kind words, Andrea. I've actually have an outline for a book, but as things are now, I'm so busy with my business I don't have the time ...... and still do the other things I enjoy. I'm planning on retiring in a year or so and might tackle the book project after I do.

Al

Hi Al,

I have been reading up on all your advise and suggestions for fiddle leaf figs and I had some questions of my own if you are able to weigh in. I have had my plant for 6 months now and it seems to be doing fairly well but I am noticing some signs of distress. I have been very careful not to overwater but recently (as in the last two times I've watered) began watering slightly sooner than I had been in hopes it would help. I have read that I need to start implementing a dowel as a guide to know when to water so I'll start trying that method. Previously I just was testing the top 1" of soil to determine when to water and probably waiting a day or two after that. A couple of weeks after I brought my plant home I noticed that the leaves became wavy and slightly crinkled. I live in a very dry area and am thinking this is due to the low relative humidity in my house? I hesitated to increase my watering for fear of overwatering. My first question is will misting the leaves help this at all? I've also read other places that I don't want to get water on the leaves of my plant because mold and fungus could grow (at least I believe that was the reason given)? Perhaps I live in a dry enough area that wouldn't be an issue and misting my plant is something I should be doing regularly? Or perhaps the waves and crinkling is not due to a water problem at all?? My plant is in the soil it arrived in from the nursery (I have also read about changing the type of soil so I've been thinking about that too) and has drainage holes. I make sure to water it thoroughly and drain out the excess water. In fact, I generally set it on a folded up towel after watering and was wondering if this could act as a moisture wick that I read a little bit about (just a side question)?

My other concern is from the brown dots that I see on my new leaves. I see these spots throughout the plant but it seems that they are getting worse. I have had several new leaves opening all winter long but my newest leaf has sprouted with a brown crinkled edge that doesn't seem healthy. I'd like to try to get on top of this problem before it gets worse! The only other info I can add is I've never fertilized and perhaps that's also part of the problem. I have full intents of tracking down some fertilizer ASAP. Although I'm a little afraid of using it I effectively (I'm a complete novice). Any ideas would be appreciated! Thank you so much - pictures below.

Hi, Amber - "A couple of weeks after I brought my plant home I noticed that the
leaves became wavy and slightly crinkled. I live in a very dry area
and am thinking this is due to the low relative humidity in my house?" Low humidity and cool temps can cause a number of aberrations to normal leaf development, mechanical damage (tears and holes) and blemishes, so I wouldn't be surprised if you were correct in what you surmised.

Misting won't help, but making sure roots are functioning normally, keeping the plant at 70-80*, and raising relative humidity as high as is reasonable can help a lot. In most cases, impaired root function is the primary driver of a high % of cases of spoiled foliage appearance, further exacerbated by low humidity.

I generally set it on a folded up towel after watering and was
wondering if this could act as a moisture wick that I read a little bit
about (just a side question)? Yes, it can help a LOT if you do it right. There has to be a 'bridge' the soil in the pot can cross so it can be absorbed by the towel. If the SOIL in the pot isn't touching the paper towel, there is no 'bridge' and excess water will remain perched in the soil. Wad up a small piece of towel and push it against the soil in the pot at the drain hole, then set the pot on towels or newspapers to drain. It makes a difference. Tipping the pot with a bridge at a hole in the bottom at the side is even better. Imagine E tipped to the right so it looks like E to envision what I just described.

Fertilizing containerized plants is essential. You cannot depend on the soil to adequately or appropriately nourish the plant. The good news is, fertilizing can be SUPER easy if you water correctly. My suggestion is that you obtain a measure of Foliage-Pro 9-3-6 fertilizer by Dyna-Grow so we can get your plant nourished and formulate a fertilizing strategy that fits how you water. BTW - how you water is a key factor in determining the best strategy for nutritional supplementation.

Al

Thanks for your response Al. I will get some of the fertilizer you suggested and hope that helps prevent further issues. The oedma you mentioned is a direct correlation to watering the plant? So I am basically overwatering? Is that correct? If so, I'm glad you mentioned it because I was thinking I was letting the plant dry out to the point that it was having adverse effects and was just starting to water a little more frequently.

You also said how I water is a key factor in determining how to use the fertilizer. Well, I basically water when the soil feels dry when I stick my finger in it. I guess maybe I'm not pushing my finger down far enough and watering a little too soon. But at that point I take it to my kitchen sink and water it thoroughly and allow the water to drain out my tipping it in all directions until all water is drained out. Then I place it on a towel for awhile. (I also took note of your previous suggestion about creating a bridge). So with all of that info, would I be fertilizing in small doses every time I water? Or doing a monthly dose? I just worry about using too much and hurting my plant! I've read that sometimes the recommended doses that come with the fertilizer can be on the high side but I really have no first hand experience or knowledge about it. Any other suggestions for that? Thank you for your help!

In almost all cases involving houseplants, over-watering is the driving force behind oedema, but cool temps and low light can be contributing factors of significance. Because we can't physically look at how your plantings are faring or take your plants in hand and show you what could be improved, you'll need to make sure what I said is right before you act on it. Basically, I'm suggesting you start testing your soil with a wooden dowel and water just before it goes completely dry.

Given how you'll be watering and the fact that you'll be flushing the soil regularly, you can probably fertilize every 3rd or 4th time you water. If your plants are doing well & they're in bright light, you can use more fertilizer than you could if your plants are in a dark corner. I don't know where you live, but if you were in MI, I'd suggest you fertilize with 1/2-3/4 tsp per gallon of water every 3rd -4th time you water in the winter, and 1/2 to 1 tsp every 3rd or 4th time you water in summer.

Actually, recommended dosages on fertilizer packaging are almost always on the low side so there is reduced chance of fertilizer burn from a single application. For instance. In summer when plants are outdoors, I fertilize weekly (when temps are appropriate) at the rate of about 2 tsp per gallon, which is 4 or more X the recommended dosage of 9-3-6, depending on how you look at the package instructions. Because I'm making allowances for how I water and ambient temps, I don't have any issues with spoiled foliage other than an occasional leaf here and there that decides it wants to be obstinate for a reason that more often than not, never makes itself known.

Once you get the fertilizer, let's revisit your watering and make a plan that's easy to follow. If you have 10 plants that all get watered at different intervals and you want to water them all every 4th time you water, or even some every 4th and some every 3rd or 5th, put that many marbles or stones on top of the soil. Remove one each time you water. When you take the last one it's time to fertilize and replace all the markers in THAT pot. That's a very easy way to keep track of things, and you can chance the fertilizer frequency for the seasons if you add or subtract a marker. I think I should have thought this up a LONG time ago. It would've really helped a lot of folks, I think.

Al

Hi Al!

My fiddle leaf's leaves are curling. The newer ones still look okay but the rest are starting to curl under. I only water once a week. Does this mean it needs more water? It is a tree, not a bush.

I found your pictures. Didn't see anything other than symptoms of over-watering or a high TDS level (high level of total dissolved solids/salts in the soil solution). Perhaps you can provide some photos here?

I suggest you start making sure you're moistening the ENTIRE root mass when you water, then use a wooden dowel rod sharpened in a pencil sharpener as a 'tell'. After inserting it deep into the soil (like all the way to the bottom of the pot), withhold water until the first day it comes out clean/dry.

Getting your plant back on track will take several months and probably a repot. Restoring it's appearance will take some dedication to monitoring cultural conditions to make sure the plant isn't operating at the limits of what it's programmed to tolerate, and some time - like a year or more. If you repot this year and you're able to get your plant really humming, you can defoliate it next summer. Then, all the leaves that make up the flush of new growth will be pristine ..... but again, your tree has to be in very good health before you can subject it to that stress.

Al

Hi Al,

i just wanted to thank you for your help. This is a follow up from a couple months ago on this same thread. I got the fertilizer you recommended. I mixed 1 tsp of the fertilizer with a gallon of water. I've watered my plant twice with this mixture as the instructions on the back of the fertilizer say to water 2-3 times for mineral deficiencies. I haven't changed anything else but I noticed today that I have two yellow leaves on the bottom of my plant! Did I over fertilize? The first time I watered it with fertilizer I just added the fertilizer water. The second time I watered I made sure to add some regular water first so the fertilizer hopefully wouldn't burn the plant.

I also have noticed my soil drying out very quickly. I thought at first this was due to warmer temperatures but maybe I need to repot my plant with fresh soil? I don't see roots coming out of the drainage holes yet so I thought I had some more time. However on further inspection it looks like there are roots in the top of the soil that maybe should be covered? Any extra advice?? Thank you for your help! Amber

My pleasure, Amber. I enjoy interacting with other growers who take more than casual interest in their plants.

Usually, recommended dosages of fertilizers are only a fraction of what the plant might normally tolerate well, but it's possible that a dose of fertilizer solution at recommended concentrations added to the dissolved solids (salts) already in the soil solution can increase the level of dissolved solids to a concentration high enough to make it difficult for the plant to take up water. Additional factors, like over/under-watering or high light/heat levels can cause a drought response, part of which is shedding of foliage ..... so that's a possibility.

The leaves might also be in the process of being shed due to a decrease in light as larger/newer leaves cast shade on older leaves. Natural senescence (aging) is another potential cause, as would be temps too low and particularly sudden drafts. Plants starved for nutrients are programmed to cannibalize organs (like leaves and branches) for mobile nutrients (nutrients that can move in the plant) that they contain, after which the organs die and are eventually shed.

Now that you know exactly what's causing the yellowing foliage (kidding) ......... Sometimes it makes the most sense to evaluate how well you have the basics covered. Plants have a 'sweet spot' for cultural influence like light levels, temps, nutritional levels and ratios, moisture levels, and on and on. When we provide conditions that vary from the sweet spot and instead are closer to the limits of what the plant is genetically programmed to deal with, you see signs of stress. Strain occurs when stress becomes so bad that the plant is using more energy than it's producing during photosynthesis. Strain always leads to death of the organism unless the cause is corrected, so stress or strain should always be looked at as ample reason to act to change the cause. The main obstacle to that brilliant theory is IDing the cause. ;-)

That your soil is drying out quickly should be looked at as a good thing, as long as you're moistening the entire soil mass when you water. While soils that provide levels of water retention that allow you to go weeks w/o watering are convenient, they do not provide a healthy environment for roots; and, a healthy root system isn't optional if you want a healthy plant - it's a requirement.

Don't worry about exposed roots at the soil surface - no need to cover them. Roots exposed to dry air and light always turn woody looking.

Let me know if you want to talk 'repotting'. If you're in the N Hemisphere, the best time to repot is approaching - mid to late June, in most parts of the US, but a little earlier in the deep south.

Al

Thanks again Al,

Ok, after reading your last post I have a couple of thoughts. First, the two yellowing leaves are indeed under larger leaves and not receiving the same amount of light as most of the other leaves. So maybe this is just nature taking its course - I like the sounds of that much better than me somehow being involved with the leaf shedding! In general, my plant is in a very bright south facing window but doesn't receive much direct light so I don't think light is an issue. (Is it even considered direct light if it's coming though a window?)

Second, even though my soil seems to be drying out quickly now, this is a relatively new devolpment so I'm not sure it's a great thing....let me see if I can explain. I got my plant in September and when I first got it I was able to let it go weeks without watering it and it was still damp. Granted, it was early fall so conditions are a little different than right now. But I don't think by a whole lot. I was very nervous about root rot by over watering my ficus so I really let things dry out before watering. Which makes me think perhaps I've been underwatering. I read somewhere else that certain parts of soil, if left to dry out completely, stop taking in water. Does this sound familiar at all? I have no idea if this is true and I really don't even know what my soil is made up of because I haven't changed it out. Anyway, just a thought.

I am definitely interested in repotting at some point but I don't see roots at the bottom yet so maybe I'm too early? I live in southern CO and we are having very warm temperatures already. I was thinking June was when I was supposed to repot so maybe I'll take a good look at my tree next month? Or if I skip repotting this year by next year will I be in trouble? How much will the roots grow in a typical year. This September will mark one year since I've had the tree. I don't know how long it's been in its current container. If I go ahead and repot now, is it detrimental to the tree if it's not root bound yet? My plan had always been to repot vs pot up but maybe I need to pot up since this is such a young ficus? Gosh, I guess I had more questions than I thought! Thank you for your time!

Amber

I mentioned something about the root mass getting moistened above ("That your soil is drying out quickly should be looked at as a good
thing,as long as you're moistening 'the entire soil mass' when you water") that was a way of recognizing that left to get too dry, peat and bark-based soils can pretty much be relied upon to turn hydrophobic (water repellent). If/when that occurs, it's hard to determine whether or not the whole soil mass is getting moistened when you water, which makes it easy to under-water and would certainly shorten intervals between needed waterings notably.

I am definitely interested in repotting at some point but I don't see
roots at the bottom yet so maybe I'm too early? I was thinking June
was when I was supposed to repot so maybe I'll take a good look at my
tree next month? I can agree with that. Timing your repot so it's done anytime between the first week of June and the 4th of July would be easiest on the plant. If I skip repotting this year by next year will I
be in trouble? You decide. About the time where the root and soil mass can be lifted from the pot intact, growth rate and vitality are negatively affected. That becomes a permanent condition until you physically correct the root congestion. A years worth of root congestion, or even 2, are unlikely to kill your plant, but the marked improvement in growth and vitality you see after a full repot will be a clear illustration of just how limiting root congestion is/can be. How much will the roots grow in a typical year. That depends on how well you treat the plant and how advanced root congestion already is.If roots have room to run and you provide good cultural conditions, you'll be surprised at how much growth most in the Ficus genus will put on in a single growth cycle. If I go ahead and repot now, is
it detrimental to the tree if it's not root bound yet? That's sort of 2 questions. You would be better to wait a bit on the repotting - like 6 weeks or so; and, repotting is always a temporary detriment to the plant. The thing is though, the temporary sulking of a plant newly repotted is nothing like the loss of potential you leave lying on the table when you ignore root maintenance. If you and I had a race to see who could grow the largest ficus in a decade, and you repotted every other year while I didn't repot at all in that 10 year period (just potted up) ..... I wouldn't be surprised if your plant was as much as 5-8X the mass of mine. As a bonsai practitioner who repots up to 150 trees per year, I've see the significant difference thousands of times in hundreds of species of trees, so what I'm saying isn't something I've heard or read somewhere. It's for real. ;-) My plan had
always been to repot vs pot up but maybe I need to pot up since this is
such a young ficus? You can pot up as long as you like w/o penalty IF you pot up before the root/soil mass reaches that state of congestion where the root/soil mass can be lifted from the pot intact. Once that occurs, potting up will minimally relieve the effects of root congestion where repotting correctly totally relieves the effects. Age of the plant has no sway over whether or not the plant needs repotting.

Al

I'm afraid I've
managed to treat my fiddle leaf in just about the worst way possible.
Here's its history, as quickly as I can give it:

2013, bought from Home Depot (in OR, where I live) as two stems about 2 feet tall

2013-
fall 2016 watered semi-regularly (sporadically), leaning more on the
dry side. I left it in the 10" pot it came in, in the same soil.
Watering consisted of me dumping a cup or two of water on it every week
or two when I thought of it, never doing a full flush. The soil was kind
of a standard nursery soil that would get decently dried out. Probably
the only thing that kept it from drying out entirely was that sometimes
I'd empty my waterbottle into it, and the ice cubes would slowly melt.

Both
plants grew to a height of about 4 to 4.5 feet and were pretty leggy but not (to me) obviously unhealthy. Green leaves, no bugs, that kind of thing.
The pot lived indoors in a room with an east and south window, so it got
nice indirectly light all day.

Late fall 2016: we moved.
Plant migrated around the house until I found a mostly draft-free spot
for it next to a south window with an awning outside, so it was
indirect. I had decided, after reading, I needed to repot it in better
soil in the spring. I waited patiently all winter until I thought spring
arrived. First warm day in mid-March (after one of the stems had
started putting out new leaves) I:

-took the pot outside, worked the
two plants apart at the roots and re-potted both in their own pots with
fresh soft fluffy potting medium

-didn't root prune beyond what came off when I pulled the two plants apart
-gave each a bit of water but not too much, since the soil was already moist
-went
to go read more about what to do next and discovered I'd repotted WAY
too early and probably in the wrong soil. Didn't water again until last
weekend to avoid drowning the plants.
-bottom leaves started
to yellow, which I thought I'd read before was a sign of not enough
water, so I hauled the plant off for a thorough dousing in the bathtub.
Slowly poured 2 gallons of water in before it started draining out the
bottom.

-realized I'd probably overwatered, so I put it outside
where the pot could get sun but the plant got bright light

-forgot it overnight two nights in a row when it dropped into the 40s (hangs head in shame)

Also, this plant doesn't seem anchored very well in the soil; it had a
lean when it was potted with the other plant in the hard original soil,
but after repotting it falls almost to a 45-degree angle.

So,
now that I've done literally everything wrong that I could have, I'm
wondering what I should do next to actually help the plant instead of
ignoring or causing it harm. Eventually I was hoping to get it to a tree
form, but I know I'm years away from that. Questions:

1. Is a sunny window a good spot for it for the time being?
2. I plan to monitor water with a sharpened dowel and avoid overwatering. Good idea, or should I do something else?
3. Repot in June into better soil (gritty mix or something similar)?

4. Is going outside when it's 70s-80s during the day ok if it comes in at night?
5. Any other advice or nice things I should do for it?

Right
now, it doesn't appear to be panicking (hasn't lost a bunch of leaves)
but I can't imagine it's very happy, given my treatment of it.

1. Is a sunny window a good spot for it for the time being? Yes

2. I plan to monitor water with a sharpened dowel and avoid overwatering. Good idea, or should I do something else? It's critical that you avoid over-watering. HOW you avoid it is less important than THAT you avoid it; but the dowel would be the method I'd recommend - especially since it sounds like the soil you used retains a lot of water.

3. Repot in June into better soil (gritty mix or something similar)? I would do as full repot, as long as the plant is healthy enough to tolerate the work

4. Is going outside when it's 70s-80s during the day ok if it comes in at night? By all means. If you're willing to move the plant in and out as temps dictate, the plant will definitely show its appreciation.

5. Any other advice or nice things I should do for it? Fertilize regularly with an appropriate fertilizer and flush the soil maybe once before you repot.

Al

Hi Al! I need your help bad!!! I am a plant mama to quite a few indoor babies. I'm able to keep most happy & healthy...when bug problems come up, I am able to concoct home remedies to help save them....the one plant I cannot figure out is my fiddle leaf fig. I've had three. The first was when I was brand new to plants, it was kept in a dark apartment and the poor guy had no chance. When i moved, i got another...he was OK for awhile! But then over time got more and more brown...and never sprouted new leaves. That guy eventually died as well. Now i'm on my third. This is my third....it is bigger (three stalks). When I got it home I think maybe one leaf had brown on it, but as time passes, more and more leafs are looking brown. The other day one fell off. It has holes in the pot, so it can drain...and i've recently been watering with only filtered water (that began only a couple weeks ago). It did sprout three baby leaves toward the bottom of one stalk maybe a month ago...they had a brown spotting on them...but not brown dried spots like the mature leaves. I'm not home to take photos, but i found some online that look similar...can you help?! I'm determined to be a good plant mom to this fiddle!!

Add: Oh i forgot to tell you, the plant is in our living room...it's right next to a window, but toward the corner. it get indirect sunlight.

Thank you! I will likely be back in touch about repotting once June rolls around, provided it hasn't taken a turn for the worse.

I'm pretty sure I read on one of your other comments/threads that you put all your ficuses outside and let the leaves burn, fall off and regrow instead of acclimating them when the weather turns warm. I would imagine that's a fine practice if your plants are healthy and not stressed, and consequently it's something I should not do in my situation because my tree might not have the energy to spare. Would you agree? I'm curious because a couple of the bottom leaves made it more into the sun than I expected and burned a bit. I was just going to leave them alone for the time being and try to avoid further burns.

Case - the red pigment in the new foliage is an expression of the pigment anthocyanin and it should be masked by another pigment (chlorophyll) as the leaves mature.

Odds highly favor the idea you're over-watering. Start testing the soil with a 5/16 wooden dowel rod. Cut it into 2 24" pieces and sharpen all 4 ends in a pencil sharpener. Use it to test for moisture by pushing the rod all the way to the bottom of the pot. Leave it for a few seconds & withdraw/examine the tip. If it's moist or stained dark from moiost soil, withhold water until the day it comes out dry.

Does your pot have a drain hole?

Do you flush the soil occasionally (you should - especially if you water in smallish sips).

Tell me about the "filtered water". Do you have an ion exchange water softening system?

Do you fertilize? with what? how often?

**********************************************************************

JMM - if you have questions about your plant's health or energy reserves, you should definitely try to gradually acclimate the plant to direct light, but even then it might not work. Leaves aren't able to adapt to significant changes in light levels. A plant with leaves that emerged at a light level of 5 on a 1-10 scale might only be able to to a brighter level of 8 and a reduced level of 3, before the plant's internal messengers tell the plant it would be better served by shedding currently inefficient leaves in favor of a new flush of foliage that will emerge perfectly adapted to light levels where the plant is currently sited.

Al

Al, a little trivia question: if half my ficus B.'s leaves grew in very low light levels and the rest under moderate supplemental indoor light and 'direct' spring light through single pane glass, should I expect the former set of leaves to acclimate to direct sun more slowly than the latter? I'm just trying to get a handle on the whole outside-inside problem now that I've realized that even a carefully positioned plant on my porch will get three hours of direct sunlight per day at most, less than they get in the most favorable window I have.

It's all still theoretical since nighttime temps are still too low to leave plants outside, but one needs something to think about while waiting to repot things.

Case - the red pigment in the new foliage is an expression of the pigment anthocyanin and it should be masked by another pigment (chlorophyll) as the leaves mature. Ahhh, good to know. I'm glad my baby leaves are doing ok.

Odds highly favor the idea you're over-watering. Start testing the soil with a 5/16 wooden dowel rod. Cut it into 2 24" pieces and sharpen all 4 ends in a pencil sharpener. Use it to test for moisture by pushing the rod all the way to the bottom of the pot. Leave it for a few seconds & withdraw/examine the tip. If it's moist or stained dark from moiost soil, withhold water until the day it comes out dry. I will get a dowel today! Sounds great. Do certain fiddles prefer more water? Is there an "average" for these plants?

Does your pot have a drain hole? Yes, it is in the pot that it originally came in (plastic with hold at the bottom sides) from Home Depot

Do you flush the soil occasionally (you should - especially if you water in smallish sips). I've never done this before...how do I do it? When i water I do water in small amounts...I attempt to do three little cups near the base of each tree (so 1 cup for each base).

Tell me about the "filtered water". Do you have an ion exchange water softening system? Well when I first got it home, I was using tap water ... I think our tap water might be hard water? When my sprinklers hit my car, it leaves hard water spots...so when i put two and two together, I started using our Arrowhead water bottles. We have a dispenser

Do you fertilize? with what? how often? I never have. Should I? What do I use? I've never fertilized before!

Thank you soooo much! I love learning how to care for these guys! You are brilliant. Please write a book!

Update: I've attached photos of my leaves and plant so you can get a better picture of what's going on

Al, sorry to keep sending in - but just wanted to add this:

Today another two leaves fell off :( upon looking closer there are white powdery looking areas on the veins (see attached) at first i thought they were mealy bugs. but i'm not entirely sure. I also noticed some what i think are spider mites. i think the whole plant might be infected. normally i'm able to clean off my little house plants this fiddle is so big i don't know how to help it i'm also not sure if it gets enough light

If half my ficus B.'s leaves grew in very low light levels and the rest
under moderate supplemental indoor light and 'direct' spring light
through single pane glass, should I expect the former set of leaves to
acclimate to direct sun more slowly than the latter? It's very likely the leaves that emerged under low light conditions will not be able to acclimate to full sun conditions, no matter how slowly and carefully you were trying to acclimate them. FWIW, over the lkast few days I've moved maybe 15 Ficus from the basement under fluorescent lights directly into full sun. If the leaves burn, they burn. Within a week or two they'll be in the process of being replaced by a new flush of growth perfectly acclimated to whatever site is 'home' for the plants.

*******************************************************************************

Do certain fiddles prefer more water? Is there an "average" for these plants? The entire mulberry family pretty much prefers a fast-draining, well-aerated soil that holds very little or no perched water. Their roots have evolved to serve as storage organs to get them through short dry periods, so it's better to err on the 'little too dry side' than keeping them too wet. This is especially true if your soil holds a significant measure of perched water, so monitor moisture levels carefully until you're sure you're watering judiciously.

Al: Do you flush the soil occasionally (you should - especially if you water in smallish sips). Case: I've
never done this before...how do I do it? When i water I do water in
small amounts...I attempt to do three little cups near the base of each
tree (so 1 cup for each base). When you water in sips you ensure all dissolved solids (salts) from tapwater and fertilizer solutions that are unused by the plant accumulate in the soil. Eventually, unless you flush the soil, the level of salts can become so concentrated that it can PULL water from cells by the exact mechanism by which curing salts pull moisture from ham, bacon, or other processed meats. This is called plasmolysis (commonly- fertilizer burn) because as water is pulled from cells and the cell collapses, protoplasm is torn from cell walls and the cell dies.

Flushing the soil cures two nutritional problems. It significantly reduces any dangerous accumulations of salts in the soil, and it 'fixes' nutrient ratios in the soil solution that are severely out of proportion. There is an IDEAL level of each nutrient in the soil that is based on how much N there is. There should be about 6X as much N as P, and about 3/5 as much K as N. Fertilizers with a 3:1:2 ratio provide almost exactly that comparative level of NPK. My suggestion would be for you to purchase a small container of Foliage-Pro 9-3-6 (a 3:1:2 ratio) and call it a day. It provides ALL the nutrients essential for normal growth in the ratio favored by the average plant. I use it on everything I grow, but doctor it a bit for two plants - tomato and hibiscus.

If you have mites, you can dislodge them with a sharp spay with a garden hose or a hand-held shower wand. You can also mix distilled water 1:1 or 2:1 water:70% rubbing alcohol and spritz with a hand spritzer or pump sprayer. If you have mealybug, you can spray (outdoors) with Bayer Advanced 3-in-1 for Insects/Diseases/Mites. Do 3 sprays at 2 week intervals and it should clear up any issues involving insects with sucking/rasping mouth parts. The alternate would be to continually eliminate the adults you find with rubbing alcohol on a Q-tip. but you'll never get rid of the problem by this method because of the crawlers you'll miss.

Thanks for the kind words, BTW.

Al

Thanks for the leaf info, Al. The ficuses are my strongest plants, so I'm confident they'll come back strong even if every single leaf drops. In fact, they might be easier to prune without all of their dense new growth blocking the view!

Be careful about completely defoliating benjamina where you live. That might not end well. If you do, make sure the plant is super healthy. ..... best to leave a few leaves at each branch tip to prevent losing branches or even the whole tree.

Al

Al I'm so happy to hear you say that about moving your plants outside and not worrying about some of the leaves burning. I have a large collection of succulents and other full sun plants that I winter over indoors, where the light level is much lower, and I move them out to my very sunny porch when weather conditions are favorable, there's just no way I'm going to move them in and out to acclimate them (like I tell my customers to do) so some of the leaves burn and fall off but the new leaves are perfectly acclimated to their new situation. I do try to mitigate the effect by starting them off in the least sunny spots but, honestly, there is not shady spot on my porch so most of them do get a bit scorched. I feel like this is kind of a "dirty little secret" that experienced plant people keep to themselves, that we don't always take our own advice lol, and that if you're employing good cultural practices, a few lost leaves or a few bugs are nothing to worry about!

A plant's first line of defense against insects and disease is a robust metabolism; this, because the compounds that deter insects and diseases are byproducts of the plant's metabolic functions. That's why weak plants are vulnerable plants and why poor soils and over-watering are often the underlying cause of the plant's inability to defend itself. Damaged or diseased roots = a weakened plant with low energy reserves.

Just to be clear though, most trees, if healthy, can be moved from indoors to outdoors in full sun if you're willing to take the hit sunburn (photo-oxidation) will predictably cause. Too, plants that show a lot of green in stem tissue can be damaged by too much sun by the same mechanism that damages leaf tissue, so be careful with plants like schefflera that take a while to build up a protective layer of bark. I'd say it would be best to ask which plants can be moved from indoors to sun directly and w/o acclimation. Your tree/plant has to have enough energy reserves to push a new flush of leaves if you're considering it.

Al

Don't worry, Al, I don't intend to defoliate my ficuses; I'm just really confident about their health. They need pruning once they've been repotted, but I'll post pics and ask for advice before I do anything.

Hi Al!
All this info is fantastic. Im trying to get my head around what my Ficus needs most. She came home with us about 1 month ago, and has shown very slow decline since then. The outer edges of the leaves closest to the main stalk are browning, the edges are shriveling, and some leaves are drying/yellowing. Its losing about a leaf/wk. The veins also appear quite yellow on a number of the leaves (not sure if thats normal). I flushed it at its last watering, but I think I might have watered too soon, which exacerbated the browning. Ive used the wooden dowel trick (thanks littlebuggy), and its been 8 days since my last watering. The bottom 1/3 of the dowel still looks brown/moist when I withdrew it (see pictures), so I plan to hold off on watering until its clean.

I have a few questions.

#1: Should the plant be flushed with every watering? If not, how often?

#2: Would you advise repotting it now (end of June in Toronto, ON). I was educated against this by a local nursery, but I know little to nothing about soil moisture and if the plant is in the wrong medium (its still in the soil it came in from the plant store). The owner does not know the last time the plant was repotted. Ive attached pictures of the current soil its sitting in. Would you advise repotting it in a different medium, and if so, what type of soil should I be looking for?

#3: Lastly, the plant is sitting against a south facing window in partially direct sun. I'm concerned it might be sunburn, but also don't know what signs of that would be. If the leaves that are falling off at the base of the tree are due to over exposure of direct sun (whereas the top ones seem to be loving it), will those lost leaves regrow at the base, or will new foliage only form at the top?

Thanks SO much in advance!

Courtney, I hope Al is able to get back to you because my plant is going through the same problems!

Sorry for the tardy reply. Work has been insanely busy, leaving me with little to no spare time, after I factor in the obligations that can't be avoided.

Courtney's questions:

#1: Should the plant be flushed with every watering? If not, how often? Ideally, you would put yourself in a situation where it's possible to flush the soil every time you water, but how your soil is structured is what determines whether or not that's practical. It's not necessary to flush with each watering, but you should try to establish some sort of flushing pattern that ensures the level of dissolved solids and/or skewed nutrient ratios doesn't get to the point where it's notably limiting. If you don't flush with regularity, it becomes very important to use a fertilizer, the ratio of which closely matches the ratio at which your plant utilizes the nutrients.

#2: Would you advise repotting it now (end of June in Toronto, ON). I
was educated against this by a local nursery, In all honesty, most nursery employees and even owners have very little knowledge about repotting, mainly because none of them do it. All they know is 'potting up', and 99% of their employees would look at you like you had a third eye if you explained the benefits of repotting. They all understand that root congestion can be severely limiting to the bottom line, but since lost potential is essentially invisible, they look at repotting as an expensive to be avoided. They'll bump the plant to a larger pot and fill in with a little soil, which costs them a couple of minutes time and a few cents worth of soil. It pains me though, that they would caution customers about repotting, when it's literally a requirement if you want to maximize the opportunity your pant has to realize its genetic potential. but I know little to
nothing about soil moisture and if the plant is in the wrong medium (its
still in the soil it came in from the plant store). The owner does not
know the last time the plant was repotted. Very likely because he's never repotted it. Most growers are only interested in buying trees from a grower or broker and working toward a rapid turnover. If the plant starts to decline, no effort is likely to be made to salvage it. Instead, it's most likely to be pitched in the dumpster. Ive attached pictures of the
current soil its sitting in. Would you advise repotting it in a
different medium, and if so, what type of soil should I be looking for? I can't be certain how suitable the soil is by looking at the picture, but it looks like it has a lot of fines and maybe even some topsoil. I can assure you that establishing as a minimum standard that you can water to beyond the point of saturation w/o the plant paying a penalty due to prolonged periods of soil saturation, will make a very meaningful difference in your ability to keep plants healthy.

#3: Lastly, the plant is sitting against a south facing window in
partially direct sun. I'm concerned it might be sunburn, but also don't
know what signs of that would be. Sunburn is photo-oxidation. High levels of solar radiation produces an O- free oxygen radical, which is exactly what H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) contains and acts as a bleaching agent. The free radical attacks and literally bleaches (oxidizes) molecules of chlorophyll. This turns over-exposed areas silver at first, followed by a progression to black or brown. If the leaves that are falling off at
the base of the tree are due to over exposure of direct sun Probably not the real reason (whereas the
top ones seem to be loving it), will those lost leaves regrow at the
base, or will new foliage only form at the top? The plant is apically dominant, and will expend about 2/3 of the energy it creates via photosynthesis in the top 1/3 of the tree ....... unless you restrain the top (through pruning) which forces the plant to expend more energy on lower branches. There ARE ways to force branching low on the trunk, among them is maintaining a very high state of vitality with the plant outdoors in full sun and air movement, and hard pruning and various levels of defoliation.

Al

Al,

i have a post in container gardens forum about a mix I'm wanting to make today to repot my poor fiddle tomorrow (topic is "help! Fiddle leaf is dying"). Could you double check my intended mix to make sure it is okay for my Fiddle?

Hi Al (or any other experienced Fiddle Leaf fig owner),

I purchased my Fiddle leaf fig tree back in early June and had no issues (it even seemed to be thriving) for the months of summer. I even moved about 3 hours away and it tolerated that just fine. I gave my tree outside time (filtered sunlight, when temps were above 65) during the warm months of summer and it seemed to like being watered about every 5-7 days. My potting soil is the same as it came in, but seemed to "flush" well. During the summer I fertilized with 9-3-6 Foliage Pro (diluted 1/4 t in 1 gallon of water) and used this to water about 3/4 of the time. It seemed to like this and I got 4-5 new leaves in less than 4 months.

However, a couple weeks ago the outside temperatures began falling and with this, it seems my Fiddle leaf fig tree is having trouble adjusting to the change. I'm finding the most recent leaves are in a constant state of wilt (they also feel very soft and thin). No leaf drop yet. I have a couple ideas that be contributing to this, do any of these make sense?

1) The plant does seem to be root bound. See photos. Although, it was like this when I bought it (able to be lifted out of the pot). The florist told me not to re-pot until next spring... Obviously re-potting entering fall/winter is not advisable unless an "emergency" situation. Would this classify as emergency?

2) We have radiant ceiling heat in our house (ceiling cable heat). Could the heat coming from above contribute to the top leaves wilting? I just moved it to a room where the heating is different and it hasn't seemed to help yet, but I'll be patient. Both places are near a S window with plenty of light.

3) Humidity is pretty low (hovers around 40%), I try to mist daily. That being said, the summer humidity is also low, so this isn't much of a change. I try to keep indoor temps around 70, but occasionally they drop into the mid 60s.

4) I have begun to water less often (now without fertilizer) as the soil seems to retain water longer. Maybe with being cooped up inside it was feeling over-watered for a bit?

Do you have any other ideas? This has been going on for almost 3 weeks, the first two photos are from 2 weeks ago -- it actually looks a little better this week, but still some wilt (last indoor photo is from just now, new location, have not watered in over a week). Plant is in a 9" pot, and about 32" high. I live in the mountains of Colorado.

Update: It is warm out today, so I put my FLF outside -- pretty soon the top leaves are looking like the first photo (maybe even more wilted). I'm confused since its always loved being outside before :/

Thank you thank you!

I've only got a little bit left in my today, but here are a few things. I can't tell what's wrong, perhaps because you have caught this problem early, but this post might explain some of what's going on. Ask all the questions you want!

First, what kind of soil is it?

Second, was the soil very wet when you took the photo of the roots? How long before the pictures were taken was the plant watered? I'm saving that photo because it's an excellent illustration of how the root zone can be very wet when the top few inches of a water retentive soil is dry.

--like most figs, FLFs love lots and lots of sunlight, as much and as strong as you can provide. Direct sun outside is best (allowing time to acclimate first), followed by directly in front of an unobstructed southwest or south facing window, followed by an east window. They can live in bright indirect light but they won't thrive and their growth will be leggy.

--the pot is rootbound, but not so badly that it needs immediate repotting, and not so rootbound that it can take up enough water to keep the soil from starting saturated long enough after watering to drown and kill roots.

--are the leaves damaged or discolored, or are they just droopy? Post photos of damage if there is any.

--misting only helps for a few seconds after you mist, so don't bother. Ficuses may like humidity but they do fine in dry environments; just check regularly for pests like spider mites, which can easily affect houseplants in dry environments. But feel free to add a humidifier if you want to.

--a plant's water needs depend on the time of year, how strongly it's growing (which is usually related to how much sunlight it gets), the relative humidity, and the soil type. Therefore the plant generally needs less water because it grows less when it gets less sun, whether you bring it indoors or the days get shorter (or both).

I'm going to paste in something on watering I wrote for someone else because I've had a helluva day and need to go hide under the covers. It's pretty much a digest of what Al (tapla) has written about watering.

"Watering when the plant needs it (and not before) is one of the biggest things you can do to keep any plant healthy. Like most plants, aerated soil is as critical to a ficus's health as sunshine. That's why we check soil moisture.

A sharpened dowel is a simple, fast, and accurate tool for this (5/8" or 1/4" seems best), but any thin piece of unfinished wood, like a wooden skewer or even a cheap chopstick, works fine too.

Stick the dowel through the soil to the very bottom of the pot, leave it for two seconds, and withhold water until the whole dowel comes out completely dry (don't worry, at that point there's still water within the soil particles that the roots can access but we can't feel). Then water slowly but thoroughly, wetting the entire surface of the soil, until water drains freely from the pot, making sure the pot doesn't sit in the drained water.**

To get excess water out of the pot so the soil at the bottom doesn't stay completely saturated, prop it up so it's tilted at 45 degrees for 10-15 minutes. If there are drain holes around the edges of the bottom you're done (that's why I love my cheap plastic pots); if the holes or holes aren't at the edges you'll leave the pot upright for 5-10 minutes to let the excess water drain out.

This practice ensures the roots get substantial periods in moist, not wet, soil, when they can get oxygen from the air between soil particles and grow into a healthy system that takes up water and nutrients stores water for dry periods. Watering until water drains freely from the pot prevents the buildup of mineral and fertilizer deposits that can damage the plant and retard growth.

Plants use more water when they're growing and in low humidity, and use less in the winter, so check the moisture every day until you know how your plants behave . If you don't have a pencil sharpener, just scrape off the dirt stains from the last time you checked with a utility or pocket knife or even a razor blade."

Thank you for the reply! Yes, I figured the earlier I could understand how to care for it during winter (while we're not in the middle of it), the better!!

I cannot tell you exactly what type of soil it is. Same soil it came in... It doesn't look exactly like the 5-1-1 soil that I've heard is ideal, but it does have some bark in it. I grabbed a small handful and took a picture. (I wonder if the bark is mostly concentrated on the top though...)

Very interesting. I wouldn't say the soil was wet at the time I took the photo, but it was damp. That photo was taken 5 days after I had watered it last. I actually watered it again shortly after that photo was taken, which I realize now was probably a mistake, but during the summer that was what it seemed to like. But now I am using the dowel method and I haven't watered it since (going on 9 days). The dowel is coming out just barely damp at the bottom, so we're close!!

-- I've got it by a south window with plenty of light, direct and at times filtered through the leaves of outside trees (which are soon to fall off).

-- Happy to hear about not needing an immediate re-pot. I'll target a re-pot next spring!

-- Added some close up leaf photos. Leaves don't seem to have major issues (minus the drooping). One new leaves has a ripple to it, but I think that's related to the wilting? The other new leaf has a hole that I read (from Al) is due to low humidity and the leaf sticking to itself during development. Also the third leaf down was possibly affected by mites? It has rust colored dots -- anyway I misted with an alcohol/water solution and it seemed to help the situation. Some of the leaves have some edge damage/crisping,

Thanks for the watering tips! Hopefully this is just the beginning symptoms of an overwatering issue and I can figure out my new watering schedule for the long winter ahead!

New leaf with ripple, some edge damage on far back leaf (had this damage when I bought the plant though)

Thanks again! I appreciate your time!

I actually think you've caught this early, because despite being rootbound the plant looks pretty good.

Nine days is a very long time, like what I'd expect from a typical fine grained potting mix. It looks like the soil was probably once pretty barky, but over time the mix below the first few inches has decomposed, which contributed to water retention as it broke down into smaller and smaller particles. Good watering practices will get you through the winter, but it should be repotted next summer around father's day (the solstice) into something like 5:1:1. Repotting includes removing all the old soil from the root ball, pruning any circling and defective/dysfunctional roots and reducing the root mass. it can sounds intimidating, but you'll find lots of info on this thread and others like you'll get lots of help from forum members as you get into the process of gathering ingredients for the mix and doing the repotting..

I can't remember, have you been watering until water drained freely from the pot? If not, or if your water is hard, there may be mineral deposits in the soil, which would mean it would benefit from a good flushing next time it needs water. Use 5 or more times the volume of the pot of plain room temperature reverse osmosis water to flush the pot, then drain normally. When I flushed my plants I used R/O water I got from a water machine at the grocery store for about $0.50/gallon, and I could almost hear them breathe a sigh of relief when I was done (I'd been bottom-watering or watering in sips, letting them reabsorb drained water, and hadn't given any of them fresh soil in a very long time).

The leaves really look pretty good, actually. Mechanical damage can be caused by low humidity, but I've seen perfectly good leaves growing in dry conditions on healthy plants, so I suspect the damage to growing leaves is less likely if the root system is healthy. Healthy leaves on lyratas that haven't wilted from overwatering or underwatering reach upward, like the second set of leaves on your plant, but once they've wilted and drooped they never go back to their upright position.

Your indoor light sounds pretty much like what most people can provide. Even clear glass filters out some frequencies of sunlight, so next spring start acclimating the plant to full sun by putting it on the porch in indirect light, then giving it one hour of direct sun a day for a few days, then two, etc., to prevent sunburned leaves. Even just a few hours of direct sun a day and several more of indirect light will make a big difference. Your ficus will thank you with lovely new growth, and pretty soon you'll be back to ask for pruning advice to shape a healthy growing tree!

Lenore

Great -- plenty of time to read up and get familiarized with re-potting!

I have been watering until the water drains freely from the bottom, but definitely not with 5x the volume of the pot. I will do that the next watering.

VERY helpful to know that once wilted, the leaves don't bounce fully back to that upright position -- now I won't expect them to look like all the others once I get this "issue" fixed!

Thanks again! I appreciate all your expertise. I'll be in touch if any other "symptoms" start coming up! Looking forward to learning as much as I can and eventually getting to that tree stage! :)

If you're watering so 15-20% of the total volume of water applied at each watering is exiting the pot, that's all that's needed. The suggestion to flush the soil with water = in volume to at least 10x the volume of the pot the plant is in, is for cases where salts have been allowed to accumulate by way of neglecting the need to flush the soil.

Al

Yes that is what I have been doing. Thank you for the clarification!

hello! i have a question.. i live in a tropical country where the weather is hot & humid. temp ranges from 22°C to 34°C, 22 we have in cold months like last december. 34 peaks in the summer. sometimes 36. we only have a wet & dry season.

i have heard some folks say gardening can be done any time of the year. so was just wondering, when is the best time to repot plants here? with the root pruning and everything.. does father's day still apply to my place or is it really okay to do all that all year round?

will concentration of energy reserves of plants still have seasons in a place like this? because you said its best to wait 'til plants are in their greatest vitality to minimize the effects of stress upon repotting..

The cyclic rhythm of plants is primarily determined by photoperiod, so the closer to the equator you live, the less important is the consideration of timing. I can't guess at what would be the opportune time to repot for you w/o some idea of where you live, or at least what hemisphere you live in and/or latitude.

Al

oh im sorry i forgot that part. lol im from the philippines!

Hello! I posted here many months ago (about a wilty ficus lyrata) and received some great advise from tapla and litterbuggy. Now that it is a better time to do a full repot, I want to make sure I have everything in order! I plan to use the gritty mix and have gathered all the materials and begun sifting. I am using fir bark (pretty sure fir or pine/fir mix from Rocky Mountain soils, found at Ace), Napa “floor dry” (diatomaceous earth), and manna pro poultry grit. I just started sifting the bark through a homemade 1/4” screener. I sifted a couple batches and noticed the sifted mix seems to have a lot of long, thin sapwood in it. I’ve read sapwood is not ideal to have in the mix. I attached pictures of what my ingredients look like and a close up of the “sapwood” I’m talking about. Is this something I can work with by hand picking out pieces or would it be advisable to find a more pure pine/fir bark mulch? Do my other two ingredients look acceptable?

Any other materials you would recommend to a first time re-potter? Do I need a dedicated root saw or can I get away with using an old sterilized kitchen knife?

Bark and sifting setup

Gritty mix:

DE - sifted bark - grit

Wanted to give a brief update and maybe bump this post to see if anyone bites ;) I found some other soil (mountain west products soil pep) and screened that (used 2mm to .25”). I mixed this with the other bark above. Combined bark with 2mm+ screened DE and grit at a 4:3:2 (DE: bark: grit) ratio — wanted a little more water retention — and went for the re-pot. See photos of root ball before and after root pruning. Repotted in the shade and kept the roots wet. Planted in wet gritty mix. Did not water after potting but tried my best to make sure to shake out air gaps. It’s been a little over a day and my FLF looks a little wilty. Gritty mix is still damp. Any advise on what to do now?

^Before root pruning

^After root pruning and getting soil out

Just be patient and avoid over-watering. Start fertilizing when tree starts to conspicuously push new growth. If there is any chance the tree will be subject to wind or being jostled, secure the plant to the pot so it cannot move in relation to the pot. Plants secured in the pot reestablish MUCH quicker than plants that can move relative to the pot; this because a lot of very fine roots will break whenever the plant moves relative to the pot.

Al

Thank you so much, Al! Plant is looking worse, but I'm being patient and trusting the dowel method. Do I remember reading to keep the plant in limited light while it recovers? Or is bright indirect light OK? (for this recovery period, I know in general, the more light the better)