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Top leaf/ branch broken off of my fiddle leaf fig.

6 years ago

Before and after. The top leaf and branch was knocked off when rough housing kids knocked a lamp into my beloved plant and snapped the top branch off completely. After deep breathing and sending the children outside, I cut the nub closer to the plant....with trees, this would be akin to “topping” the tree. Is it the same? How will it grow? I’m heart broken and afraid it is going to do weird things to the plant or wait a year for a new leaf to finally form at some cock-eyed, weird angle.

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Comments (5)

User
6 years ago
Hi Heather, don’t worry your fiddle leaf fig looks fine. Many people would prune their FLF in just this manner to encourage it to branch from the top. Sometimes it takes awhile for new branches to start to grow from the top and plenty of bright light will help it do so quicker. (More often then not you should probably get 2 new branches from the top).

Pruning would usually be done in Spring/Summer while the plant is showing active growth. If you’re growing season is coming to an end you may not see new growth/branching from this area until next Spring. Sometimes fiddle leaf figs are stubborn....just like children. Lol

Don’t worry too much as your FLF looks nice and healthy. I actually love the way yours looks right now. Happy growing :)
Heather Jacks
Original Author
6 years ago
Thank you, Rachael!!
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If the top was broken off or chopped back within the last couple of months, the new buds are exactly what would be expected. There are several causes of strong back-budding, but removing the apex (growing tip) of a branch is probably the most significant stimulus. Note that the buds are immediately above old leaf (bundle) scars, which is reliably where you'll find latent buds just waiting to be stimulated into action. These buds are indeed nascent branches. If they occur in a place where you do not want a branch, just rub them off with your thumb and immediately wash your hands. Ficus sap can be very irritating to skin. Al
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Your fiddle is still small so you can prune just the tip growing shoot. If you want to propagate and get another whole new FLF though, wait to prune until your plant gets bigger and cut the trunk right under the top two full grown leaves. Then you can stick the top portion (trunk with two leaves) in soil with some rooting hormone and you’ll get a second FLF with luck! I’ve heard July is a good time so you’ll want to decide this July or next July! If you want a tree form, maybe waiting is better so you get a taller trunk before branches come out?
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HU-942112446
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
Help! The top part of my FLF snapped off when I had put it outside to water and drain. It suddenly got windy and pushed my plant over. So so shattered. Is there anything I can do to help save it? It hasnt snapped off completetly. I’ve tried taping it for now to hold it together.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
3 years ago
cut it off properly below the damage.. and then root that piece ...

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=fiddle+leaf+fig+propagation&t=ffcm&iax=videos&ia=videos

with no insult to the root mass.. your original plant should be just fine ...

though a valiant effort.. plants do not heal like bones might ... even it the outer material heals.. it will most likely be lacking internal structure.. and on a plant that can grow to the ceiling... that might not be good ...

this really in no big deal ....

ken
HU-942112446
3 years ago
Thanks heaps Ken!
0

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