Today I trimmed the fiddle leaf fig. It’s been making me sad for months, when I happen to glance at it, because it had all these crispy brown edges to it. I think that happened in the first week or so after I got it, when it wasn’t getting enough light — then I managed to install a grow light above, and I think that’s when it stopped browning up like this? Although it may also be due to erratic watering, I’m not sure.
Today I took the ladder and scissors and attacked, trimming off all the brown bits. They’re never going to come back, so there’s no point to leaving them, and even though many of the leaves are now very funny shapes, it overall looks better when you’re just glancing at it. I didn’t want to just take off all those leaves, because that would be most of the leaves, and I’m assuming the plant needs all the green leafy bits for photosynthesis. So funny trimming is what you end up with.
Luckily, once I got to the top, I could see that it’s actually very happy up there, putting out beautiful new green leaves that look lush and healthy and happy. So I think overall, it’s in a reasonably happy place with light and water now, so it’s just a matter of helping it recover aesthetically from that first period of bad conditions. (Sorry, fiddle leaf! You are a slightly tricky houseplant, but worth a little extra effort for the drama you provide.)
