Many houseplants are easy to grow, even if you’re just starting on your journey. plant parentLow maintenance varieties like spider plants, pothosThe ZZ plant, and aloe vera, can withstand occasional mistakes, tolerate a wide range of conditions, and survive occasional (or frequent) neglect.
Then there are the finicky, high-maintenance divas of the houseplant world: your light-loving bird of paradise, craving moisture. boston fernand colorful crotons, which have a habit of dropping rainbow-colored leaves if you sneeze in their direction.
Another houseplant that is notorious for dropping its leaves without warning? lush, luxurious fiddle-leaf figWhich can go from being the star of your plant collection to becoming an over-sized branch overnight.
Why is the fiddle leaf fig not a beginner-level houseplant?
The Spruce / Adeline Duchala
With its large, harp-shaped leaves and the ability to grow up to 10 feet tall indoors, it’s natural for houseplant newcomers to want to try growing this beautiful, tropical tree.
Native to the rainforests of central and western Africa, fiddle leaf figs evolved to thrive in warm, humid conditions with very well-drained soil and lots (but not too much) indirect light. They also benefit from being slightly potbound – a pro for any beginning gardener.
It seems like we grow a lot of plants indoors in temperate regions, right? But fiddle leaf figs can remain happy in the conditions you provide them for months or years, then suddenly suffer from very small (or seemingly no) changes in care.
Too much or too little water, lack of adequate light, shock from a sudden change in growing conditions – all can cause dangerous leaf drop. The leaves start turning yellow at their base first. developing brown spotsThen they fall completely. Once it starts, there is nothing to do except save some cuttings with healthy leaves and try again. You may be able to bring a pruned fig leaf back to life by nurturing it, but its leaves will not grow back to their original location.
If this wasn’t painful enough for a novice gardener, the fact is that fiddle leaf figs are more expensive – especially if you buy them as nice, tall specimens. There could be a lot of money to be gambled on such a finicky, strange plant.
Want more gardening tips? Sign up our free gardening newspaper For our best-growing tips, troubleshooting hacks and more!
Why is the rubber plant a beginner-friendly option?
The Spruce / Jason Donnelly
If you are a novice gardener and looking for tall houseplant With a lush jungle atmosphere, the fiddle leaf is a safer choice than the fig. Instead of spending your houseplant budget on the high-risk fiddle leaf fig, try starting with its unpretentious cousin. rubber plantinstead. This is a fellow member of the caste Nandi Faster growing, just as beautiful, and much more forgiving – not to mention generally more affordable.
If you want dramatic height, rejoice—rubber plants can grow rapidly, up to two feet per year in optimal indoor conditions.
In addition to their beauty and height, rubber plants are much easier to care for than fiddle leaf figs. Their Achilles’ heel is overwatering, so if you’re careless you’ll do just fine – especially in the winter, when they benefit from little or no water. Keep them away from sudden changes in temperature, give them plenty of indirect light and average humidity and watch them thrive.
Even better? there are many rubber plants easy to promote-This means that if you encounter problems, you can try some healthy growth tips to re-grow them into new plants, or enjoy sharing props from a healthy plant with friends .
Part of the joy of houseplant care is learning from your mistakes. I’ve learned more in my 15-year plant journey from the specimens I’ve killed (or nearly killed) than from the specimens I’ve helped grow. But there’s no reason to invest large sums of money in fiddle leaf figs when you’re just starting out. Instead, save your money and wait until you find something easier and more affordable, like a rubber plant.
