Fiddle-leaf fig
Sources last read 14 September 2026.
Difficult One of the harder ones, and one of the reasons the diagnosis tool exists.
Also called banjo fig and fiddleleaf fig.
Fiddle-leaf fig is toxic
- Not assessed for cats. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
- Not assessed for dogs. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
- Toxic to people. Can cause skin allergy. Use gloves and protective gear when handling it. RHS
What the sources say about its care
The sources disagree about light for this plant. Both readings are shown in the table below. This is the norm in houseplant advice rather than the exception.
- Light
The sources disagree. These do not describe the same conditions: Clemson Extension says "Medium light" and RHS says "Full sun". Both are shown; this site does not pick between them.
Medium light 100–150 fcClemson Extension · read 11 September 2026Full sunRHS · read 11 September 2026- Water
- Moist but well-drainedRHS · read 11 September 2026
- Humidity
No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.
ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity between 30% and 60% 30–60%Penn State Extension · read 11 September 2026- Temperature
How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.
H1B — 10–15°C 10–15 °CRHS · read 11 September 2026- Soil
- Chalk, Clay, Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or NeutralRHS · read 11 September 2026
- Toxic to cats
- Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.ASPCA · read 11 September 2026
- Toxic to dogs
- Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.ASPCA · read 11 September 2026
- Harmful to people
- Can cause skin allergy. Use gloves and protective gear when handling it.RHS · read 11 September 2026
How it usually goes wrong
- Edges of the leaf blades brown while the middle stays sound
Tips first on a fiddle-leaf fig, then margins. Affected tissue is papery and slightly curled, and the damage stops rather than advancing once conditions change.
Penn State Extension notes that most indoor plants benefit from more humidity than a home heated in winter provides. The leaf edge, furthest from the veins, is where the shortfall shows.
Telling it apart: Whether the soil is dry too. Crisp edges with damp soil point at the air; with dry soil, at the watering.
Penn State ExtensionDiagnose brown tips and edges on this Fiddle-leaf fig- New leaf blades are smaller than the old and further apart
The fiddle-leaf fig looks sparse rather than sick: fewer leaf blades, spaced further apart, all angled toward the window.
Its source puts it in medium light. Under that, each new leaf blade costs more than it returns, so the plant builds fewer and thinner ones.
Telling it apart: Whether it leans. A plant reaching for a window is answering a light question, and it leans before it pales.
Clemson ExtensionDiagnose leggy growth on this Fiddle-leaf fig- The older part of the vine yellows while the compost stays soaked
Whole leaf blades yellow at once rather than browning at a margin, and the fiddle-leaf fig looks deflated despite soil that has not dried since it was watered.
Water held around the roots for days leaves them without air, and a root without air stops working within a week. Its source describes moist but well-drained soil for good reason.
Telling it apart: Lift it from the pot. Firm pale roots mean the water is not the problem; brown soft ones that smell sour mean it is.
RHSFiddle-leaf fig leaves turning yellow: causes
Not sure which it is? Ask the diagnosis questions for Fiddle-leaf fig.
Routine care
- Watering
- Leaves may drop if the plant gets either too much water or too little.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Propagation
- Its sap can irritate skin, so wear gloves when handling it, especially during pruning or propagation.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Increase from seed, or from semi-hardwood or leaf-bud cuttings.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Pruning
- A fairly low-maintenance houseplant; prune whenever needed. Its sap can irritate skin, so wear gloves when handling it, especially while pruning or taking cuttings.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Pests and diseases
- Can be troubled by banded greenhouse thrips and fern scale.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Under glass, scale insects, mealybugs, thrips and glasshouse red spider mite can occur. Diseases: honey fungus can occur.RHS · read 13 September 2026
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Photographs
About the plant
Ficus lyrata, commonly known as the fiddle-leaf fig, banjo fig, fiddle-leaved fig tree, lyre leaf fig tree, or lyre-leaved fig tree, is a species of plant in the mulberry and fig family Moraceae. It is native to western Africa, but is cultivated around the world as an ornamental plant. It has received the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026
- Native range
- W. & WC. Trop. AfricaWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Tropical Western and Central AfricaNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Tropical W & C AfricaRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Climate
- wet tropicalWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- Growth form
- hemiepiphytic treeWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Perennial, Tree; habit rounded, spreading, vaseNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Bushy (evergreen)RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Size
- Height 24–120 inNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Height 4-8 metres; spread 1-1.5 metres after 10–20 yearsRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Flowering
- Its tiny unisexual flowers are not showy: they sit in the leaf axils inside a fleshy fig, which fig wasps enter through an opening at the tip to pollinate them. As a houseplant it seldom blooms.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Flowers green in summerRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Uses
What sources record people using this plant for. A traditional or medicinal use listed here is a record of use, not advice to eat it or treat anything with it.
Toxic if eaten.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Common problems with Fiddle-leaf fig
Other Ficus
Chinese banyanFaded, yellow-white areas on the sunny side of the canopy
Common figA thin dry rim that crumbles between the fingers
Creeping figLeaf blade tips go crisp and brown
Rubber plantCrisp margins that appear in winter
Ara BanyanSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Banana leaf figSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
More of the Moraceae family
Congo FigSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Delta FigSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
- No photograph yetFicus binnendykiiSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Indian LaurelSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Peepul TreeSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
- No photograph yetWeeping figEdges of the leaves brown while the middle stays sound
Plants with similar care
Sources
- ASPCA · read 11 September 2026
- Clemson Extension · read 11 September 2026
- Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Penn State Extension · read 11 September 2026
- RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Wikipedia · read 13 September 2026
What this does not cover
The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.
Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.
If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.