Fiddle Leaf Fig Propagation

Q: My fiddle leaf fig started out really small and now it’s hitting the ceiling! Where will it go from here? 

A: If you give your fiddle leaf fig enough space and light, it will grow 40 feet tall! My guess is that’s not what you want. You can prune it to just about any height and it will recover. The best place to make a cut is above a strongly growing leaf. You can take the leaves that are removed and make a new fig plant from each one. My neighbor, Dr. Christine Callaway, says that she clips a leaf where it attaches to the stem and rolls it lengthwise. She sticks the bottom 2-3 inches of the leaf in a glass jar filled with water. Placed in a sunny window, she says the leaf will make roots in six weeks. The leaf can then be removed from the water and gently planted into a pot filled with potting soil. Keep it in a window for eight more weeks. You’ll see a new leaf grow at the base of the original leaf and more will follow.