How to Train a Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree

If you haven’t yet had the pleasure, I’d like to introduce you to our Fiddle Leaf Fig tree! We affectionately call this 8-year-old leafy tree Franc, and have grown him from a little potted plant just three feet tall (originally from IKEA, by the way) into the towering 9-foot beauty he is today. It hasn’t been easy, and he’s lost almost all of his original leaves from about hip height down, but I think we’ve fallen into a pretty good groove these past couple of years.

It was around 2018 when Franc officially grew up to the ceiling, and we needed to come up with a game plan. Do we let him keep growing, or try trimming him? At that point, I had never trimmed a Fiddle Leaf tree before, so I was very nervous. I was also pretty darn proud of how tall he had gotten! So, I made a rookie error and trimmed him down by only about a foot and a half. I should have trimmed him down much further because the two new branches that formed from the cut grew quickly and ultimately reached the ceiling within just a handful of months.

I didn’t have the heart to trim him down again, especially since we were dealing with so many extra leaves now that there were two branches, so instead I taught myself how to “train” our Fiddle Leaf Fig so that he grew out instead of up.

I decided to share this tutorial exclusively with the team over at Hunker, so you can find that here. The story I wrote explains what supplies you’ll need to cross this project off your list, and also goes into detail about how to train your tree over time so that the plant stays healthy and happy.

Franc is such a unique addition to our home, and I know that corner would be so sad without him. If you follow me on Instagram, you might know that he has been feeling a little under the weather lately, which we think has to do with the fact that he has only been repotted once in the past eight (almost nine!) years. John helped me repot the tree over the weekend, so please send happy thoughts our way as Franc acclimates to his new situation. As always, I’ll keep you posted every step of the way!

Have you ever had a Fiddle Leaf Fig before? They’re very finicky plants, for sure, but such a great addition to your space if you can find the right balance of water, light, and care. If you have FLF questions, please share them below because I’m planning a whole post to go live right here that breaks down Fiddle Leaf care. In the meantime, if you’re curious, go check out my tutorial for how to train a FLF tree on Hunker this way.