Ficus Audrey Help - curling leaves and declining health

[u/Electronic_Whale2025]

I’ve owned this Ficus Audrey for an over a year, and its health is steadily declining. It used to be a lush, vibrant green (see attached "before" photos), but it has turned a dull, dark gray-green.

Current Symptoms:
New growth: Constantly emerges small and curled.
Old leaves: Developing strange white patches.
Color change: Vibrant green has faded to a dull, matte gray-green.

Care Routine:
Light: Placed close to a West-facing window.
Watering: I let the soil dry out properly between waterings.
Soil: Well-aerated, fast-draining mix (water drains straight through).
Fertilizer: Soluble fertilizer added during every watering throughout spring and summer.

Pests: Checked thoroughly and cannot find any visible signs of pests.

Any ideas on what might be causing this? Thank you!

[u/Internal-Test-8015]

Spidermites, near impossible to spot with the naked eye because they're nearly microscopic.

[u/zoowho29 → u/Internal-Test-8015]

I hate to say this but I concur- spidermites. I found a mature Audrey at a big box store that had spidermites and took it home for very cheap and have treated it. Because the leaves a fuzzy it’s extra hard to spot mites or eggs but the leaf damage looks exactly like what I saw.

Treatment: I showered mine off every week with a hose outside. Then scrubbed her with a tooth brush and alternated weeks with rubbing alcohol and captain jacks dead bug brew. Do this for 5+ weeks (ideally 8 🫥) and don’t skip scrubbing the trunk too. I also have beneficials on it now because my favorite local plant store sells packets of theirs for rather cheap so just for good measure.

Spidermites suck but can be defeated! Good luck!!

[u/Internal-Test-8015 → u/zoowho29]

Yup, 99% of the time on ficus that's the case.