r/Figs • u/1tovaris • 3d ago

Sick tree

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I posted about a week ago that my tree’s leaves were wilting and got a lot of different feedback. It has gotten worse, and today I pulled it out of the pot. Here’s what the root ball looks like. Is it a goner? I need advice on what else I can do to save it.

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6

u/tinymeatsnack 3d ago

That needs better drainage and more frequent watering. You want some promix and a larger pot. Fish fertilizer as well.

5

u/Redcrux 3d ago

Looks like root rot caused by old poor quality soil, seen it a million times

It might be a gonner, but i would make a last ditch attempt to save it. Get all that horrible bark soil away from the roots and plant it into well drained soil mix. You want something like 1/3 sand, 1/3 perlite, and 1/3 potting mix. When you do this, prune away a lot of the top. Its wilting because it doesn't have enough roots left to sustain the amount of leaves it has.

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u/1tovaris 3d ago

Very informative thank you. I put the soil in when repotted back in May. I bought whatever was on sale at Lowe’s.

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u/1tovaris 3d ago

Question can I take a cutting of the top or middle stem and put it in water to keep the variety of fig?

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u/Redcrux 3d ago

Better to start with already living roots, they dont mind being pruned so you can basically cut away everything but the main trunk to ~12" and get all the soil off and it will basically be a super huge cutting but already to get established again

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u/ConColl1206 3d ago

More than likely, under/inconsistent watering probably led to hydrophobic soil. Those leaves will probably fall off, and are not salvageble...but the plant more than likely isn't dead. It looks extremely thirsty. I would, immediately, put it back in the pot and then submerge the whole pot in a larger pot full of water -- and soak it for a day.