My Fiddle Leaf Fig Trees Froze: Is It Possible To…
Brenda Asked
My fiddle leaf fig trees froze: is it possible to save them? They are in pots on my porch. I live in South Mississippi.
The Gardener’s Answer
Hello, Brenda: Ficus lyrata, commonly known as a fiddle leaf fig, is native to the tropics. Only tolerating tropical temperatures it will not survive a hard freeze. I believe you are gardening in hardiness zone 8 and these plants are hardy to zones 9-10. This means they are grown as a tropical and need to be indoors during the winter months. We are all guilty of leaving our tropicals outside too long, so don’t beat yourself up, but here is the scenario: if all of the foliage has dropped this is not a good sign. On the other hand, if your plants were exposed to just one night of frost they may be okay. At this point it is a waiting game to see if they put on any new growth. It may be that the foliage was killed off but the roots are still alive. It is hard to say how far gone they are without being able to see them, but hopefully they are indoors and enjoying the warmer temperatures. If they are still alive they are stressed, so do not overdo it in terms of fertilizer and/or water. They really are a great low-maintenance houseplant so if you have the room/patience, give them some time to see if they recover. Otherwise it may be easier to replace them.
