Tried propagating a fiddle leaf fig in water for 3 months, got roots but no growth above soil

I thought I was being clever last winter when I snipped a healthy leaf off my fiddle leaf fig and stuck it in a jar of water on my kitchen counter. The thing grew roots like crazy, like 6 inches of long white roots after 12 weeks. I was so proud I even showed it off to my neighbor who runs a small greenhouse. But when I potted it up in actual soil, the leaf just sat there for another month doing nothing. No new leaves, no stem growth, just that one sad leaf. My neighbor finally told me that single leaf cuttings from figs almost never grow into a full plant because they lack a node with dormant buds. So I basically grew a science experiment with roots that will never make a tree. Has anyone else fell for this trick and ended up with a root ball attached to a single leaf?

2 comments

2 Comments

jordanm192d ago

Your neighbor was right about the node thing, but you actually could get growth from a single leaf if you had cut a sliver of the stem with it. The roots you grew are fine for keeping the leaf alive longer, but without that little piece of stem tissue and a dormant bud, the plant has no way to start a growth tip. That's why people who propagate figs swear by taking stem cuttings with at least one node above the soil line. The roots you grew are basically just there to support the leaf's life, not to build a whole new plant. So that root ball is just a fancy life support system for a single leaf that will eventually give up when it gets old enough.

rileyowens2d ago

Your "fancy life support system" line actually clicked something for me - I totally thought roots alone meant a new plant was happening, but that makes way more sense now lol.