How To Treat Bacterial Infection Fiddle Leaf Fig (5 Tips)

Bacterial infections and poor maintenance may cause strange imperfections and discolorations on the leaves. To successfully solve an issue, it is important to identify its cause. Fortunately, there’s no need to worry too much since the issue is often manageable, particularly when caught early. It indicates that you can quickly cure or avoid this if you know how to treat bacterial infections. Let’s follow the steps below.

How To Treat Bacterial Infections In Fiddle Leaf Fig?

The best way to manage bacterial infections in fiddle leaf figs is by following the steps below. When applying this, be careful not to damage the entire plant.

1. Give It Proper Sunlight

Your plant will need plenty of indirect sunlight for healthy growth. Bacteria thrive in damp environments. Thus, sunlight helps prevent their growth.

Place your tree next to a window or outdoors in filtered light. Make sure you don’t subject it to prolonged periods of direct sunlight since this might burn the leaves. One hour is the recommended exposure time, followed by moving the tree to its customary growth location.

2. Cut Damaged Leaves Off

Remove any old dirt from the root ball by gently cleaning it. Doing this will reduce the likelihood that any harmful bacteria from the old soil will spread to your brand-new, clean pot.

Some leaves may be removed if your ficus lyrata tree has a severe illness. Remain calm. The tree will regenerate healthily after treating the bacterial infection with fiddle leaf fig leaves.

3. Do Not Squirt Water On The Foliage

Watering the leaves can create a moist environment that promotes bacterial growth. So, avoid doing this by not wetting the leaves.

4. Repot The Plant

Repotting can help improve the overall health of the plant, which may indirectly help manage bacterial infections. To make sure you are not repotting the plant with the pathogen, you could also wish to treat the roots with an antibiotic solution.

A new container should have four inches or so of soil. Place the ficus lyrata in the unique pot after removing it from the previous one, and then add soil to the remaining space. You can see more to know when to repot fig leaves!

5. Keep The Leaves Dry

If water on the leaves doesn’t evaporate, it may trickle down to the lower leaves. Furthermore, minute droplets may run off and touch nearby leaves while applying water to a leaf. The factors amplify the fiddle leaf bacterial infection and worsen the situation.

How to Recognize Bacterial Infections in Ficus Lyrata?

Check out the following symptoms of bacterial infection in Ficus Lyrata!

Brown Spots

Root rot spots are usually dark brown spots on fiddle leaf figs. It can be bacteria if the patches are a lighter shade of brown or even tan.

However, don’t instantly assume that the plant has a bacterial infection if you detect dark patches on its leaves. They might be a sign of other issues. For example, your plant may have root rot, resulting in dark brown blotches.

But, you can identify this condition since it often only affects the lower leaves. The easiest way to cure brown spots on your ficus lyrata is to act promptly after seeing root rot symptoms by repotting your plant in a well-draining potting mix and watering it less frequently.

Yellowing Leaves

The leaves will remain dark green with black patches when there is fig leaf root rot. The damaged leaves may become yellow if they have a bacterial infection, particularly close to the spots.

Dropping Leaves

If your plant is losing a lot of leaves at once and then doesn’t produce any new ones, there might be a problem. One of the most likely possibilities is that the plant has a bacterial infection.

Irregularly Shaped Leaves

Glossy leaves are one of the characteristics of plants. It will be a concern if they begin to develop differently than they typically would.

Tips To Prevent Ficus Lyrata Bacterial Infections

No overwatering

You can give bacteria the ideal environment to flourish and reproduce if you overwater the plant. Though this might potentially result in health issues for your plant, you don’t want to submerge it.

You must keep an eye on the soil

As a rule, give your plant the same quantity of water each time you water it. A tree under two feet tall requires eight ounces of water weekly. A larger tree needs around 16 ounces of water.

Ensure that the soil thoroughly drains

Your plant shouldn’t be resting in the water. The plant won’t treat the water if this occurs. The water in the pot will therefore be stagnant, which may encourage the growth of diseases and impair the structure of the plant.

To prevent your tree from becoming overwatered, ensure the soil drains well. First, choose a pot with enough drainage holes for your tree. You can drill holes to add them if it doesn’t already have them.

Provide plenty of sunshine to flourish

Sun exposure can keep the soil from getting wet. UV radiation can kill viruses. Place your tree in a window facing south. This way, the plants receive continuous light during the day.

Clean your instruments before touching your plant

Your tree may get infected with germs due to cross-contamination. It would help if you cleaned your instruments before touching your tree. Always use antibacterial soap while washing your hands before removing or inspecting the leaves.

Regularly check all of your plants

If you see indications of a ficus lyrata bacterial infection, act immediately. Remove debris from the soil’s surface as soon as you see it.

Other Ficus Lyrata Problems

Spend some time reading up on caring for this houseplant if you’ve never had one before. It should prevent additional problems.

Black Leaf Markings

There are typically two reasons why leaves become black or dark purple: You should anticipate quick marks forming if exposed to temperatures below 50°F. Within a few hours of exposure, it may sometimes occur.

Even outdoor space is not necessary for your tree. It may also happen if you place a leaf against a cold glass in the winter. The leaves may wilt if there is excessive water around the roots for an extended time. If you look closer, the soil could be extremely damp, and if you remove the plant from the container, parts of the roots might be mushy or rotting.

Small Leaves

Fiddle leaves begin tiny and light green before becoming larger and transforming into a recognizable dark green hue. An issue arises if the leaves remain immature or even drop off the plant for an extended period. Let’s repair it, then. First off, rather than the usual Ficus Lyrata, you could have a dwarf variation if you compare the plant’s total size to the one you’ve seen online.

Make sure to rule out this option first. If it’s not the problem, then one or more of these possible factors might be to blame for the undersized leaves.

Small, prematurely dropping leaves are more likely to be bitten by an insect. Small leaves are very typical when the light levels are too low. It would help if you offered enough light levels for plants to grow large and healthy. Put your plant as near a window as you can, or use a grow lamp to supplement.

Reddish Marks

Edoema, often called Oedema, is most likely the cause of red or brown dots or stains forming clusters on the surface of leaves. Only freshly emerging and developing leaves often experience it. Even though it might be unsettling to see, there is no need for excessive fear. The dark brown or red stains often lighten or disappear entirely with time. There is no danger to your plant, and there is no need to remove the afflicted leaves. However, some of the damage may wind up being permanent.

Although there are many reasons for it to start happening in the first place, all three of the following must partially exist: Excessive moisture in the soil or growth medium surrounding the roots is the primary cause. High humidity causes low transpiration. Therefore, water remains on the leaves for a longer period of time.

Unbalances inside the plant’s cells may result from the excessive concentration of nutrients brought on by overfeeding. You may not need to resolve this problem since the markings usually dissolve with time. I don’t take any unusual actions. However, many owners advise vigorously spraying the new leaves for many weeks while their plant puts out brand-new leaves if they want to avoid them.

Conclusion

After all, by observing some other minor signs, you will know how to treat a bacterial infection in fiddle leaf figs. When anything is off, some of the suggestions above will let you know. All you have to do is pay attention! Neem oil, physical squishing, water spraying, or a broad-spectrum insecticide may help address this problem. I hope you have success when applying the methods mentioned above.