Cheap and Easy to Find Fiddle Leaf Fig Trees

We likely all know about and love the fiddle leaf fig tree - it's a gorgeous plant. In the past few years though, they've been so hard to find and very expensive. I found one a couple years ago in the flower district that was a good six feet tall, but was priced at $250! Ouch.

If you're looking to add one of these lovely trees to your houseplant collection, IKEA sells mini plants (about two feet tall) for around the $14 mark (I wrote about those here). They don't come potted though (but it's easy to use one of their pretty terra cotta pots that I love so much - they weather beautifully). Home Depot and Lowes both recently starting selling fiddle leaf figs on a wider scale (it was sort of urban legend for a few years, but this year I've seen them in New York, New Jersey, Arizona and California, so I think it's safe to say they're available in most states). This little three+ footer was only $20 and it came in a pretty little pot probably worth $15 on its own.

I bought a five footer for only $30 for my bedroom.

Getting it home safely without spilling the soil everywhere in my car was the only tricky part. I found putting it the front seat worked best.

It's a good thing the price went down so much on these trees beacause they can be a little finicky (read: very easy to kill). They need lots of sunlight, but it can't be too harsh, and just the right amount of water (which seems to be about a cup per foot of tree, once a week?).

If you find a good spot for your tree and it seems to be thriving, try not to move it - or even rotate the plant. Often their leaves grow in a way to maximize sunlight absorption, so moving or turning the plant can really throw the plant for a loop.

I water my plants just once a week - every Friday evening. I used to actually put it on my calendar, but it's become a habit now and I don't have to remind myself. My thumb is no where near green (see this post from earlier this year!), but I did myself a favor and started looking up how much water and sunlight plants need to thrive, and suddenly I wasn't killing everything! (I did accidentally neglect that Bougainvillea tree in our mudroom though and it's toast now - bummer. Maybe I'll just get another fig tree?)

Also, check out this cool planter I found and spray painted for our bedroom.

I loved the Greek key pattern and thought it would be pretty in a crisp white.

I just used a spray primer that I had on hand and no top coat (I know - such a rebel). Don't forget to spray the first few inches of the inside lip.

Pretty right? It's made of clay and it weighs a million pounds, but it will last forever and it was only about $25 at Home Depot.

Do you have any fiddle leaf fig tree care tips? Have you seen them in your local hardware stores? Or were you one of the suckers that spent $250 on a tree a few years ago, like I so desperately wanted to? :)