Ficus
Another hardy plant that comes in many different shapes and species: Ficus! Whether you go for a rubber plant (Ficus Elastica), fiddle leaf fig (Ficus Lyrata) or weeping fig (Ficus Benjamina), these plants are all easy to care for and will grow tall!
- LIGHT : Bright light but no direct sunlight, this can burn the leaves. Place this plant at a North/West/East facing window or 2m from a South facing window. The colored variants (Belize & Tineke) need more light otherwise they will lose their color.
- WATER : Water 1x per week in summer, water every 10-14 days in winter, always let the soil dry out before watering again. Too much water at once will cause root rot (yellow/brown patches on the leaves). Spray the leaves once in a while or take the dust off with a wet cloth.
- CARE : Ficus does not like to be in a plastic pot (this will cause root rot) so always repot it directly in a terracotta or ceramic pot that has a hole and tray underneath. Use lukewarm water, if this plant gets cold, it will drop all its leaves. Don't shift or move the plant around (unless they're growing towards the light, then you can shift them gradually).
- DISEASES : Sensitive to draught and temperature changes. Also sensitive to spider mites (keep the humidity high if you want to avoid this).
- CURIOSITIES : Weeping fig (Ficus Benjamina) loses its leaves in winter (just like trees outside), this is completely normal, the leaves will grow back in Spring.