Creeping fig

Creeping fig: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Creeping, trailing or climbing with clinging aerial roots; indoors stems of 1–1.5 m.

Leaf

Small, heart-shaped to oval, 2–4 cm, thin and slightly rough, dark green; with a white or cream edge in variegated forms.

Adult form

Old plants that cover a wall outdoors develop stiff branches with larger, leathery leaves and fig-like fruits. This rarely happens indoors.

Latex

Any wound releases a white, milky sap that can irritate the skin.

Roots

Fine and fairly shallow; they dry out quickly.

Plants: March–April · Pruning: March–April

Why grow it?

• Fine, fresh green leaves that completely cover a hanging basket, planter or moss pole.
• Grows steadily and is easy to clip into shape, for example around a wire frame.
• Tolerates partial shade and shade, so it suits a spot further from the window.
• Lovely as green underplanting in large pots beneath taller houseplants.
• Very easy to propagate: stems root by themselves wherever they touch moist compost.

Creeping fig: where does it grow best?

• Partial shade to shade: by an east- or north-facing window, or further into the room. No harsh midday sun, which scorches the thin leaves.
• Give variegated forms a little more light, or they turn green.
• Normal room temperature; a cooler room is fine in winter, but not below 5 °C.
• Light, humus-rich compost that holds moisture yet drains well.
• High humidity: a bathroom, a kitchen or a group of plants is ideal. In warm, dry air the leaves shrivel.

Light

Bright, out of direct sun or low light

Potting soil

Multi-purpose compost or airy, humus-rich compost

Acidity

Acid or neutral

Watering

Moderately or generously

Size

1.5 m tall, 1 m wide

Temperature

Minimum 5 °C

Goes well with

• Chinese evergreen: Likes the same partial shade; the creeping fig covers the compost around its stems.
• Indoor ferns: Share a love of humid air; together they make a lush, fresh green corner.
• Fittonia: The nerve plant with its veined leaves also likes warmth and moisture; lovely together in a glass container.
• Peace lily: A taller plant with white flowers, with the creeping fig spilling over the rim of the pot like a green carpet.

Creeping fig: when and how to plant it?

Plant in March–April.

1. Repot in March or April, as growth starts: young plants every year, older ones every 2–3 years.
2. Choose a pot or hanging basket with a drainage hole, a few centimetres wider than the old one.
3. Use houseplant compost with some extra leaf mould, so it holds moisture.
4. Set the plant at the same depth as before and firm lightly.
5. If you want it to climb, put a moss pole or wire frame in the pot straight away and guide the stems along it.
6. Water straight away and keep the compost evenly moist for the first few weeks.

Care

Watering

Always keep the compost slightly moist: never soaking and never bone dry. Drying out just once can cost many leaves.

Humidity

Mist the leaves regularly with tepid, soft water, or stand the pot on a tray of wet gravel.

Feeding

From April to September, every 2–3 weeks, a half dose of houseplant feed. Not in winter.

Support

A moss pole kept moist helps the aerial roots to cling.

Repotting

Young plants every spring, older ones every 2–3 years.

Tip: Use rainwater or soft water and stand the pot on a tray of wet gravel: this keeps the fine leaves a lovely green, even when the heating is on.

Creeping fig: when to prune it?

Pruning months: March–April.

When: Clip the plant into shape in March–April. In summer you can lightly trim over-long shoots whenever needed.

How:

• Cut over-long or bare stems back to just above a leaf; new side shoots grow there and the plant becomes bushier.
• On variegated forms, remove shoots that have turned completely green, or they will take over.
• Cut dried-out stems right back; the plant often sprouts again from the base.
• Use the trimmings straight away as cuttings.

Caution: Wear gloves: the white sap can irritate the skin.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Cuttings

From April to August take cuttings of 8–10 cm, remove the lower leaves and put them in moist cutting compost or a glass of water. Kept warm and under plastic, they root within a few weeks.

Layering

Lay a stem on a small pot of moist compost and pin it down. It forms roots where it touches the compost; then cut it free.

Creeping fig: how does it get through the winter?

• Not hardy in Belgium: it belongs indoors, and the temperature must not drop below 5 °C.
• A cooler room at 10–15 °C is fine in winter; water a little less then, but never let the compost dry out.
• In a heated room the air is dry: mist it regularly and do not place it above a radiator.
• No feeding from October to March.

Diseases and pests

• Shrivelled leaves: Brown, crispy leaves after drying out or in air that is too dry. Water evenly and mist more often; cut out dead stems.
• Red spider mite: Fine yellow speckling and webbing, especially in winter in dry air. Rinse and mist the plant regularly.
• Mealybug and scale: White woolly tufts or brown scales on the stems. Wipe them off with a damp cloth or a cotton bud.
• Leaf drop: After a move, a draught or a sudden change in temperature, leaves fall. Keep the plant in one fixed spot.
• Root rot: Yellow, limp stems in soggy compost. Water less and use a pot with a drainage hole.

Through the year

• January: Keep slightly moist. Mist against dry air.
• February: Check for red spider mite.
• March: Repot and clip into shape.
• April: Prune. Start feeding.
• May: Take cuttings. Guide stems along the moss pole.
• June: Feed every 2–3 weeks. Never let it dry out.
• July: Water and mist in warm weather. Take cuttings.
• August: Last cuttings. Feed.
• September: Last feed.
• October: Water a little less. Move away from draughts.
• November: Mist when the heating is on.
• December: Keep slightly moist, not above a radiator.

Edible and useful

Not edible. The white milky sap of these figs is poisonous and irritant: on the skin it causes redness and itching, in the eyes pain, and anyone who chews it gets an upset mouth, stomach and gut; cats and dogs drool and vomit. The sap contains latex: people who are allergic to latex sometimes react to it too, and dust on the leaves of an indoor fig can also cause allergies. Wear gloves when pruning and taking cuttings, and wash your hands afterwards. Keep the plant out of reach of cats, dogs and small children, and clear up trimmed twigs and fallen leaves. The small fruits are not figs for eating. If any is swallowed, call a poison centre (in Belgium 070 245 245) or your doctor at once.

Did you know?

• Like all figs, in the wild it is pollinated by its own tiny fig wasp that lives inside the fruits.
• In Taiwan, a well-known jelly, aiyu jelly, is made from the seeds of a variety of creeping fig.
• Only after an old plant has covered a wall outdoors does it form stiff branches with large leaves, so different that you would think it was another plant.