Meet Ficus Audrey – A Minimalist Addition To Your Modern Homes and Indoor Gardens

If you are dreaming of smart ways to elevate your home decor, do not worry. Say hello to the Ficus Audrey, a one-stop solution to all your wishes and desires for a perfect houseplant. The large, glossy-velvety leaves, smooth light coloured trunk, its upright poise, and easy maintenance make it a standout star. 

Ficus Audrey is one such houseplant that can complement your new boho-chic, Scandinavian, or biophilic interior designs. Besides being visually appealing, it is a perfect substitute for a miraculous substance that fixes your air quality without raising your electricity bill. 

Now, let’s explore this botanical wonder, its overview, essential care tips, probable concerns, and related solutions.

Ficus Audrey Overview – A Leafy Retreat In Your Home 

Audrey ficus is a dormant tree-like houseplant that can grace your balcony gardens or indoor spaces for decades. These plants, also known as Benghalensis ficus, Ficus indica, and Indian banyan, are perennial evergreen plants belonging to the family of Moraceae in the genus Ficus, native to the Indian subcontinent+

This monoecious ficus audrey tree caters to minimal care and ensures resilience and beauty throughout the year.

It is found that these plants propagate aerial roots and grow downwards, and once they reach the soil, these roots reform into woody trunks. Usually, these plants can grow up to 5-6 feet indoors and up to 100 feet tall outdoors in the natural environment.

These plants are considered religiously sacred in India and worshipped year-round. These plants are acknowledged as the National Tree of India, symbolising prosperity, growth, and resilience.

About Ficus Audrey, your garden hero
Scientific name	Ficus benghalensis
Family	Moraceae
Kingdom	Plantae
Genus	Ficus
Plant type	Tree
Order	Rosales
Common names	Ficus Audrey, Indian banyan, Strangler Fig, Ficus indica

These plants are one of the finest options to uplift your indoor spaces as well as outdoor lawns and gardens, boosting the ambience and anchoring valuable significance and symbolism.

Ficus Audrey Vs Other Popular Ficus Cultivars

Ficus trees are a genus of popular outdoor and indoor plants in the family of Moraceae. These plants are distinguished for their aerial roots, glossy leaves, smooth bark, and unique inflorescence. Many times, these ficus plants are commonly known as figs.

Let us glance over the comparison between Ficus Audrey and a few of its cousins.

Leaves: Small, oval-shaped shaped glossy leaves with projecting white veins. Height: These plants can grow up to 5-10 feet indoors. Care: Banyans can survive in extremes, responding well to moderate light and humidity as well. Other Names: Ficus benghalensis, Indian banyan, Strangler fig.

Leaves: Large, fiddle shaped glossy leaves with a tall, sleek trunk. Height: These plants can grow up to 6-10 feet or more indoors. Care: Direct bright light and humidity are essential. Other Names: Fiddle leaf fig.

Choosing Ficus Audrey over Fiddle Leaf Fig can be a smart pick for you, as it is more handy. If you are a busy remote worker, it is relatively easy to balance this houseplant care and your work life. Fiddle leaf fig might need you to be more attentive and adhere to its needs duly. 

Leaves: Smaller, velvety leaves with prominent white veins. Height: Ficus audrey is more tree-like and can be occasionally pruned, and can grow up to 100 feet in its native environment. Common Names: Ficus benghalensis, Strangler fig, Indian banyan

Leaves: Large, glossy, oval-shaped leaves varying in color (green or burgundy) with no distinct visible veins. Height: It can grow from 50-100 feet and grow aerial roots in its native surroundings. Common Names: Burgundy Rubber tree, Indian Rubberplant, Indian Rubber Fig

Both these plants are easy to care for and can thrive under bright indirect light with moderate watering. Ficus Audrey and Rubber plant can be grown in the hardiness zones 10-12, USDA.

These plants can last long and enhance the overall essence of your place.

Leaves: Bright green, rounded oval-shaped leaves are usually glossy in texture. Growth: Ficus audrey grows from 5-10 feet indoors. Common Names: Indian Banyan, Ficus benghalensis, Strangler fig

Leaves: Attractive, pointed, variegated green and yellow leaves. Growth: Ficus altissima grows from 6-8 feet indoors. Common Names: Council tree, Lofty fig, Yellow Gem

Both these plants are low-maintenance and thrive under indirect bright light and a well-draining soil mix. If you are looking for statement plants, say yes to these plants.

Leaves: Round oval oval-shaped leaves with a glossy and velvety texture. Growth: It can grow up to 10 feet tall indoors. Common Names: Ficus benghalensis, Bengal fig, Banyan tree.

Leaves: Dark green variegated leaves with cream-coloured veins. Growth: It can grow up to 6 feet tall indoors, under ideal conditions. Common Names: Variegated Rubber Plant, Tineke Rubber Plant.

Both these plants can be used for their aesthetic appeal and for purifying the air in your indoor spaces. With ideal conditions like bright indirect light, well-draining soil, and humidity, these plants can thrive best. Tineke rubber plant needs a little bit more exposure to light to maintain its colour variegations.

Ficus benjamina ‘ ruby’, Ficus benjamina ‘danielle’, Ficus benjamina ‘alli’, and Ficus umbelatta are a few more plants under the Ficus genus. Each cultivar has its own story and appeal, which suits the aesthetics of your indoor space and outdoor living areas.

Why Should You Get a Ficus Audrey For Your Home?

Benghalensis ficus is a precious possession in the collection of your houseplants, as it not only adds to the visual delight but has a lot of beneficial attributes. 

Beyond its lush green velvety foliage, it is a robust plant that resembles prosperity and resilience. With so many positive impacts, this plant is like a needle in a haystack. Let’s explore the wide array of benefits of Ficus Audrey.

• Air Purifier and Moisture Dispenser: It helps fix the indoor air quality by filtering various toxins like benzene and formaldehyde.

• Produces oxygen: Ficus audrey has oxygen in abundance. It converts the CO2 exhaled by you into oxygen and fills the space with fresh oxygen.

• Elevates the visual appeal of the house: With its lush green and glossy leaves, and upright posture, it adds a touch of elegance to the contemporary or minimalist decor of your house.

• Versatile & Handy: It is blessed with versatility and can flourish happily in any neck of the woods. Be it shady corners or sun-exposed areas, it gets along with every spot.

• Easy to Maintain: Ficus audrey is more of a giver. It doesn’t require much attention and maintenance. Even with your busy schedule, these plants go hand in hand with you.

• Heals stress: These strangler figs treat your stress level for free. The greenery associated with the plant has a certain calming impact on your mind.

• Speak of prosperity & growth: Keeping this bundle of happiness by your side reminds you to stay strong, resilient, and focused towards your goals and flourish.

• Adapts to every season: These plants have a winter dormant nature and tend to slow their growth in winter. During this time, they conserve their energy and flourish when the seasons turn.

Are you awestruck to know these many benefits of a ficus audrey? Pinch yourself. You can indeed get amazing health benefits by keeping this plant at home, and at the same time, make your home Instagram-worthy.

Having said that, let us journey further in our blog and learn about the essential care and guide tips for planting this indoor garden hero.

Do You Know?

The largest Audrey ficus trees in the world are found in India and referred to as the Great Banyans of India. The names of the trees are:

• Thimmamma Marrimanu (Andhra Pradesh)
• Kabirvad (Gujarat)
• The Great Banyan (Howrah)

Guide and Care Plan to Keep Your Ficus Audrey Upbeat

Unlike other houseplants like spider plants, peace lilies, monstera, and philodendrons, it is a gem of an indoor houseplant. These adapt easily to any spot with bright indirect light and easily forgive you for irregular watering. With their subtle, tall look, they grace every corner and space they are placed in.

Scroll further and find out the ultimate care tips and ideal conditions for the growth of these plants.

Light	A bright, indirect filtered light is ideal for its thriving. These plants enjoy the exposure to the sun for a few hours in the morning and evening. 70-80°F is the ideal temperature range. Ensure to protect it from the harsh rays of the sun, as it can burn the leaves.
Watering	These plants prosper under moderate watering. Overwatering can lead to root rot. Ensure the soil doesn’t dry up completely. Water the plant when 1-2 inches of the soil has dried up from the top.
Soil Type	Ficus Audrey is a moisture-friendly plant. A well-drained soil with a mix of perlite, sand, and organic compost is a good combination for this plant.
Fertilising	Fertilising the plant with balanced liquid fertilisers once a month while it is in a growing phase improves its health. Organic fertilisers like bone meal, kitchen compost are also good for the Audrey ficus care.
Pruning	Chopping of the plant from the top leaf nodes, during the summers or spring, when the plant is actively growing, can lead to new branches and leaves. Ensure to clean the dust particles from the leaves, as it disrupts the air flow. Wiping them off will maintain the verdant green color of the plant.

These plants do not require rigorous and minute care. These plants can grow up to 10 feet in your house. Each plant can stay in its original pots easily for about 2-3 years. It’s only after that the genus outgrows its pot and shows signs of being root-bound. Ensure to transfer them into large container gardens to encourage their smooth growth. 

Pro Tips For Propagating Your Plant

Ficus audrey procreates easily through seeds and offshoots, and limbs in its native surroundings. But indoors, it is easy to propagate these plants through stem cuttings in water or soil. 

Developing roots in ficus plants through stem cuttings is not as quick as in succulents and terrarium plants. But once the leaves start showing up, it is so worth the wait. Here are a few tips to propagate your Ficus Audrey like a pro. 

• Identify a Healthy Source Plant: The cutting starts well if it is sourced from a healthy parent plant. The mother plant should be well watered, thriving well in indirect sunlight, and should be pest-free.

• Cutting the Stem: Use a clean and sterilised pair of scissors to detach the stem from the main plant. Ensure to remove the leaves from the bottom of the cutting.

• Preparing the Soil Mix in the Pot: Compose a well-drained soil mix in the container and keep it moist. Use perlite or coco peat for maintaining air flow in the soil.

• Rooting Hormone: Pick your rooting hormone and dip the cutting in it, and place it either in the water or push it into the prepared soil mix for root formation. 

• Create a Humid Environment: Cover the cutting with a plastic bag to create a greenhouse-like environment. Place the cutting in an apt location where it receives the perfect amount of filtered sunlight. Ensure to keep the soil moist.

• Observe and Wait: Watch for the roots to develop and grow. This usually takes 3-6 weeks. You can see the white roots growing in water or feel resistance while tugging in soil. 

• Transplant the Cutting to its Pot: Once the roots are developed, you can remove the plastic and transplant the cutting into its original pot, and your new Ficus Audrey is ready.  

Quick Tips

• Try not to propagate the plant during winter. These plants are dormant during winter.
• Always sterilise your tools before taking the cuttings from the plant, to avoid the disease.
• Do not fertilise the newly grown plant from the cutting. Allow the roots to develop well.

You have learned about how to propagate Ficus Audrey, but now let’s talk about a few vexing problems that your plant might face.

Trouble Spots for Ficus Audrey and How to Fix Them

Audrey ficus is known for its longevity and adaptability, and its thriving nature with optimal care. The resilience and endurance of this plant are a true testimony to its perennial nature. However, to prosper, overcoming the shortcomings and hindrances is vital. Relatively, these plants are forgiving in nature, but can suffer over the long term if they aren’t looked after properly. 

The most common problem arises due to improper watering and sunlight. Such ignorance can lead to various irksome problems with the plants, which are discussed in our blog along with their remedies.

Problem	Cause	How to fix it
Yellowing Leaves	Overwatering Inability of water to drain properly	Sometimes, it is a natural part of the life cycle of the plant. Avoid overwatering. Ensure to water the plant when the soil seems dry from the top. The pot should have proper holes for a steady flow of water drainage.
Dropping Leaves	Under watering Over watering Moving the plant from one environment to another. Over fertilising	Water the plant abruptly only when you see the soil dry up from the top. Avoid relocating the plant often. Keep the plant in a spot where it gets bright indirect light.
Browning of leaves on the edges.	Dry air or low humidity Inconsistent watering	Try not to place the plant near any heat source, air conditioner, or draft. Place a humidifier nearby or put the plants in a group together to ensure humidity. Keep the plants moist.
Small foliages	Insufficient light	Locate the plant in a spot where it gets ample of bright filtered sunlight.
Charred leaves	Too much direct sunlight Soil has dried out completely	Place the plant in a shaded area with bright filtered light. Water regularly
Pests (Red spider mites, mealybugs, scale)	Poor airflow Less humidity Dry conditions	Keep the soil and compost moist Water abruptly Repot the plant if you suspect root rot Treat the plant with insecticidal or neem oil

Using these remedies along with a bit of your attention and care can make your ficus audrey bounce back from any of these pesky problems. Keep a check for pests and diseases, and take regular care of them to get rid of the gnats and fungus from your plants. Little efforts can make your ficus Audrey shine beautifully.

Quick Read

Ficus Audrey is considered toxic to cats and dogs. If the leaves of the plant are chewed, it can lead to irritation in the mouth, drooling, and indigestion. So, keep your pets away from the plant’s reach.

Wrapping Up A Ficus Audrey – Nature’s Masterpiece

Ficus Audrey is more than just a houseplant. The versatile perennial nature of the plant and its lush green velvety leaves, along with sleek posture, make it an elegant masterpiece for your modern homes. Its giver nature makes it a desirable and a must-have plant. 

Whether you are a hobby gardener or a plant lover, this botanical wonder is a perfect choice for your indoor space as well as for your outdoor lawn. Besides adding charm, elegance, style, and nature to your space, it has a vast array of benefits that make it a jewel to own. 

So, are you excited to bring your new green roommate and build an evergreen, long-lasting connection with it?