Ficus Trimming

Question

I have hardwater and noticed the ficus stem was very hard and dehydrated with a clear hard surface. I thought the plant needs to breathe, so I gently scraped it off from the stem but now stem has thinned, leaves are drooping and yellowing. I think the water is not going up now.

I regret doing it but I left my ficus alone, added vinegar to adjust pH but it didn’t work. The plant has a bit of life left, so is it possible to cut below leaves and it be okay? Will it restart rooting? Most of stem is damaged, and I’m unsure what to do. I’m fed up with hardwater, its effects on plants and our pets. It dries everything eventually. Apart from using pH up/down, what can I add to tap water to make it okay?

Answer 1

If you've got hard water, filter it with a simple carbon-type filter from the hardware store. You can also use a pitcher-type filtering system sold for drinking water. This filtering removes the minerals without adding other chemicals. In addition, you could water your plants with distilled water. As for the fig trimming and rooting, these articles should help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/figs/potted-fig-tree-pruning.htm, https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/figs/fig-propagation.htm