why do you insist on placing it on a wall ACROSS FROM THE WINDOW??

how about placing it in the window ... or within a few feet of it ..

always tell us where you are.. big city name. i suppose there are places that the sun is too intense for a plant to be in the window .. but odds are low ..

and harden it off to new light levels.. dont put it from dark the direct sun too fast ..

you are confusing what it bright in term of your needs.. to the light needs of a plant .. it can seem to be very bright yet not intense enough light for a plant the thrive ..

letting a pot near dry.. at root depth.. is a good way to water.. but dont rely just on the surface ...

take a teaspoon or chop stick.. and find out how wet it is half way down the pot.. where the roots are ..

the pot does look a bit large .. which might complicate a watering issue ... but your plant is already stressed .. so its not really a good time to repot it ..

ken

I have read a bunch of artciles, and am confused about if I am overwatering it, underwatering it, if the pot is too big, or if the light is not ample enough. ..... I water it once a week and it is dry to the touch when I put my finger on the top layer of soil. If you habitually water while you can see the soil is still moist or easily detect it's still moist with a finger, the odds favoring over-watering as the cause of the wilting are close to 100%; and, since you adhere to the commonly repeated suggestion to "water when the top inch or two of the soil feels dry", you should know that habit almost ensures you'll be over-watering unless your pot is very shallow - like 5" deep or less. And for the record, Happy Frog Potting Soil is quite water-retentive and a great deal of care is essential if you're to avoid over-watering plants growing in it, but watering in small sips is not the answer. It is in a room with a lot of light, but was on a wall away from a window and yesterday I moved it to a wall across from the window to increase the light. Your plant wants all the light you can give it, but you should avoid moving it directly into full sun. Instead, the plant should be gradually acclimated to full sun by starting with very short interval;s in full sun, then gradually increasing the intervals; or, by moving the plant closer and closer to a full sun position. Normally, a period of 2 weeks is long enough for the acclimation. Still, there is no guarantee the leaves will not be shed anyway, no matter how much care you take in the acclimation process. The ability of leaves to adjust to higher or lower light levels is not always possible. I recently added more soil on top because the roots were visible and I read these plants consume their soil. It's best not to do that. Adding more soil on top of the soil column can hold moisture against the trunk of the tree, resulting on rottingof bark and eventually the vascular cambium, which can kill the tree. This is especially true if you are over-watering. I fertilized once with Miracle Gro Shake and Feed All Purpose Plant Food. There is a chance you over-fertilized if the wilting started soon after application of that fertilizer. Too much fertilizer salts in the soil will limit the plant's ability to take up water and can cause wilting, loss of foliage, and root damage. I have many Ficus in my collection of plants (45 at last count) all of which are very healthy, which can be seen to be true by the many, many images I've posted of them on forum threads. I use Foliage-Pro 9-3-6 for all my plants. It is a complete nutrition [program from a single source, and has many other attributes not found in other plants. I would love any advice to save this plant! I'll leave you with some information re how to monitor moisture levels deep in the pot by using a "tell", and a couple of links to information that has the potential to up your game considerably if you actively put it in practice.

Good Growing Practices - an Overview

(Caring for) Ficus Trees in Containers

Using a 'tell'

Over-watering saps vitality and is one of the most common plant assassins, so learning to avoid it is worth the small effort. Plants make and store their own energy source – photosynthate - (sugar/glucose). Functioning roots need energy to drive their metabolic processes, and in order to get it, they use oxygen to burn (oxidize) their food. From this, we can see that terrestrial plants need plenty of air (oxygen) in the soil to drive root function. Many off-the-shelf soils hold too much water and not enough air to support the kind of root health most growers would like to see; and, a healthy root system is a prerequisite to a healthy plant.

Watering in small sips leads to avoid over-watering leads to a residual build-up of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil from tapwater and fertilizer solutions, which limits a plant's ability to absorb water – so watering in sips simply moves us to the other horn of a dilemma. It creates another problem that requires resolution. Better, would be to simply adopt a soil that drains well enough to allow watering to beyond the saturation point, so we're flushing the soil of accumulating dissolved solids whenever we water; this, w/o the plant being forced to pay a tax in the form of reduced vitality, due to prolong periods of soil saturation. Sometimes, though, that's not a course we can immediately steer, which makes controlling how often we water a very important factor.

In many cases, we can judge whether or not a planting needs watering by hefting the pot. This is especially true if the pot is made from light material, like plastic, but doesn't work (as) well when the pot is made from heavier material, like clay, or when the size/weight of the pot precludes grabbing it with one hand to judge its weight and gauge the need for water.

Fingers stuck an inch or two into the soil work ok for shallow pots, but not for deep pots. Deep pots might have 3 or more inches of soil that feels totally dry, while the lower several inches of the soil is 100% saturated. Obviously, the lack of oxygen in the root zone situation can wreak havoc with root health and cause the loss of a very notable measure of your plant's potential. Inexpensive watering meters don't even measure moisture levels, they measure electrical conductivity. Clean the tip and insert it into a cup of distilled water and witness the fact it reads 'DRY'.

One of the most reliable methods of checking a planting's need for water is using a 'tell'. You can use a bamboo skewer in a pinch, but a wooden dowel rod of about 5/16” (75-85mm) would work better. They usually come 48” (120cm) long and can usually be cut in half and serve as a pair. Sharpen all 4 ends in a pencil sharpener and slightly blunt the tip so it's about the diameter of the head on a straight pin. Push the wooden tell deep into the soil. Don't worry, it won't harm the root system. If the plant is quite root-bound, you might need to try several places until you find one where you can push it all the way to the pot's bottom. Leave it a few seconds, then withdraw it and inspect the tip for moisture. For most plantings, withhold water until the tell comes out dry or nearly so. If you see signs of wilting, adjust the interval between waterings so drought stress isn't a recurring issue.

If you have questions you think I might be able to answer, please don't hesitate to ask them.

Al

Thank you so much, Talpa! I will follow your advice and let you know how it goes. I really appreciate your detailed response, and also just ordered the Foliage Pro you suggested. Have a wonderful day!

My pleasure. Good luck!!

Al