Rubber Plant
Ficus elastica
Through the year 🗓️
☀️ Summer now
Steady water plus bright light grows the biggest, glossiest leaves.
🍂 Fall
Taper feeding and dust the leaves as the windows close.
❄️ Winter
Cooler and drier; soggy plus cold is what makes it drop leaves.
🌱 Spring
Prune for branching now. Sap flows heaviest, so wear gloves.
The details
Light & placement
- Light
- Bright indirect; a little gentle direct sun deepens burgundy tones
- Ideal PPFD
- 200–400 µmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹
- Grow-light distance
- 15–24 in below LED
Water & feed
- Watering method
- Water when the top 2 in are dry; drain fully. Drops leaves if kept swampy.
- Fertilizer
- Balanced feed at ½ strength, monthly in spring–summer.
Home & habit
- Soil
- Well-draining indoor mix with perlite; pH 6.0–7.0
- Humidity
- Average (40–60%)
- Temperature
- 60–80 °F
- Mature size
- 6–10 ft indoors
- Repotting
- Every 1–2 yrs until it reaches the size you want
- Propagation
- Stem cuttings (let the latex stop bleeding first); air layering.
When something looks wrong
- Overwatering signs
- Yellowing + dropping lower leaves; leaf spots
- Underwatering signs
- Drooping leaves, dry soil pulling from the pot edge
- Common pests
- Scale, spider mites, mealybugs
Common problems 🩺
The usual suspects when Rubber Plant looks unhappy. Most houseplant trouble is watering or light, not disease — see all plant problems if you are not sure which plant is the culprit.
Dropping lower leaves
Likely cause
Overwatering, a cold draft, or a sudden move.
What to do
Check the soil first — soggy means ease off. Otherwise settle it somewhere warm and stable.
Yellowing leaves
Likely cause
Too much water, particularly in winter when it barely drinks.
What to do
Let the top 2 inches dry, and water noticeably less from fall through spring.
Brown patches on the leaves
Likely cause
Sunburn from direct light, or cold shock against a window.
What to do
Pull it back from the glass into bright indirect light.
Variegated forms turning plain
Likely cause
Not enough light to sustain the pattern.
What to do
Brighter indirect light. Prune back to variegated growth if a stem reverts entirely.
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