Watering Rubber Plant
 

I have a fiscus(?) that I bought from Wal-Mart a few years ago (is
this the same as a rubber plant?). For awhile, all of the leaves were
dropping off like crazy, which was partially due to the fact that I
didn't know how to water it properly. Before long, I only had 14
leaves left on the whole thing!

All of last summer, I left the plant outside to see if the leaves
would grow back. It seemed to be doing great, with new leaves coming
in regularly and the stalks were growing, too.

When I brought the plant back in for the winter, I began watering it
myself based on what had been suggested here. I tried giving it a
little more than a cup a day, and was making sure that the soil was
staying moist (but not wet) about 4" beneath the surface of the soil.
The plant is directly in front of a south-facing window.

But since the day I brought it in, there hasn't been any new growth at
all. In fact, recently a few of the smaller leaves fell off.

Am I STILL watering it wrong? The plant is about 2-3' tall, 7 stalks,
and in a pot that's about 12" in diameter. I put a thin layer of
decorative gravel (crushed brick) on top of the soil over a year ago
to keep my cat from peeing in it. I'm watering it just above the soil,
a little more than a cup a day.

TIA,

Mike


PS, I also had a goldfish tank, and they all died pretty quickly due
to a high level of nitrates in my tap water (well water). Would this
have an impact on the plant?

Watering Rubber Plant
 

On 14 Jan 2004 22:40:36 -0800, (Mike) wrote:

I have a fiscus(?) that I bought from Wal-Mart a few years ago (is
this the same as a rubber plant?). For awhile, all of the leaves were
dropping off like crazy, which was partially due to the fact that I
didn't know how to water it properly. Before long, I only had 14
leaves left on the whole thing!

The "rubber plant" (Ficus elastica) is quite different from the
"weeping fig" (Ficus benjamina), 'though both are popular houseplants.
One annoying habit of Ficus benjamina is that it drops all its leaves
when moved into different light conditions, 'though soon produces new
ones. Don't know about F. elastica. The outdoor edible fig tree (well,
the *tree* isn't edible -- the fruit is) across the street is about
20' tall with large (6"+) leaves in summer, pounds and pounds of fruit
in late fall, and is now completely bare -- all the leaves on the
ground.

Interesting to find how many species are included in this family, from
the Banyan to the Sycamore. Best go look at some pictures to see which
yours is. They all seem fairly prone to drop their leaves for many
reasons.

Watering Rubber Plant
 

No wonder your cat has a bad attitude.
Judging from you bad experiences with fish as well as plants, maybe you
should get some erotic sculpture from a flea market instead and give up all
hope on the idea of trying to keep anything alive. Do they sell any erotic
sculpture at you local Walmart? Maybe a nekkid lady lamp with a clock in her
belly?

Mike wrote in message
om...
I have a fiscus(?) that I bought from Wal-Mart a few years ago (is
this the same as a rubber plant?). For awhile, all of the leaves were
dropping off like crazy, which was partially due to the fact that I
didn't know how to water it properly. Before long, I only had 14
leaves left on the whole thing!

All of last summer, I left the plant outside to see if the leaves
would grow back. It seemed to be doing great, with new leaves coming
in regularly and the stalks were growing, too.

When I brought the plant back in for the winter, I began watering it
myself based on what had been suggested here. I tried giving it a
little more than a cup a day, and was making sure that the soil was
staying moist (but not wet) about 4" beneath the surface of the soil.
The plant is directly in front of a south-facing window.

But since the day I brought it in, there hasn't been any new growth at
all. In fact, recently a few of the smaller leaves fell off.

Am I STILL watering it wrong? The plant is about 2-3' tall, 7 stalks,
and in a pot that's about 12" in diameter. I put a thin layer of
decorative gravel (crushed brick) on top of the soil over a year ago
to keep my cat from peeing in it. I'm watering it just above the soil,
a little more than a cup a day.

TIA,

Mike


PS, I also had a goldfish tank, and they all died pretty quickly due
to a high level of nitrates in my tap water (well water). Would this
have an impact on the plant?

Watering Rubber Plant
 

Watering Rubber Plant
 

Ficus plants will shed almost all their leaves when moved from one location
to another. I used to work in a garden center/greenhouse and we always
stressed to our customers not to worry when they took their plant home and
it looked like it was going to die from the leaves falling off. They
usually grow back.

As far as watering, ficus are not happy to sit in wet soil. I have two
different ficus trees and I water them every 1-2 weeks. Of course, mine are
pretty big pots, at least 12-14" across the top. And yes, when you move a
houseplant outside for the summer into a shady spot, they always do some
rapid growing and are very happy. When you water the plant, go ahead and
water it generously. If you can put it in the sink, water it until water
drains out the bottom and let it soak up the water. Wait until the soil
dries out (1-2 weeks) before watering again. In the winter months,
houseplants do not grow as much due to shorter daylight hours. This is
their dormant period. I would use a liquid or water soluble fertilizer
(make sure to measure it properly) and feed it every other watering. Many
people make the mistake of adding too much fertilizer which can actually
hurt the plant. It's like OD'ing on medicine - TOXIC. You may have lost
some leaves from moving the plant again too.

I hope this helps and your plant recovers.

P.S. They also like bright, indirect light (no sun beating on them all
day).

Penny
Zone 7b - North Carolina
"Mike" wrote in message
om...
I have a fiscus(?) that I bought from Wal-Mart a few years ago (is
this the same as a rubber plant?). For awhile, all of the leaves were
dropping off like crazy, which was partially due to the fact that I
didn't know how to water it properly. Before long, I only had 14
leaves left on the whole thing!

All of last summer, I left the plant outside to see if the leaves
would grow back. It seemed to be doing great, with new leaves coming
in regularly and the stalks were growing, too.

When I brought the plant back in for the winter, I began watering it
myself based on what had been suggested here. I tried giving it a
little more than a cup a day, and was making sure that the soil was
staying moist (but not wet) about 4" beneath the surface of the soil.
The plant is directly in front of a south-facing window.

But since the day I brought it in, there hasn't been any new growth at
all. In fact, recently a few of the smaller leaves fell off.

Am I STILL watering it wrong? The plant is about 2-3' tall, 7 stalks,
and in a pot that's about 12" in diameter. I put a thin layer of
decorative gravel (crushed brick) on top of the soil over a year ago
to keep my cat from peeing in it. I'm watering it just above the soil,
a little more than a cup a day.

TIA,

Mike


PS, I also had a goldfish tank, and they all died pretty quickly due
to a high level of nitrates in my tap water (well water). Would this
have an impact on the plant?