Rubber-bearing ficus, also called elastic, or elastic (from Latin - Ficus elastica) is one of the most popular indoor plants, which, as is traditionally believed, brings family comfort, wealth and prosperity to the house.
Origin
It belongs to the Mulberry family, the genus Ficus, to which, among other plants with this name, belongs to the notorious fig. It comes from the tropics of India and the countries of Southeast Asia - Myanmar, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, etc. In nature, this evergreen tree grows to thirty to forty meters in height. At the same time, it forms huge aerial roots, due to which the locals call it the “snake tree”.
Will give a visual representation of how a rubbery ficus looks at home, photo. Plant care, rules of maintenance and reproduction will be described in our article.
General information
The rubbery species of ficus is the recognized king of this group of domestic plants, among which are tiny dwarf species and trees of impressive size. At one time, mostly narrow-leaved variety was grown in houses, but later it was replaced by others - decora and robusta. Varieties with green leaves are more unpretentious and easier to grow than with variegated ones. This is due to the low chlorophyll content in the foliage of the latter. In this regard, they are more demanding of lighting, and their cuttings root worse.
Description
The leaves of this plant are large and dense, oval, leathery, glossy on top, regular. In a typical ficus elastic they are drooping, in a more popular robusta they are directed upward. In length they grow up to 30 cm, in width - up to 20.
Inflorescences of rubbery ficus grow from the axils of the leaves. Oval yellow-green fruits of rubbery ficus are dry, up to 1 cm in diameter. The flowers are usually small, perianth is simplified. At room conditions, the plant blooms and rarely bears fruit.
Containment conditions: temperature and lighting
Quite a lot of lovers of indoor flowers grow at home such a plant as rubber ficus. Home care (photo can be seen below) for this plant is not so complicated. The temperature regime is very important for the plant. Comfortable temperature for ficus is about + 26-28 degrees in the summer and + 16-18 in the winter. It is undesirable for the thermometer to drop below + 12-13 degrees. Under such conditions, the plant may die. It does not tolerate hypothermia, although it can survive a short-term decrease in air temperature to +5 degrees.
This plant is shade-loving, but it perceives bright diffused light (in no case direct sunlight!). In a thick shadow, its growth can slow down significantly.
Draft Danger
The plant tolerates drafts with difficulty, and may even lose some of the leaves because of them. The draft is especially dangerous for him after watering, while the earth is still wet. When planning home care for rubber ficus, this must be taken into account. Placing a plant is possible only in a place protected from intense air currents. In winter, in order to avoid hypothermia of plants, foam can be placed under the pots.
Humidity and watering
Ficus is not very demanding on air humidity, but it is extremely desirable in hot summers and in winter, when excessive heating of the air is noted with working heating, periodically spray the plant. Twice a month it is recommended to wipe its leaves with a damp rag. Every month, you should arrange a ficus light shower, be sure to use warm water. It should be remembered that it is the humid tropics that are the birthplace of the rubber ficus.
Home care for this exotic flower, like for others, involves regular watering. It should be watered carefully so that the water does not splatter and does not fall on the leaves, and only after drying the earth with a depth of 1-2 centimeters. However, one should not allow the complete drying out of the earthen coma, the plant does not tolerate this. Watering should be regular, but moderate, especially in winter, during dormancy. With waterlogging, the plant may begin to lose leaves. Water must be defended.
Trimming and crown formation of rubber ficus
Care at home pruning a plant implies a must. It is necessary, as the ficus grows very quickly, and can add one leaf per week. Its growth under favorable conditions is able to increase by 0.5 - 1 m per month. Therefore, rubber ficus at home should be cut off necessarily.
The top is usually cut so that the plant is not higher than 1.5 in height. After the growth of the lateral branches (after about two years), they are also cut off, thus forming a neat crown. Milky juice, which is released from the stems after pruning, needs to be carefully wiped, and it is advisable to sprinkle the slices with charcoal powder.
It should be noted that out of many types of ficus, with experience and proper skills, you can grow a bonsai-style bonsai tree at home. But the rubber ficus, the care of which we describe, is not the best choice for this. Firstly, its leaves are too large. Secondly, this plant does not branch out too actively, and forming a beautiful crown is not so simple. Therefore, for growing bonsai it is better to take other species, for example, Benjamin's ficus.
Transplantation, composition of the earth
The ideal soil mixture for rubber-bearing ficus is soddy, leafy and humus land mixed in equal parts with sand and peat. You can transplant young, actively growing flowers every year, adult ficus - about once every 2-3 years. Typically, the need for transplantation is evidenced by such a sign as the almost complete filling of the container with the roots of the plant. Transfer it to a new pot should be together with an earthen lump between them, adding fresh earth to the sides and bottom. Florists recommend picking up a pot so that it is 5 cm in diameter larger and 5 cm deeper than the previous one.
It is advisable to alternate the transplant with pruning so that both procedures do not fall on the same year, otherwise it will be difficult for the plant to recover. It is better to transplant the plant in spring or summer. If the plant is already many years old and the owners are worried that the transplant will not harm it, you can do without it regularly on a yearly basis by replacing the top layer of soil in the pot (about 1 cm) with a new substrate. Without this, ficus rubber-bearing care would not be successful. Propagation of the plant will be described below.
Breeding
When caring for ficus rubber-bearing at home, reproduction can be carried out by parts of the plant remaining after its pruning and crown formation: cuttings and stalks. They are pre-washed to remove milky juice - they are kept under running water until it stops flowing. Then dried for an hour. They can be rooted both in an opaque vessel with water, and in a soil mixture of sand and peat. Visually demonstrates cuttings of ficus rubbery photo.
Care at home for young plants provides for their transplantation into a separate container after the appearance of roots and new leaves.
Variegated varieties can also be propagated by air layering. For this, flower growers recommend making a cut under the leaf in a vertical direction with a length of 0.5 cm. A match sprinkled into it is sprinkled with “Kornevin”. The incision site is closed by a sphagnum and wrapped with a film. You will have to wait several months for the roots to appear. Layers should be separated and planted in a separate pot.
Plant diseases
Ficus is durable. With proper care, this plant is able to delight owners up to 50 years. However, if you violate the rules of care, you may encounter such troubles as changing the color of the leaves and the appearance of spots on them, falling them or decaying of the roots. So, dark spots on the leaves appear as a result of hypothermia, yellow - a lack of moisture. They fade when the air is not sufficiently humidified, or when they are exposed to direct sunlight.
Pest Ficus
Spider mite can attack plants. Small spiders usually settle on the back of the leaves. To combat them use a solution of tobacco dust, stirring it in a liter of water in the amount of four tablespoons. Soap should be added to the mixture. It should be washed off the leaves with warm water two hours after processing the plant.
Dark spots and dots on the leaves testify to the attack of ficus shield aphids. To process the leaves in this case, use the above solution with the addition of a small amount of kerosene. First, the aphids must be carefully removed from the leaves using, for example, an old toothbrush. After processing, the mixture also needs to be washed off the leaves no later than two to three hours.
If the stem of the rubber ficus has become soft and moisture oozes from it, it discards the leaves, most likely, it will not be possible to save the plant. It was affected by rot as a result of excessive watering in combination with low air temperature. It will have to be thrown away, and the place where it stood is preferably disinfected.
With all the rules for caring for ficus, he rarely gets sick. Clean leaves are the main condition for plant resistance to pests.
The main varieties, their characteristic features
Different varieties of this flower differ among themselves, primarily, the shape and color of the leaves. They can have one shade of green, be dark red, variegated. Below will be briefly described the most popular varieties of rubber ficus . Home care, their reproduction is carried out according to general rules.
Robusta (Robusta)
The most common variety. The leaves are wide, rounded, green or khaki flowers, 20-25 cm long and up to 15 cm wide. The trunk is strong and thick. This variety is tall and branched, so it’s better to immediately create a support for the plant in order to avoid its falling and breaking the stems.
The plant is unpretentious in care, so it is well suited for beginner gardeners.
Belize
Ficus rubber Belize, home care which is also simple, has white-pink stains on the edges of green leaves. The older the leaf, the pink the shade on it is less pronounced.
The central vein is pink in color, clearly visible on both sides. Leaves grow up to 23 cm in length, up to 13 - in width. Sometimes they can be slightly wavy. This ficus is also quite unpretentious, but, like all variegated varieties, is more demanding on lighting. In the summer it is useful to take it to the balcony, while not forgetting about protection from scorching sunlight.
Belize is the result of a natural mutation. This rubber ficus was bred in the Netherlands, like many other varieties.
Tineke
Home care for the variegated Tineke variety also involves careful care for lighting. The sheet plate is medium in size, 18-22 cm long and up to 15 wide. The central vein of the leaf has a pink tint. The light border around the edges of the leaves forms an original natural pattern.
Melanie
This compact variety is perfect for those flower lovers who cannot keep the most popular varieties of ficus in the house due to lack of space. He is quite young and was obtained by chance, thanks to a mutation of another species called Decor. Cuttings were taken from the mutated plant, and new signs fully appeared in the ficus grown from them. Thanks to this, Melanie was isolated in a separate variety.
It grows in height no more than 60-80 cm. It grows well and mainly grows in breadth. Its glossy leaves are dark green, reddish in bright light. The small size of the plant allows you to experiment with its crown and shape it at your own discretion. However, it should be remembered: you need to trim not only the top, at its very tip, but stepping down 4-6 leaves. Otherwise, the flower will still grow up, instead of continuing to branch.
When transplanting this miniature ficus, you should take a pot 2-3 cm larger. If you plant a young plant in a container that is much larger than its roots, the underground part will begin to develop unevenly, overtaking the aboveground in growth.
Black Prince
This name was given to this variety because of its dark leaves. Interestingly, their color depends on the level of illumination in the room. In addition, its leaves are less pointed than other varieties.
Interesting Facts
As the name implies, rubber can be obtained from its juice. However, this species is not grown for industrial purposes. For this, hevea has been used for many decades.
Valuable is the ability of all varieties of ficus to heal the air, releasing biologically active substances and filtering the air. Therefore, it is good to have it in an apartment where there are often sick children or adults. However, remember that its milky juice is irritating. Children should be told that the plant should not be touched.