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How to Make a Rubber Plant Bushier

There are some plants that make a huge statement just by being in a room. A Rubber Plant is one of them! They have the most beautiful, glossy green leaves and stand tall and fancy in their desire to show off. This article will share how to make your Rubber Plant even more attractive and lovely.

Rubber Plant Care Tips

There will be times that your Rubber Plant will drop leaves. This can be due to a few different things. One is either over or under watering your plant. You need to be careful to not do either of these things.

How to Make a Rubber Plant Bushier

Watering Guidelines

The best way to check your plant for proper watering is to use a Moisture Meter. This can be stuck into the soil to determine its moisture content. You can also use your finger by sticking it a couple inches into the soil to see if it is moist or not.

Rubber Plants don’t like to have too much moisture in their soil. They want to be allowed to dry out before being watered again. This is something you don’t want to guess at, but want to check before you water your plant each time. This will prevent leaf drop or root rot in your plant.

You should determine the best watering schedule for your plant by figuring out what is best for your particular climate and/or your home environment. Most places a Rubber Plant needs to be watered once every two weeks in the spring and summer months and once a month in the winter months. 

Light Requirements

With Rubber Plants, the better the light, the better the growth. They can withstand three to four hours of direct morning sunlight each day. Remember that the combination of proper watering and lots of indirect sunlight for your plant will give it the best chance of growth overall. 

variegated rubber plant

Leaf Drop

One thing to keep in mind is that your plant will drop leaves as it ages as a natural process. It grows from the bottom up, so the lower leaves will naturally fall off as the new growth appears on the top of the plant. This is nothing to be alarmed about, however leaves will not regrow from the point at which they drop.

However, your plant may become spindly overall when this natural process occurs, so you will probably want to figure out how to make the plant bushier and more pleasant looking. Follow along below and I will give you some pointers for how to do this!

rubber plant

How to Make a Rubber Plant Bushier

Pruning

First of all, you will want to do this by pruning your plant back. This should be done in the spring months just prior to its new growth cycle. This will give the plant a chance to grow a lot during the growing season and establish itself before the dormant season sets in during the colder winter months.

You will want to prune your plant at the main stem on the point of a node just above a leaf. The nodes look like a joint on the stem and are easily identified when you look at it. Use a sterilized pair of scissors or a pruning shear to cut this portion off the plant. 

You can do this at the top of the plant and remove several sections, if you wish. This will allow the main plant to branch out and grow and also give you other plants to propagate as new ones. 

cutting stem of rubber tree for propation

After you prune your Rubber Plant, you can root the portions you removed in water until roots form. After they form roots, you can plant them as separate, new plants. This is a good way to get new plants for free! You can keep propagating them as long as they continue growing.

The part of the plant that is left on the main stem will start to grow new leaves after a few months. The new growth will appear at the Y part of the stem near the leaf node. This will make the plant appear bushier once the new leaves form.

Your plant may also produce aerial roots as it grows larger. This will mean you may need to put your plant into a larger pot. Be sure to check the root system at least once a year to be sure there are not more roots than soil. This will help your plant to remain healthy also.

variegated rubber plant

Toxicity

The main thing to remember is this – when you cut the stems, there is some white, milky looking sap that will flow out of the stem. This is very toxic to humans and pets and can cause harm if ingested. 

It also contains latex, so take care if you have any latex allergies to avoid contact with the sap. Wear gloves to be safe when pruning these kinds of plants. Also, be sure to keep your rubber plant away from your pets or small children. 

In Conclusion

If you want to enhance the look of your Rubber Plant, it is possible to do with these few small steps. Although it will take some time for the new growth to appear, it will be worth it in the long run to have a bushier, healthier looking plant! As always, keep on growing!

Author

  • Becky is a wife, a mom of four, and a grandma to 10 beautiful grandkids. She has always loved plants and never met a plant she wasn’t interested in. Her lifelong love of learning extends to her love of plants and she hopes to share that with others as she writes for Paisley Plants.

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