Rubber plants originated from Southeast Asia, and have become popular with indoor plant hobbyists around the world. As you could imagine, this tropical plant loves water, and you may find yourself struggling to find a good routine to keep up with its hydration needs.
There are many ways to simplify watering your rubber tree plant. Try using a well-draining pot and soil mixture, keeping the soil consistently moist but not oversaturated, using distilled water, giving your plant a shower, bottom watering, and checking the soil moisture each time you water.
To avoid causing your rubber plant unneeded stress, keep reading to discover simple tips for watering your rubber plant.
What Is A Rubber Plant?
House plants have grown immensely in popularity over the past several years, with people seeking beautiful greenery that adds interest and dimension to their home decor. There are hundreds and even thousands of options when it comes to adding plants to the home, and plants from all over the world have become popular in indoor settings.
Rubber plants are one type of plant that is popular for its beauty and hardiness as an indoor plant, and is a great beginner plant according to Michigan State University.
Rubber plants originated from Southeast Asia, where the climate is usually temperate and humid, two things that are relatively easy to duplicate in a home setting.
According to Colorado State University, rubber plants do best at a temperature that ranges between 65 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. They require high humidity and bright, indirect light. (Unfiltered direct light can cause damage to the leaves.)
Are Rubber Plants Trees?
Rubber plants can technically be categorized as trees. Rubber plants in the wild can grow as tall as 50 feet, and Clemson University states they can grow as tall as six to ten feet when kept as potted indoor plants.
When cut, the bark will exude a white milky sap. This sap is actually harvested in an agricultural setting and turned into rubber, giving the plant its name.
Colorado State University warns that this sap can also be irritating to the skin, so make sure to wash it off thoroughly if you come in contact with it.
There are other trees and plants that provide rubbery substances. Gum trees are used for all types of different things!
Importance Of Watering
Water, along with adequate space, soil, and sunlight, is essential to the rubber plant for it to survive and thrive.
Because the rubber plant is tropical in origin, when planted outside, you will want to plant your rubber plant in well-draining soil that is kept consistently moist to replicate as much as possible their native growing conditions.
Indoors, watering your rubber plant is even more important to keeping a healthy plant. Your goal should be to have soil that remains evenly moist, but not overly saturated. Too wet of soil can lead to diseases and fungi such as root rot, which will eventually lead to a sick plant that requires more extreme intervention to alleviate.
Plant care can feel arduous, but it doesn’t have to be! Follow along to learn 8 simple and helpful tips to water your rubber plant correctly and keep it happy and healthy for years to come.
Be Consistent in Watering Your Rubber Tree
Do you ever wonder why the weedy dandelion seems to thrive anywhere from a sidewalk crack to a fertilized and watered lawn? It may seem obvious, but plants need much less care and consistency when they are grown outdoors.
Bringing a plant indoors removes it from all of the natural elements that help it grow. From plentiful soil and all of the nutrients to groundwater and precipitation, to direct and unfiltered sunlight, outdoor plants do not lack the basic ingredients for growing.
Indoor plants grow in small pots with filtered, indirect sunlight, and they rely on us to water them consistently and correctly.
The best thing you can do for your indoor rubber plant is to give it consistency. However you decide to water your rubber plant, do so on a schedule, keeping the soil adequately moist, without letting it oversaturate or dry out completely.
You may even want to write it into your planner or calendar, indicating the day and time you water and how much. This consistency will prevent surprises and will make it easier to adjust the watering and other variables that may affect your plant’s health.
Given the constraints of growing indoors, your goal should be to create the most stable environment for your plant that you can manage. Keeping your routine consistent is a great first step.
Use A Well-Draining Pot
We have talked a little bit about keeping the soil moist (but not oversaturated). Wild rubber plants live in conditions where the soil will stay consistently moist from high rainfall and humidity.
The reason why it’s so important to get the soil moisture correct is that too much water for an extended period of time can lead to disease or fungus in your rubber plant. Root rot is a very common fungus that occurs when roots are submerged in water for too long, cutting them off from oxygen until they begin to die off and rot.
According to Connecticut State Agricultural Experiment Station, this rot can infect other parts of the roots and eventually will prevent nutrients from making it up the roots and into the plants. Signs of root rot are yellowing, wilting leaves, and general die-off of foliage.
To prevent root rot and other water-related ailments, it is important that you plant your rubber plant in a well-draining pot like this D’vine Dev Terracotta Pot.
Finding the Perfect Pot
If you are using a plastic nursery pot inside of a decorative pot, make sure to allow time for the nursery pot to drain fully and dump the extra water out so that the pot isn’t sitting in a pool of water.
Do not put your rubber plant in a fully enclosed pot with no drainage holes, or the water will have no place to go. There are plenty of beautiful decorative pots that have drainage pans or built-in chambers for the extra water to go like this D’vine Dev Modern Matte White Honeycomb Embossed Ceramic Planter Pot with Saucer and Drainage Hole.
Finally, Clemson University suggests you size up your pot as the plant grows, repotting in late winter to early spring. An ideal pot will have a couple of inches of space on all sides of the root mass.
If the roots fill the pot, the rubber plant can become root bound, meaning the roots are so big that they fill the entire pot, with no room for soil that carries essential nutrients. When this happens, the roots will be unable to absorb any water at all.
Not Too Wet, Not Too Dry
Keeping the soil moist does not necessarily mean that you should water the plant every day. As we talked about already, oversaturation can lead to many problems that you will want to avoid. On the other side of the coin, rubber plants are from a tropical climate, where the soil does not often fully dry out.
How do you balance these two conflicting needs?
The best way to accomplish this is to mimic the humid, warm environment of the tropics within your home. Use that consistent schedule we created in tip number one to keep the soil moisture at the ideal level.
How Often Should I Water My Rubber Plant?
Instead of watering sporadically, or multiple times per week, pick one day that you water your rubber plant, making sure to fully saturate the soil and leaving time to let the excess water drain out so you can remove it.
After watering your plant, try to just leave it alone for the week. Giving the soil time to dry out a bit between watering lets your rubber plant have time and space to absorb and use the water. (Additionally, you won’t be flushing out important nutrients or fertilizers that you may have added to the soil.)
Keep an eye on the soil as you are working out your schedule. Depending on the climate where you live, the humidity level of your home, and even the changing seasons, your rubber plant’s drying time will be different.
This principle is true for other houseplants as well. Here’s why you shouldn’t water plants every day (and what you should do instead)!
Check Soil Moisture Before Watering
Regardless of your routine, it is a good idea to check the moisture of your rubber plant’s soil before watering. Doing so will eliminate the possibility of overwatering while also letting you know if you have let your soil get too dry between watering.
There are a couple of ways to check the moisture of your soil, and the first one only requires a finger! In a spot a few inches away from the trunk of your rubber plant, insert your pointer finger into the soil just above your first knuckle.
If the soil is damp throughout, you can probably wait to water again, but if the soil is dry to the knuckle, you should go ahead and water!
If you are looking for a more accurate read on soil moisture, or if you don’t like the feeling of the soil underneath your fingernails, there are simple tools you can use instead. Invest in a soil moisture meter, like this Gouevn Soil Moisture Meter.
The method is the same: just insert the meter into the soil, and watch to see how far the dial moves. Your tropical rubber plant should be in the green “moist” zone, not dry or wet.
Try Bottom Watering Your Rubber Plant
A great technique that many plant parents use to prevent overwatering is called bottom watering. This method is easy to do and will ensure that you are never overwatering your plants.
Choose a pot that has a deeper draining pan, or use a bucket or even your tub to accomplish this method. Place your pot in the pan, bucket, bowl, or tub, and fill the outer container with water about halfway up the sides of the pot.
The rubber plant will absorb water from the roots, pulling it up through the soil using a process called osmosis. Leave your plant to soak for a few hours, and it will pull in just the right amount of water to saturate the soil completely. When finished, simply move your plant back to its home and dump out the extra water or drain the tub!
Bottom watering is a really easy way to ensure your rubber plant is getting enough water while lessening the risk of oversaturation. Just don’t forget about your plant for too long!
Give Your Plant A Shower
The climate in Southeast Asia includes plenty of warm summer rain and humidity throughout the year. One way you can imitate this climate is to actually give your plants a shower.
Place your rubber plant under the shower and turn it on at a neutral temperature. Too cold or too hot water can shock or damage the plant’s foliage, but lukewarm water will feel a lot like rain to your rubber plant.
A benefit of mimicking rain in your shower is that your plant gets a nice bath in the process… no really! The shower will clean off any dust, fungus spores, mildew, or pests that may have settled onto the thick foliage of your rubber plant. Additionally, this method will allow the foliage to absorb water as it would in the wild during a rainstorm.
You may want to reserve this method for once a month or even less, at least because it may not be the most convenient on this list. One thing to keep in mind is that if your rubber plant stays wet for too long, the sitting water on the leaves can magnify the sun’s rays, leading to sunburn, or it can cause rot.
If you do use this method, give your rubber plant time to drain and dry off in the shower, even taking a soft cloth to remove the excess water from the leaves before returning the plant to its usual spot by the window.
Avoid Using Hard Water On Your Rubber Plant
Depending on where you live, the age of your home and septic system, and many other factors, the water coming from your faucets may be quite hard, or in other words, have a higher concentration of minerals or contaminants.
The University of Georgia warns that added chlorine and fluorine used to purify water for drinking can also negatively impact houseplants.
If your watering schedule is consistent and you have ruled out other variables that could be damaging your plant, and you are still noticing yellowing, wilting, or otherwise unhealthy leaves, you may want to consider that your water is too harsh for your rubber plant.
We mentioned that plants can be more finicky when they live indoors, and with such a small amount of soil to depend on, excessive minerals or impurities in the water could very well lead to illness in your plant.
What Type of Water Is Best For Rubber Plants?
If you suspect that hard water could be causing damage to your plant, try switching to distilled or filtered water. Using distilled water eliminates the unknown additives you could be unwittingly pouring right into your soil.
Rubber plants may sometimes need additives in the form of new soil and fertilizers to ensure that the soil nutrients remain constant as the rubber plant absorbs and metabolizes them over time.
You don’t know how those added minerals will interact with the soil or the plant when absorbed, so it is a good idea to eliminate them completely by using distilled water.
Use A Well-Draining Soil Mix
You know well by now that your rubber plant will not be happy if it is sitting in too much water for a long period of time. A good way to prevent that is by using a well-draining soil mix.
Many plant carers mix their own soil using equal parts peat, bark, and perlite or sand as suggested by the University of Georgia. Luckily, there are many options available to purchase a similar mix, such as this Soil Sunrise Houseplant and Tropical Plant Potting Soil.
The inclusion of bark, perlite, or sand is the most important component of this type of soil. These types of substrates are much larger in size compared to clay or soil. This variation in size allows for more spaces for the water to move through the soil, allowing it to reach all areas of the roots and to drain out when enough is absorbed.
When you bring your plant home from the nursery, it is likely that it won’t already have this mix. Ask a professional while you are there, and if needed, repot and replace the soil in your plant a couple of weeks after bringing it home, first giving it time to acclimate to its new environment.
This wait time is important because too many changes at once could shock your rubber plant and ultimately cause more harm than good.
The Basics Of Rubber Plant Care
Now that you are equipped with all of the tips and tricks for watering your rubber plant, you can enjoy the beauty of the thick dark leaves and unique form. Let’s go over the basics one last time so your plant can thrive:
- Use well-draining soil mixtures.
- Size up your pot as your rubber plant grows.
- Keep your plant in a well-lit space.
- Keep the temperature between 65 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Keep the humidity high, misting your plant with water if you need to.
- Check often for signs of distress.
To recap, a well-draining soil mix will give your rubber plant the best start toward healthy growth. A mix of soil, bark, and perlite or sand will ensure that water can drain through the roots completely, lessening the risk of oversaturation and root rot.
Along with the soil, an essential part of rubber plant health is using the right-sized pot. Choose one that leaves a bit of room for your plant’s roots to grow. Size up as your rubber plant grows, to avoid the plant becoming root-bound.
Rubber plants are tropical in origin, and they require a lot of filtered light to stay happy indoors. While too harsh of light can actually hurt the plant, 12 hours a day of indirect light will keep the plant happy.
With its origin in mind, keep the temperature around that which you would find in its native home. Between 65 and 80 degrees is the sweet spot, and try to avoid letting it freeze or burn next to an open or drafty window.
Rubber plants prefer a bit of humidity, which could be hard to replicate in a temperature-controlled home. You can imitate humidity by adding a humidifier, like this Raydrop Humidifier, next to your plant or by misting the leaves with water throughout the week.
Finally, check your plant often for signs of distress, illness, or pests. Yellowed leaves or dark spots, wilting, powdery mildew, and fungus gnats are all easy to identify, but are issues that should be addressed early, before they cause too much damage.
That’s A Wrap!
Rubber plants are beautiful, low-maintenance plants that are perfect for any home, from the experienced plant enthusiast to new indoor plant hobbyists. Originating in tropical Southeast Asia, they do well in most homes.
Being tropical, it is important that you water them well and often, keeping the soil consistently moist.
There are many simple tips you can use to ensure a happy rubber plant, including consistency, using a well-draining pot and soil mix, remaining mindful of the soil’s moisture level, using distilled water, giving your plant a shower, and bottom watering.
Keeping these tips in mind, you are well-equipped to take care of this amazing and unique plant.
References
Bolle-Jones, E.W. (1957) Copper: Its Effects on the Growth and Composition of the Rubber Plant (Hevea brasiliensis). Plant and Soils. 9, 2 160-178.
Debila Mol, DV., et al. (2019) IOT Based Plant Watering and Monitoring System for Smart Gardening. International Journal of Recent Trends in Engineering & Research. Special Issue; March- 2019. 140-144.
Pruangka, S., et al. (2012) Using Soil Improvement Materials for Enhancing Drought Tolerance of Rubber Plant. International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development. 3-1.
Samarappuli, L., et al. (2000). Use of neutron moisture meter in soil-plant-water relation studies of rubber (Hevea brasiliensis). Young, 50, 1.
