A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The House Plant Forum Rubber Plant Too Tall

My rubber plant is like jack and the beanstalk. It has already hit the 9 foot ceiling and keeps wanting to grow taller! It has just a long stalk, no branches. I'm afraid it's going to tip over or break. Can I cut the main stalk? And where can I cut it? Can I cut it where it is already growing bark? Will it branch more on the bottom if I remove some of the lower leaves? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

Rtree ~~~~Mine gets 8 to 9 ft maybe taller every spring and summer.. I'm sure it's because I take outside .. last year I had to cut the top of it off (to get inside!) and put it back in the soil! and yep it takes roots and grows and helps fill in where it just grows straight up,, this is a picture of last fall when I brought it back in. If it were straight up it would be near 8 foot ( can't find anything tall enough to support it any taller than 8 ft ~right now I have it tied to two long pieces of bamboo!) and I cut off at least a 2 1/2 ft piece . IF you look closely at the top of the door is 7 ft and it's higher than that! I don't have a current pic I usually record growth after spring and summer .. So I say all of that to say this .. don't be afraid to cut off the top and put back in the soil ~~ it will root and grow!!!! BTW I cut it off down closest to the leave where I want the top to be~ at a 45 degree angle about 1 inch from the leave and dipp the cut end in root tone before I place it in soil.

Triss - could you post a picture of your rubber plant?
I've always called the ones like Diane's rubber plants, but maybe in different areas other plants are called that too?

triss, is your's a pepperomia? they are sometimes called "baby rubber plants" because the leaves and stalks are rubbery.

Jiffy - I was wondering the same exact thing!

Triss - could we please see a picture of yours?

I don't currently have a rubber tree. But when I did, I cut it back drastically. It will only benefit it by encouraging branching out and a generally fuller look.

usually. alternately, the roots will send up new "trees"

I can't bear to cut below the lowest leaves. I'm so sure I will kill something. You can cut down to the lowest leaves, even if it is not as short as you would like it. Then when it develops new leaves/branches below that (hopefully) cut again until you have the size you want. At least cut off the very top to encourage lower growth.

i'd leave 2 sets of leaves, and then also nick the bark right below a leaf node to try to encourage grow/branching there. i'd also plant the cuttings!

you can nick it right under one of the lower leaf node, but a bigger question is where is it (sun/draft/etc) and what are your watering practices?

i'd repot, get the watering under control, and maybe move it to a more lighted spot. north/northwest is good, but northwest/west would be better. they can actually take (and take off with) full sun. i had one on the porch all summer last year 'cause it had scale, and i didn't want it on my other plants. then, i let it freeze

I put mine outside each summer and it grows a good bit---but it's in morning sun, until about 11am or so, then full shade.

I rescued it from a grocery store years ago for 4.99 on clearance....I just love rescuing plants.

Let me dig out a pic of it smaller, and then a recent one.

The past 2 years it hasn't dropped one leaf when I bring it inside for the winter. I moved it to a high sunlight spot and it's done so well there!

Here it was a few months after I rescued it! Already a decent size but a lot smaller than it is now.



Here it is now 3 years later....hard to tell, but it's a lot bigger than it was.

That would probably work out great. I have to remember to water mine a heck of a lot more in the summer with it being outside since it dries out so fast.

In the summer I can almost hear it whisper "thank you" when I put it outside in the fresh air!

LOL! About three years ago my parent brought me down a small indoor rubber plant that they were having a hard time growing indoors in their house in Virginia. I had just bought a house in Miami and they figured it might fare better down here. It was about 2-3 feet tall. Three years later... talk about Jack and the Beanstalk! It is now about 25 feet tall and 10-15 feet wide and has taken over a corner of my yard! It is giant, still growing, and I don't know how to stop it! (actually a little afraid of it now! ) I have a pic, but am not sure how to attach it to this thread.

I have also recently acquired a 7ft tall rubber tree. How do you take care of this plant? The middle of the stalk is bare and some of the leaves are turning yellow. Any pointers?