A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2005 Cuttings from a Rubber Plant...

Hello. I was wondering how big a rubber plant has to be before I could try to start a new plant off of it. It is a small one, with only 10 leaves on it, and one more is on the way. I am also wondering what kind of light it should get. I have it in a room with a sky light that seems to be giving it plenty of light all day, but it is still pretty small after having it a while. Any help would be appreciated!!

anytime you have enough plant to cut 3 or more leaves off and still leave 3 or more leaves on, the plant is big enough to take cuttings from. as far as the size issue, it is probably a combination of things. one of which is the light, which is sufficient for growth, but not "take off and shoot up" type of growth. but that's ok. the other is that if your pot is too big right now, it'll spend more time growing roots than leaves as it tries to fill it's area out.

So, once the roots are done filling out the pot then it will start growing upward? I do have it in kind of a larger pot, so maybe that's it. I do think the lighting is sufficient. Thanks so much for your help!!

One more question that I have is.. Is it okay to plant the new cuttling next to it's mother plant so that I have 2 plants in the same container, or do I need to put it in a whole new pot? I was hoping to be able to keep them together to make it more bushy instead of stalky.

actually, sticking the cutting in the pot with the mother plant is what i would do and did do. i actually put about 5 cuttings in with the mother plant.

Some very impresive answers from our Forum Hostess. She knows her stuff!

Thanks for all your help. I just went to Walmart and bought some root starter! Thanks for your help!

why thank you will!

Rubber plants don't have to be cut--while the stem is flexible, slip it around the pot making certain the stem is touching the dirt. I always put a gravel stone heavy enough to hold the stem in place. You can place several stones if the stem is long. Just be certain there are at least 3 leave between the stones. This is what will feed the plant. The roots will form rather quickly. While I lived in the desert (most of my life) we even planted them in play sand, and feed them once a month. They grew like weeds. Again, this is a plant that does well outside during the summer months, but don't let it get to much rain. If you have a pot that is too large to move easily out of the rain, take a patio table umbrella & cut the bottom of the pole off and cover the plant to limit the amount of rain. This works well for cacti & other succulants as well.