A popular indoor plant is rubber plants.If given time and space, they can become the size of a small tree.Plants with rubber tend to need less in the way of trimming.Prune your rubber plant so it grows into the shape you want it to have, and be sure to remove dead and dying leaves.If you want your rubber plant to have a slim, vertical look or a lower, bushier appearance before you start trimming, you need to think about it.
Step 1: At any time of year, remove dead leaves.
Remove the leaves and branches from the rubber plant that appears to be dying.The appearance of the rubber plant will be improved by this.You can remove dead leaves with your fingers.You can use a pair of shears to remove dead branches.The leaves will be yellow in color.Dead leaves can be brown or shrunken.
Step 2: In the late spring or early summer, do any majorPruning.
Prune rubber plants in a different season and they will not suffer ill effects.Most of thePruning can be done around early summer.Pruning goes beyond removing dead leaves and branches.If you have to fertilize a rubber plant in the winter or fall, make small cuts.
Step 3: Gloves are worn when you peck at something.
When you cut the branches, the rubber plant's sticky sap will start to flow.If you want to prevent sticky sap from getting onto your fingers, wear a pair of gloves.The gloves that would suffice were canvas work gloves and rubber dishwashing gloves.
Step 4: The rubber plant has branches above it.
A smaller stem can be seen from the side of a larger main stem.If you are cutting a main stem, make the cut above the smaller stem branches.The small leaf-bearing stems can be damaged if you damage them.
Step 5: The rubber plant needs to be Prune with a pair of shears.
The rubber plant's branches can be easily cut through by these.If you have a young rubber plant with thin stems, you could trim it with a pair of scissors.In a pinch, you can use a kitchen knife.Unlike roses that need to be trimmed at an angle, rubber plant branches can be cut straight across.
Step 6: The rubber plant needs to be left alone.
The rubber plant may die if you remove too much of its leaves and branches.Make sure you leave at least 2 leaves behind.It is easier for the plant to regrowth leaves than branches.You don't want to remove more than 5 or 6 living branches.You may need to leave as many as 6-7 leaves behind if you have a large rubber plant.
Step 7: Repot your rubber plant to make it bigger.
If you want to give your rubber plant more room to grow, repot it in a larger pot.If you repot your rubber plant, you should put it in a pot that is only 2.5 cm larger than the previous pot.The rubber plant should be planted in a pot with holes in the bottom for drainage.The rubber plant will grow taller once its roots have grown.
Step 8: Take plants from rubber plants.
If you want to start a second rubber plant in a separate pot, you can use a cutting.A large leaf or a medium branch is a good example of a generous cutting.The sappy end of the cutting should be inserted into the soil about 2 inches deep.Place a warm heating pad under the pot for the first week to help the cutting take root.
Step 9: Determine the shape of your rubber plant.
Plants can be either tall and thin or short and bushy.You can choose which shape you want the plant to have based on the space in which you are keeping it.If you have a rubber plant on a shelf that doesn't have much room to grow upwards, you may want it to develop a short, round shape.The tall, slender shape of the plant may look better in a large room with high ceilings.
Step 10: To keep the plant looking nice, trim unruly branches.
Since rubber plants are kept indoors, you want them to look presentable.Prune any branches that are growing in a strange direction or at a rapid pace to improve the appearance of the rubber plant.The rubber plant can be trimmed to keep it from looking too dense or cluttered.The trimmings should be thrown into a trash can.
Step 11: The plant's top should be cut off when it reaches the desired height.
Pruning the leaves from the rubber plant will help it reach a height you want.The rubber plant will not be able to put out any more vertical chutes because of this.If you want a bushy rubber plant, try cutting the top off when it is less than 5 feet.If you don't cut the leaves off your rubber plant, it will continue to grow.Plants can grow up to 10 feet.
Step 12: Prune branches if you want a bushier plant.
The rubber plant will grow 2 or more new branches from the stump if you cut a branch.It is easy to make your rubber plant thick and bushy.Pruning branches should be kept on the side of the plant.If you want your rubber plant to be tall and thin, you need to trim the branches.