Hello all! I received a beautiful Ficus Elastica last year. It was doing good up until about a 2 monhts ago. I've lost 4 or 5 leaves at the very base of the plant. They turn the colour of redish-pumpkin-orange and then fall off. I've change the pot about a month ago and it's doing beter and only lost one leaf... but still... In one of my plant books, it says to fertilize only 3-4 times a years, so that's what I do. Is that enough? As for water... Not sure what to do. I water it every week. About a cup of water. Once a month a water it until excess water can be "leached" out of the pot and I make sure I remove all excess water. Is that too much water? What am I doing wrong?
When's the last time you took it out of the pot to see how rootbound or not it is? And you really should learn to water according to need, not some schedule or measurement - which means 'reading' it carefully every few days to see if it's looking just a bit tired compared to the last look, and then giving it enough so the whole pot gets some (will reach/come out of the drain holes), but it will probably need quite infrequent waterings, especially if it's in regular potting soil which is usually peat, though if you repot, add a lot of perlite or even that unpainted small aquarium gravel to encourage faster drainage, so an unnecessary watering (while you're learning) won't necessarily kill it, though they are very sensitive to having it done too often. Definitely fertilize more often, but possibly dilute it a little if you feel more comfortable that way. They also don't like full or direct sun, so if you moved it recently, that might also be a factor.
re: When's the last time you took it out of the pot to see how rootbound or not it is? about a month ago and it was just fine. I put it in a bigger pot. re: And you really should learn to water according to need, yep... so what's the best way to do this? Water in until some comes outof the whole and check how much water I needed? When do I have to water again? sorry... not sure what to do... re: add a lot of perlite or even that unpainted small aquarium gravel that I'm glad to tell you that I did that! ;-) re: Definitely fertilize more often, Will do re: They also don't like full or direct sun, so if you moved it recently, that might also be a factor. I didn't move it and it's not receiving full or direct sun. thanks
may only be shock from replanting,and you had to have moved it to do so,sometimes just rotating a plant,especially in low light situtuations, can shock it some
I don't think it's the shock of replanting because it's doing way more fine since then. I'm begining to think it has to do with the watering. I should test in in the next few weeks to see how it react. I think I don't water it enough... or maybe too much...
When in doubt (with ficus) don't water - unless or until it's visibly starting to look droopy, tired, etc. The trick though, is to start with a healthy plant and then don't water til it just begins to look needy, because if it's not doing well to begin with, it's difficult to tell what's wrong, whether it needs more water or less (very frustrating!), but if the soil is really fast draining you're less likely to do permanent damage by watering once too often than you would if it were sitting in a peaty mix.
Thanks Rima. The plant was nice to begin with and it is still nice even tho it lost some leaves at the bottom. But maybe it's like the dumbcane and it's normal to "shed" their lower leaves? (just hoping! ;-)
i had one in a pot that size. it was apperantly in there fer over 15 years. jsut make sure its getting light and no drafts.
I would love it... I guess I can find seeds in any Botanical store? The only things I started with seeds are annuals and herbs... Any kind of seeds you recommend?
i used a site for a bunch of them but have gotta very mixed results.. it also easier to get them online. i have 14 differnt species all wbout 5 or 10 seed each so im going to have at least 50 nrew plants 9 most of them palms) in about 5 yrs
Not sure what you mean by a 'botanical' store, but you won't find house plant or tropical plant seeds at the corner store where they sell veggie seeds. You need to go online and ('advance') Google what you want.
