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Help with rubber plant

16 years ago

Does anyone know what causes leaf edges to turn brown and dry out? I have a variegated one and a few of the leaves have this problem.THANKS!!!!!

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Comments (4)

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
16 years ago
Some of the most common abiotic diseases are due to nutritional imbalances resulting from applications of insufficient or excessive amounts of nutrients. Some of the most dramatic symptoms of nutritional imbalance are caused by deficiencies or toxicities of micronutrients such as boron, copper, and fluoride, things we rarely consider. The fact that we generally grow in a soilless growing media, water alkalinity, and unbalanced nutritional programs all contribute to the problem. An extremely common cause of what you describe is a build-up of soluble salts in soil (plasmolysis).

It can be difficult to recognize symptoms of nutrient disorders because they are often subtle or not unique to the cause. Also, different species may vary widely in their susceptibility to deficiencies or toxicities.

Nutrient deficiencies cause chronic disease in plants. When nutrients are lacking, important molecules like chlorophyll, DNA, proteins, and lipids cannot be manufactured. Enzymes may not carry out important chemical transformatÂions. In general, plant growth is slowed, and susceptibility to disease increases. Containerized plants may be dwarfed, develop chlorosis or necrosis, have fewer flowers, and otherwise be unattractive.

Fixative: repot using a fast soil that drains freely. Learn to water properly and maintain a suitable irrigation/fertilization regimen, making sure that your nutrient supplementation includes the minor elements. Give the plant adequate light.

Al
christianme
Original Author
16 years ago
Thank You!! Al
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Grice, what I meant to say is, if the soil is dry (on most plants) and you bring the plant to the sink to hose leaves, you can also water soil w/the hose. To be honest, I prefer using water that's been sitting out, but w/all the plants I have it's impossible trying to water them all w/containers..lately I've been watering a section at a time..(only when soil is dry)w/tepid water. This is especially important with spider plants. Lauren, it's good your gradma is loaning you her humidifer..She's smart..leaving town to go to a warmer climate..LOL Don't blame her one bit. At one time I had at least 18 milk containers sitting behind plants. LOL When one got old, it was replaced w/a new one..and they're free when you think about it. We all use milk for recepies/drinking. Smith, you're welcome. Since you use tepid water on your spider, does it get brown edges? I would think not, but nothing's impossible and using water that's been sitting out is just my opinion. Is it me, or do RT's grow slow? As I mentioned earlier, I've two RT's. The green was originally in a baby 4" pot..it's now over 2' tall..Oh, I bought it say 2 yrs ago. The variegated was purchased in the late 90's and only grew half a foot if that..They're both kept in south windows, and outside in summer. It's not root bound, nor is it too large a pot. When I fertilize, it gets the same type of food as the green. Am I doing something wrong? Thanks, Toni
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Looks like a millipede, a muncher of dead & live plant material. If the roots of your plant are the most attractive thing in that pot that it might want to eat, that's not good. If there's 1, there's probably more, I'd repot by removing old soil & replacing with new. If you find a pancake of roots at the bottom of the pot, chopping that off will give roots a chance to grow normally again & plant might fit easily back into same pot. Beware when cutting into any Ficus, there's white latex sap inside which can cause a rash on the skin similar to poison ivy for those unfortunate to have skin sensitive to it.
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Do the black spots and clumps wipe off, or are they in the leaves themselves? Are they on the bottom of the leaf too? Do they feel different than the surface of the rest of the leaf (raised bumps, dry, or musby? I'm really not sure what they are, but the information will be helpful to others who are more familiar with plant diseases. The spots don't look like mite damage, especially because mites prefer tender new growth at the end of stems or branches. Check the backs of the leaves and that bud at the top of the tree for tiny dark red dots that easily wipe off or fall off if you shake or tap the leaf. They're really tiny, so a magnifying glass or loupe will make them easier to find if they're there. The brown areas on the bottom leaves look like classic signs of overwatering or underwatering by the grower, so here are a few questions: Does the pot have a drain hole? Is the soil very wet or just moist? What kind of soil is it--fine grained and peaty, or does it have larger grains that allow air to pass through the soil easily. Soil in the root zone can be saturated even when the top few inches feels dry, so stick a sharpened dowel, disposable chopstick, or a skewer all the way through the soil to the bottom of the pot to check the soil moisture. Fine grained water retentive soils can stay saturated long enough to suffocate and kill roots, reducing the plants ability to take up enough water, which causes leaves the plant can no longer support to brown and eventually drop off, beginning with the lowest leaves on the plant. The best way to deal with this is to repot the plant by removing all the old soil from the root system and replacing it with something fast draining and highly aerated, like Al's 5:1:1 mix made of five parts pine bark, one part peat moss, and one part perlite. However, there are ways to compensate for water retentive soils if you can't repot right away, including watering only when the plant needs it and tilting the pot 45 degrees after watering for 15-30 minutes to reason off most of the excess water from the lower part of the pot, as well as a few other tricks we can offer, depending on which way you want to go.
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lucy
16 years ago
Then again, it's as likely to be spider mites as anything (lack of humidity would have encouraged them) so if you see any tiny webs between branches and trunk, get out the Safer's Soap spray.
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
16 years ago
Sorry, Lucy - marginal necrosis (from above: " ... what causes leaf edges to turn brown and dry out?") is no indication of the presence of mites or other insects, regardless of humidity levels. There are other cultural factors/considerations at this time of year in KY that weigh heavily against the plant having a mite presence severe enough to be noticeable, but no need to elaborate there. Also, scale would be far more likely to be the cause. Your advice would ok though - in case the plant did have mites.

Al

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