Welcome to this article where we will be talking about why the leaves on your rubber plant might be cracking. The plant is one of the more resilient houseplants we have, but can still face some issues with the way it’s growing.
The leaves cracking is often caused by the plant being both overwatered and overfed in terms of fertilizers. These are things that are pretty easy to fix but will need some knowledge in preventing them from even happening.
Follow along in the article below and we will share more info about growing and caring for a rubber plant. It’s one of the best plants for beginners looking to get into gardening. It’s resilient and a great decorative house plant too.
Rubber Plant Leaves Cracking
As we said already in the article here, the rubber plant will start having its leaves cracking because it’s experiencing a lot of overwatering and overfeeding. Those are pretty easy things to prevent, however.
The ideal condition for the plant to grow in is a south-facing window where it will get about 8 – 10 hours of sun each day. That way the plant is able to perform photosynthesis and generate energy for the entire plant.
As for the soil, the texture should never be wetter than damp. That is the ideal spot for the roots to be growing in. They will be able to get the necessary amount of nutrition while also not risking any of the roots drowning from getting no oxygen.
Too much water is what’s keeping oxygen out of your soil. A lack of oxygen causes the roots to rot and makes them start wilting. No roots mean no energy or nutrition for the rest of the plant.
You can also try and keep the fertilization of the soil down too. That will greatly help your roots not be used to a surplus of nutrition all the time. The plant can really get too much of the good stuff.
Fertilizing the soil about every 2 months or so will be plenty enough for the plant. The soil will not be introduced to new nutrition naturally so we have to find a natural balance adding it ourselves.
If your rubber plant stopped growing then you might want to read this article here that we have put together, Rubber Plant Stopped Growing.
Should I Cut Off Damaged Rubber Plant Leaves
The leaves on your rubber plant which have been damaged are most likely not able to grow back to the same look they had before. The leaves are very likely to be damaged by things like too much sunlight or too much fertilizer in the soil.
The damaged leaves are like we said not likely to grow back to the same beautiful look, so cutting off the leaves at the bottom of the plant is a great idea. That way the plant will have new space for leaves to grow from. You might get a bushier look to it and hopefully a new healthy leaf eventually.
If your rubber plant is starting to look wrinkled then you might want to learn about the solutions to it in this article here, Rubber Plant Leaves Wrinkled.
How Do You Fix A Broken Rubber Plant Leaf
A broken rubber plant leaf is unfortunately not able to be fixed. If it snapped off in half then the leaf will form a crust almost along the exposed area where it broke. It will stop growing from here and instead the leaf will either stay as it is or start to turn brown instead.
The best way to prevent damaged leaves is to keep the plant indoors in a south-facing window where the leaves are able to get enough sunlight. This will provide enough sunlight each day which makes the plant not dry out or look wrinkled.
