My 20 year old rubber plant which is usually very happy has developed some marks on its leaves & I can’t figure out what the problem is. I’ve been careful with watering & started feeding the soil again once spring started. Any advice would be great, it’s part of the family!
I don’t have any experience with rubber plants but my first suspects are pests, or failing that, some kind of fungus. Check for evidence of pests - any critters themselves, frass, webbing, etc. Check the underside of the leaves as well as the top sides. And if it is pests, do look up which type it is and how to deal with them specifically, but I can strongly recommend predatory mites for thrips or spider mites… and possibly mealy bugs (I haven’t used predatory mites for these yet). Scale will require pesticide. But the first port of call is to wash your plant with soapy water (use a little dish soap or Castile soap), and manually remove any pests you see too. And wash your hands before handling any other plants after.
0 likesAlso, if it’s thrips, it’s best to cut your losses and just remove any damaged leaves, otherwise the cycle will just keep repeating. Thrips lay eggs within the leaf tissues, so they’re undetectable and unaffected by washing, pesticide sprays, etc.
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mealy bugs! wipe down everything with rubbing alcohol, then find a systemic insecticide. repeat wipe down every week until they stop returning
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this little guy might be a thrip. damage looks like thrips to me
