Hi y’all I’m new here but not new to plants. A friend of mine gave me this cute little baby rubber plant. It’s my first one and I know nothing about them. But I think the poor thing need to be in an actual pot. Needing some advice from actual people not google lol.
I’ve got a variegated Peperomia Obtusifolia, so I’ll try to help from my experience with mine. The leaves are succulent in nature, especially in the obtusifolia variety (which yours looks to be). I keep mine in the north window where it gets plenty of shade, then some sun for a few hours in the late afternoon. Mine’s been doing very well in Espoma’s Organic All-Purpose potting mix with some added perlite for a few months now. I’ve also heard great things about FoxFarm’s Organic Ocean Forest All-Purpose Mix, and have been recommended that peperomia do well in an all-purpose mix with added perlite and orchid bark (that’s sold separately and can be added in). I repotted it soon after buying it because a lot of the leaves that were starting to form were hidden in the center beneath all the larger leaves. I’ve been told they don’t like to completely dry out, but mine seems to enjoy it, though I wouldn’t recommend it for their more sensitive varieties like a Watermelon Peperomia. I got mine a plastic pot with a built-in lid to cover the drainage holes after watering for about $5 at Home Depot. Please please please do not use Miracle Grow anything on any of your houseplants. They’re infamous plant killers for staying moist for too long and attracting pests.
2 likes I agree about the miracle grow! I don’t like that stuff. I have a bunch of perlite and soil coming today. And new pots to put the little guy in. And a water meter reader thing. Thank tou so much for your wonderful advice I have a watermelon peperomia as well and she’s beautiful.
3 likes I’m not saying you have to put yours in a north window (the window with the least sun exposure in your house), and putting it in or near an east or west window should be just fine for it. They do well in low light conditions but you don’t want it to get NO light. Mine seems to really like bottom watering (if you haven’t tried that, I highly recommend it, and it’s very easy. You can simply look up “how to bottom water a plant” and there’s plenty of tutorials on YouTube), which helps me prevent overwatering it and prevent attracting fungus gnats to the top of the soil. My peperomia is extremely low-maintenance, only second to my succulents, and I hope that yours becomes the case for you as well. Hope this helps!
1 like No problem! This is my Variegated Peperomia Obtusifolia, Penny, for reference. Good luck with yours!
Omg yes bottom watering is the best. I have no problem with gnats since I started doing that with all my plants! Ty!
1 like No problem! Honestly, mine acts like a low-light succulent. I’ve been told they can be slower growing with their leaves, but I’ve seen a lot of growth with mine in the past 3 months since getting her, so it’s hard for me to say, especially since I got her right before the growing period for her species. Just saying that if it takes a while for new growth, that might not be a sign of poor health. Oh! I don’t mist mine. The app recommends it, but honestly, misting really doesn’t do much to increase their humidity, and I live in a very humid climate in the summer, so I’d suggest either putting it outside or trying a humidity tray if you don’t have a naturally more humid environment for it.
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I’ve got two of these (they’re very easy to propagate)! They like morning sun and indirect, bright light. Mine do much better outside in the humidity where their leaves can unfurl easier. They sit on a shady portion of my porch that doesn’t get any afternoon sun. They need dry (chunky) soil before rewatering!
2 likes Thank you. I live in an apartment and only have north facing windows. As well as grow lights on the overcast days. I have about 36 plants and I’m trying to keep them all happy so glad I found y’all!💛
1 like Mine does fine in a north facing window in the winter. Just don’t overwater!
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I definitely wouldn’t put this in a self watering pot. I just got one but I know they like to dry out before they need to be watered again :)
2 likesSuper cute!😍
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