this is how the underside of the latest dropped leaf looks like:

and this is to compare how a healthier leaf on the left looks next to one that is starting to change color on the right - it's a different shade of green, as you see. No pronounced spots yet, but this is how it starts.

it looks fungal. like its may be rotting? for the plant this size and vigor it is more normal to water every 7-10 days. the fact that soil stays damp for 3-4 weeks is not a good sign. smth is wrong. can you just pull it out of the pot and look at the rootball?

Here is the root ball. It is very wet because I gave the plant a shower and fertilized two days ago.

Here is the bottom of the root ball. Don't know how root rot looks like - is this it? The picture is fuzzy but the root color is true.
I decided to repot it right away even though my gritty mix is not ready yet. A few pics will follow.

now I see that it's not that big, thought it was twice the size. for what you have I think the pot is way too large. and the soil is very dense and mucky. I'd trim off 1" of soil all around and 2" all around on the bottom - to conical shape and pop it into a smaller pot until you get some new soil mix to plant it in.

The mix on the outside was fluffy and uncompacted, but then I got to this hard-feeling core. Apparently, the nursery did not bother to do repotting correctly and just dumped the root ball from a 6 inch pot intact into a larger pot. You can see what happens then - the outline of the old root ball is clearly visible. The inner soil was much much harder and of different composition that the outer newer mix. It felt drier to the touch, too.

When I dug in there, one hard cluster of old soil revealed a clump of controlled release fertilizer concentrated in a small area of the root ball. This can't be good, but how bad is it?

Overall, the mix contained surprisingly a lot of fertilizer, I thought. It is visible in some of the pictures. But it does look like the CRF was put on the surface of the mix and made its way around and under the root ball - rather than the CRF being mixed into the soil.

bare roots before puning

Here's how I pruned the roots. I do not have much experience, but I cut off thicker roots, those that were circling back to the ball, those that were wrapping around and strangling other roots, and I trimmed a bit of length.

I did not trim anything off the top deliberately - because 3 or 4 leaves broke off unintentionally and the plant is shedding leaves anyway, so I thought I should not cut any more.

Any comments / suggestions to do things differently next time?

The end result.

>> now I see that it's not that big, thought it was twice the size. for what you have I think the pot is way too large.

Petrushka, I see you were posting at the same time. Thanks for your advice. I actually just made the pot even bigger (fingers were itchy to do something). But this is temporary until I get a better draining mix. The mix now is 50% leftover 511 mix and the old soil from the same plant (outer fluffier soil, not the inner dense old root ball soil). Far from ideal, I know.

Everybody who wishes, please comment and critique away. I am glad to learn here.

That root trim looks good to me, a little more conservative but similar to what I'd do if it's the first time for a big plant like that.

What a lot of fertilizer balls! I've never unpotted a plant with that much fertilizer in the soil.

50% 511 should make it much better. ficus can withstand up to 50% root trim. 30% is what you did approx?
it might still drop a few leaves, you know...transplant shock. that is to be expected. mist it daily. water sparingly.
do not feed it until new growth starts, which should be in about a month if all goes well.
i wonder if may be you have fertilizer burn. i don't know what it looks like on ficus. though spots are usually fungal or viral.
the fert granules inside the rootball might be old - they exaust themselves after a few months, but the empty shells remain. the green ones on bottom are proly newer and still active. i assume you got rid of all granules? that would be best for now.

Yes, 30% root trim is about right for what I did.

For the several weeks I've had it, new growth would come out seemingly in spurts - one new leaf at a time on almost every tip, then nothing for a few weeks, then a spurt again. This seems healthy to me.

Not feeding is probably a good idea - especially considering I put some of the old soil with the fertilizer balls right back in, eliminating the CRF would be too tedious, and I actually did not think to do it. What may have been a high concentration now is ~50% lower because my added 511 mix does not include a CRF. So it may be fine - but I will not feed any more till I see healthy growth again.

I wondered about fertilizer burn as well. Don't know how it looks on a rubber plant either. Although the seeming CRF overdose is not a new issue - it was sold like that weeks ago, and they probably do not sell freshly repotted plants but let them settle first.

I wanted to come back and report on the progress with my ficus burgundy, and it's a thrill to say the news is good!

11 days after my last post, I finally got all ingredients, screened and mixed my first batch of gritty mix, and of course this ficus was one of the first in line for repotting. It's been another 11 days since then, and NOT A SINGLE LEAF has dropped! The fungusy discoloration or whatever that thing was - it just STOPPED dead in its tracks right away after repotting. I cannot find any sign of the disease on the growing leaves now and I just shook the branches gently to see if any leaves would drop, and none did.

The jury on the gritty mix experience for some of my other plants is still out (some limited wilting issues - I am watching it), but I have to say, this ficus seems just perfectly happy where it is for now.

Thanks to all for your help in this journey!

i left my rubber plant outside and the weather changed on me. lets just say it got too cold , now my leaves are dead. what should i do?

How cold is "too cold"? and for how long was it too cold?

Not all tissue types on a plant are equally (cold) hardy. Woody tissues are usually more resistant to chill than leaves and roots, so there might be some hope if killing low temperatures weren't reached.

Be patient, keep the plant warm (65* or above), and be very sure you don't over-water. The soil should be barely damp/moist at the bottom of the pot - never wet. If the plant is still viable, the issue most likely to throw a monkey wrench into the works would be over-watering/ a soggy soil. Don't be tempted to fertilize until you see new growth. Once new growth is in evidence, come back for more direction.

Al

I got this rubber plant-small tree size on January 1st and week after, the leafs have started getting brown/yellow spots and dying. I watered once after 5days from the day i bought, since then i just sprayed the leafs no water. I placed it right next to my window. my window is facing west, so it gets sunset sunlights. lots of indirect sunlights... it does get little chilly near by my window from wind since its winter, but my room temperature is 70degree in general... I am not sure what to do.. Is it temperature? or should i re-pot and change soil? does it need more light? please help.... :'/

You should probably start your own post. It looks like cold damage followed by black spot fungus to me, fyi Stop misting it and move the plant as far away from your other plants as possible. It is contagious. I would treat it with a fungicide. I use Bayer 3 in one, it is a fungicide, insecticide, and fertilizer.

From what part of the plant are these leaves falling? If they're older leaves that grew near the bottom, I wouldn't be awfully concerned as the cause might not even be related to current cultural influences. If they're higher on the tree, it's cause enough to be thinking about things remedial. Have you rotated the tree since putting it in its latest spot, and are the leaves that are falling facing the window?

Al

its falling from bottom side but it seems like its spreading to upper side as well. I see some brown spots appearing on other new leaves already... fallen leaves are from all directions. I re-potted it today, will get fungicide tomorrow and let y'all know if it worked or not. Thank you for your advices!

Do you have a picture of the whole tree? Also what does the soil look like?

this is my tree. its bit bare since a lot of leafs from bottom fell off..

BUT! I repotted and sprayed natural care garden disease control..( i couldn't find fungicide in my neighborhood). since then black spot hasn't appeared and new leafs are coming out! fingers crossed this plan gets healthy...

Look good. I'd be in the market to a larger pot. The roots look like they are already taking up the pot. I would have added much more perlite, but that's me. Also when you water be sure all the soil gets wet. Other than that good job. I'm not seeing any black spots and the rest of the tree looks healthy.

Internodes are exceptionally long, which is a positive indication the plant wants more light. It also should be sited where temps are at least 70* if possible. Advancing root congestion causes shedding of inner and lower leaves, so as root congestion increases, there is less & less foliage proximal to the growing tips of branches. Your tree exhibits these symptoms, so it definitely needs a repot, a procedure much more involved than potting up, because a full repot included bare-rooting, removing problem roots and some of the larger unnecessary roots, making room for a larger volume of fine roots that do the lion's share of the work. With regular root pruning, you can develop root systems that have very few large roots that serve only as plumbing and to anchor the tree in the soil.

Your soil is full of large roots that are well beyond the stage where they produce the hundreds/thousands of fine root hairs plants need for best health/growth, but that doesn't mean you should act now to correct the congestion.

I don't think the plant needs to be treated for fungal issues. As your tree begins the shedding process, the plant removes everything that can be reused from the leaves in the process of being shed. The future of shed foliage includes an eventual total breakdown into elemental forms. Fungi play the larges part in that process unless the leaves are eaten by small animals or soil life. The role of fungi in breaking down the foliage very commonly starts while leaves in the process of being shed are still on the tree, so the pictures you show with leaves being acted upon by fungi don't mean the whole tree is under fungal attack. The leaves being shed no longer have the advantage of the plant's active defenses, while the leaves still viable do.

One of my favorite biblical passages (Ecclesiastes 3:1) To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: ....... a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted ......... It's so when it comes to planting, growing things, and working on plants. We plant corn in the spring because that's the appropriate time. We harvest apples in autumn because they are at their best. Houseplants have a natural rhythm that, if we work WITH that rhythm instead of against it, can help us be better providers and more in sync with our plants. The upside of observing and allowing for these rhythms is a much greater opportunity for plants to realize a greater measure of their genetic potential.

If you're interested, we can put together a forward looking plan that takes the big picture into account and provides a schedule you can repeat year to year and use to brighten all your plant's future.

Al

I've had this plant for two months. I repotted this plant as soon as I received it from the nursery. I've started noticing brown spots underneath the leaves. Help is this plant OK. What should I do?

What soil is it in? Does the pot have a drain hole? How often do you water?

the pot looks a bit large for such a small plant.

The brown spots are due to over watering. A soil that's too water retentive coupled with a pot that's too large adds to the issue.

This plant is in a 6in pot with drain hole and tray is attached. I planted it in Miracle Gro potting soil for houseplants. I water once a week.

Are you checking to see if the soil is dry before watering? Not just the first inch of soil, but all the way to the bottom?

Hi! I would very much appreciate it if you can give me advice as to how to help my plants get better! I've been searching online for help.

My family and I have been taking care of some plants for our house since we moved in about 6 months ago. We've liked rubber plants (my mom used to have a big tree in their backyard when she was very young), and so bought 3 before (on separate times, of course) for our new place. We've been happy with the plants we have, for they make the house look livelier. Our first three rubber plants have been doing well together with our other indoor plants, and are currently in our living room.

We bought 2 of the lighter green variegated ones about a week ago, and one tricolor rubber plant 4 or 5 days after. It's very rare to get those here so I took advantage of the opportunity to get them when the supplier said they're finally available. I had the lighter ones repotted (for aesthetic purposes) on the same day as when I got the tricolor one, then the tricolor one was transferred to an actual plastic pot (originally, it was in a plastic bag-like material "pot"). It's summer here in the Philippines (South East Asia), and the air has been very warm and humid. The garden/store owner placed some "Osmocote" last Friday (when I had the plants repotted wth fresh soil) as vitamins supposedly to help make these babies better.

LIGHT VARIEGATED PLANTS:
Before I even had them repotted, I noticed that one of the light green variegated ones has been developing brown spots/edges. The newer leaves seem ok, and there will be a new one coming soon, but majority have some brown parts like in the photos. The other light green one is still fine for now.

TRICOLOR:
The upper/newer leaves of the tricolor seem ok but majority of it below has been problematic/unsightly. When I checked the underside of the leaves, it was a bit rougher than the usual texture I think.

I don't soak the soil too much when I water them because we place them indoors in the living room. Just give enough to make the soil most and I make sure they are not sitting on still, excess water when on their respective plates. There are sliding doors and windows with screens to allow air to circulate freely. Recently, I even had a fan in the area to help have better air circulation since it could get very warm and humid during the day. After watering them last time, I let them have some cooler air at night outside by the sliding doors and get them early morning at around 6/7am here. No killer morning sun yet. I already wiped the leaves, but when I checked them tonight they're still getting those brown spots that don't seem to stop appearing. It could get warm at night inside the house, so I tried putting them again buy the door to get cooler, circulating air. What do you guys suggest I do to make them recover/be healthier?

Sorry for the lengthy post, but I hope you guys can help out!

Here are pictures of the tricolor one. Couldn't attach them earlier! :(

Would really appreciate your help!!!

bea i dont have an answer for you but i'm curious because some of my ficus leaves have turned brown like that in spots. your comment is at the end of a thread that started in 2014 and was last commented on a year ago. you might have better luck starting a new post for discussion and picking several categories to post under. good luck.