India rubber plant

tree

Also known as: Ficus elastica, India rubber tree

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Also called:: India rubber tree

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India rubber plant, (Ficus elastica), large tree of the family Moraceae, once an important source of an inferior natural rubber. It was largely replaced as a source of rubber by the unrelated rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) in the early 20th century. The India rubber plant is native to Southeast Asia and is commonly grown as an indoor pot plant elsewhere. The young plants are durable and grow well under less-than-ideal indoor conditions.

The India rubber plant has large, thick, oblong leaves up to 30 cm (12 inches) long and figlike fruits in pairs along the branches. The trunk and stems exude a milky sap, or latex. Among the cultivated varieties offered are ‘Decora,’ with broader and darker green leaves, and a few variegated strains, with marbled gray, cream, and white leaves or with green leaves having white or yellow margins.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Melissa Petruzzello.

rubber tree

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rubber tree

plant

Also known as: Hevea brasiliensis, Para rubber tree

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

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Related Topics:: natural rubber

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rubber tree, (Hevea brasiliensis), South American tropical tree of the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae). Cultivated on plantations in the tropics and subtropics, especially in Southeast Asia and western Africa, it replaced the rubber plant in the early 20th century as the chief source of natural rubber. It has soft wood; high, branching limbs; and a large area of bark. The milky liquid (latex) that oozes from any wound to the tree bark contains about 30 percent rubber, which can be coagulated and processed into solid products, such as tires. Latex can also be concentrated for producing dipped goods, such as surgical gloves.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn.