Variegated Rubber Tree
Ficus elastica 'Variegata'
(FY-kus) (ee-LASS-tih-kuh)
This plant has been living at work for about 15 years. Until recently it stayed very small but after transplanting it to a bigger pot it has grown fast. It is now about 8 feet tall and 4 feet wide. I have been pruning it since it seems to try and sprawl a bit. The leaves are amazing and, although this picture doesn’t show it, has a nice red tinge to new growth.
I have been trying to take a picture of it for a long time. I had given up but the other day while walking by it thought what the heck. The strong sunlight was actually much better than the dull flat light of the greenhouse. Since this is a tropical plant it only spends the summer outdoors here. Supposedly it can tolerate light frosts but this one gets put indoors much earlier than that. They make a fine houseplant and are a really gorgeous tree when grown in the ground and allowed to develop its natural shape.
Both of these pictures were taken with the Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G VR. This lens has really grown on me. The way it puts the shadows to black is great. The only thing is the size is humongous and it is heavy. It seems to be starting to have a nice synergy with the D700. This was a quick off the hip shot of a Koi at Wave Hill. The camera and lens did okay for the fact I didn’t even have the camera up to my eye when it was taken and used the same settings as the shot before.
1 comment:
I haven't dropped by in awhile but I've been meaning too. This post caught my eye because we have a variegated rubber tree. I'm sure I've posted a photo at one time or another. It's in the ground now, forever to stay at the house even after we leave, but I do enjoy the colors of it versus the plain Jane green ones around here.
Rubber trees are very common along the canals here and seem to be a little unwieldy.
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