Ficus elastica, the rubber fig, rubber bush, rubber tree, rubber plant, or Indian rubber bush, Indian rubber tree, is a species of flowering plant in the family Moraceae, native to eastern parts of South and Southeast Asia. It has become naturalized in Sri Lanka, the West Indies, and the US state of Florida. Description It is a large tree in the banyan group of figs, growing to – rarely up to – tall, with a stout trunk up to in diameter. The trunk develops aerial and buttressing roots to anchor it in the soil and help support heavy branches. It has broad shiny oval leaves long and broad; leaf size is largest on young plants (occasionally to long), much smaller on old trees (typically long). The leaves develop inside a sheath at the apical meristem, which grows larger as the new leaf develops. When it is mature, it unfurls and the sheath drops off the plant. Inside the new leaf, another immature leaf is waiting to develop. Pollination and fruiting As with other members of the genus Ficus, the flowers require a particular species of fig wasp to pollinate it in a co-evolved relationship. Because of this relationship, the rubber plant does not produce highly colourful or fragrant flowers to attract other pollinators. The fruit is a small yellow-green oval fig long, barely edible; these are fake fruits that contain fertile seeds only in areas where the pollinating insect is present. Range The natural range of F. elastica extends from Nepal in the north to Indonesia, Bhutan, Northeastern India, Myanmar, Yunnan in China, and Malaysia. It has been widely introduced in most tropical regions of the world, including Hawaii and the West Indies. In Europe, it can be found in mild locations throughout the Mediterranean Basin. Cultivation and uses In parts of India, people guide the roots of the tree over chasms to eventually form living bridges. To this day there are large bridges woven from aerial roots in Meghalaya, India. Although the trees used for these bridges are very large, aerial roots can be found on Ficus elastica as small as 1ft tall. Ornamental Ficus elastica is grown around the world as an ornamental plant, outside in frost-free climates (though it also tolerates light frosts) from the tropical to the Mediterranean and inside in colder climates as a houseplant. Although it is grown in Hawaii, the species of fig