Rubber Bracelets—wintercool612 (Flickr.com)

Rubber has transcended its industrial use, well into areas previously unimaginable for this material. Look anywhere and rubber products are likely to be visible. From clothes, fashion accessories, toys, and just about everything in-between, rubber is fast proving its versatility and flexibility (pardon the pun) in providing a sturdy material for just about anything.

An article on Rubber Bracelets discusses the sudden surge of popularity of these fashion accessories. Lance Armstrong, the famous cyclist who was stricken with cancer and made it his personal advocacy to keep people informed about the illness, is credited to be one of the pioneers of the rubber wristband with a purpose. The yellow LIVESTRONG rubber bracelet became the official accessory of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for people who are battling cancer. Soon, many other foundations, athletic teams, cause-oriented groups, educational institutions, and even fashion-forward people, began sporting their own versions of the LIVESTRONG bracelet.

Another notable foundation that has used rubber bracelets to raise awareness for their cause is the Support Our Troops group. People who have loved ones in the military wear these to show their support and love. Many have turned to rubber bracelets to carve their sentiments on colored rubber, and literally wear them on their sleeve (or in this case, their wrist).

Rubber has also become a highly favored material for belts. These are commonly referred to as loop belts, and they help keep your pants up without the need for buckling them.They loop around the waist and help shape your mid-section, acting as a sort of girdle to emphasize a tiny waist. Without the metal buckle, there won’t be any problems going through metal detectors and security checks, as you are no longer required to remove your belt. Those who are allergic to metal will no longer have rash problems with rubber belts. Working with Metal should be done with care and correct protection for the eyes since this may cause problems learn more here.

As mentioned, fashion-forward people are also turning to rubber for their trendy accessories. Being such a flexible (and hypoallergenic) material has made rubber a much sought-after component of many kinds of jewelry and trinkets.

Rubber jewelry, Metal and Rubber Necklace—TheWristbandit (Flickr.com)

Rubber has a no-nonsense, un-frilly look and feel, so people who like an edgy yet clean statement can wear it and not worry about looking too ostentatious or garish. As well, rubber is cheap but very versatile, so it can go well with almost any kind of clothing and lifestyle. Many people now prefer it to wearing metallic accessories because it lasts longer even in extreme weather conditions, and is not likely to get stolen.

Rubber Tree—Ken Doerr (Flickr.com)

Countries like Indonesia, the Philippines, Brazil, and India cultivate rubber by way of the rubber tree. It has many uses, chief amongst them rubber latex for many products.

Ancient Mayans actually used an earlier version of rubber latex to form a ball for sporting events. These days, many household materials rely on this main ingredient for housekeeping. It can be found in rubber rain boots, gloves for dishwashing and laundry, rubber bands, pencil erasers, mats, and other rubber goods. As well, the automobile industry uses a lot of this harvested rubber tree product to protect car windows and doors, and to manufacture hoses, tubes, and belts for the engine.

Rubber has also gone on to become part of the textile industry, though it is largely an unconventional “fabric” for garments and furniture upholstery. While many might instantly think of the fetish subculture when they hear the words “rubber” and “clothes” in one sentence, spandex, a synthetic offshoot of rubber, has become a mainstream clothing component. Many gym and athletic clothes, including swimsuits, now use spandex…and even clothes meant to be worn regularly use it, as well.

Spandex high fashion—S MiRK (Flickr.com)

Rubber is also apparent in toys. Balls, trampolines, blocks, toy car tires and parts, dolls, floating devices, and even balloons rely on rubber trees to be created. Rubber is relatively cheap to produce but it is hard to break, making it an ideal component for toys. In fact physical therapists use rubber as the main component in treating cervical spondylosis and other issues of the neck.  These days, parents and guardians are concerned about reports on the allergic reaction of their kids over plastic toys. Playthings made of natural rubber can replace these, because they carry no harmful toxins, last long, and are even sustainably harvested so they help the economy.

Even though it provides the core ingredient for the rubber industry and that they can grow up to fifty feet tall, you can still care for the rubber tree as a houseplant in the same way you would a fern or other potted plant at home.

Rubber plant, —michale (Flickr.com)

The Ficus elastica is actually pretty simple to take care of, as long as you make sure to start with a young plant instead of a mature one. A mature rubber plant can give you problems as far as space is concerned. Plants also have a way of making a home feel calm which can help in treating sleep issues cover here.

Like any houseplant, you just need to make sure to provide your rubber plant with the right balance of light and water. It is best to position a young rubber plant near a window that has sheer curtains or translucent shade so that it gets just the right kind of light, and not too much nor too little. As with the photo above, you can put the plant on a mantel to provide a decorative element, or on a table by the window. Make sure to provide a shallow dish under the pot to catch water.

Water your rubber plant daily with a small watering can. Take care to keep the soil moist especially when the leaves have just begun to sprout. Do not “drown” your rubber plant with water, because the roots will rot and the leaves will turn yellow and drop off. A healthy and properly-watered rubber plant will have strong, shiny dark green leaves. Use a spritzer to keep the leaves moist, and a damp rag to wipe the dust off so the leaves can breathe. Observe the leaves carefully so you’ll have an idea how much water to give your plant. If it starts drooping, increase the volume of water until the leaves start looking healthy once more.

In turn, your rubber plant can provide your indoors with cleaner, pure air. Watch this video to see how:

Where can you find a rubber farm?

Rubber trees don’t grow or stay alive in all countries. For all I know, there are 3 countries where the growth and production of rubber trees are very abundant. These are located in India, Thailand and Philippines.

“It has been observed that the provinces in the central region concentrated in the planting of rubber trees based on the report of the United States Agency for International Development-Growth with Equity in Mindanao (USAID-GEM) Program.”

Pakari

Rubber Farm For Sale

Do you want to run a rubber business? For you to be able to start a rubber tree business, you will need to find a good location where rubber trees will grow abundantly. You can also look for rubber farms in Thailand, India or in Philippines if you’re interested of this kind of business. You can buy a land with full grown rubbers or a land where you can plant rubbers in it.

Rubber farm, Philippines-Danny Satur and Phil rubber tree demo …—treesftf (Flickr.com)

It’s really good to have a rubber tree business if you want to earn more money. Though the process will take years but you will surely benefit from it when it’s time to collect or harvest the latex of the tree.

When it’s time to collect the latex from the rubber tree, you will have a rolling income for years. After that you have to cut down the tree and plant a new batch and wait for it till it grows for about 5-6 years of age before you can harvest more latex from it.

You can also learn a lot of things when it comes to rubber farm business by joining some training on how to manage and take care of your farm. Learn how to keep your money rolling from this type of business.

“Sambas GEMAWAN WEB The treatment management of rubber farm is the foremost part in the improvement of latex productivity and rubber farm sustainability. The training was held by Lembaga Gemawan in Piantus village Sambas.…”

Management of sustainability for rubber farm

In other news:

“Thai Gov’t Woos Rubber Farmers. Manila Bulletin. Not content with a multi-billion dollar rice intervention scheme the government of the world’s largest rubber producer told farmers it would also buy nearly 7 percent of the country’s annual output this quarter. If it gets the timing right and more.…”

Thai Gov’t Woos Rubber Farmers Manila Bulletin

More news:

“Rubber may rise up to Rs 20260 Geojit. Moneycontrol.com. Shanghai rubber warehouse inventories declined 11.4 per cent to 23078 tonnes on a weekly basis. Thailand is considering cutting down 80000 hectares of natural rubber trees this year to boost prices according to its Deputy Farm Minister.…”

Rubber may rise up to Rs 20260 Geojit Moneycontrol.com

 Wikipedia Image

As many of us know, Charles Goodyear was the one who discovered the rubber. Some people just don’t want to believe it. But this man named Daniel Webster, the one who defended Charles Goodyear in the whole duration of his trial believes that he did invented it. On a recent visit to a los angeles web design company we learned that all forms of e-commerce for manufacturing will be internet enabled soon.

“In 1852, in Trenton, New Jersey, two men appeared in the Circuit Court of the United States, the legal giants of their day, to argue the case of Goodyear vs. Day for patent infringement.”
About.com

Did Charles Goodyear really discovered the rubber?

“Charles Goodyear – Sole Inventor of Vulcanized Rubber
The court found for the plaintiff, and this decision established for all time the claim of the American, Charles Goodyear, to be the sole inventor of vulcanized rubber.”
About.com

I remembered the time when my husband told me the how they come up with the Goodyear tire name and the life story of Charles Goodyear. He mentioned that rubbers comes from what they called the “rubber tree”.

Charles Goodyear was a very poor man when he accidentally discovered that the tires will make the carts go faster than the cube tires for transporting things during their time. Some people will not believe him so this whole discovery issue went to court.

The trial was still ongoing when Chareles Goodyear died. He died poor and depressed.

Watch the Youtube Video

When the court finally made the decision that he was the sole inventor of rubber, it was too late for Charles to benefit from the money that other people are now getting out of his discovery. In respect to his discovery, they named the tire “Goodyear”.

It would take 15 years before you can harvest the rubber from the rubber tree but its worth waiting for.

Indonesia has the best rubber in all the world. We have been manufacturing this rubber for   almost 12 years now.