Re: Can you identify this flower? I have heard that only cuttings which include an old flower site will produce future flowers. Is this true? Margaret
Many thanks LPN I wondered for a long time why a hoya did not bloom. Got a cutting which included the old flower stem and bingo flowers when it had grown for a year or so. Might help others who are also wondering why "no flowers". Margaret
Re: Can you identify this flower? No, that is not true... You can root hoyas from as little as a one-node cutting to produce another plant, but it's best to start cuttings with at least 3 leaf nodes (remove the leaves from the lowest node and put that node into the propagation mix). LPN is correct in that you never remove a spur from a plant that has produced spurs, since the plant will flower for many years from a spur. Most hoyas will need to make growth for a few years before they start to produce more flower spurs, but the original cutting DOES NOT need to have a flower spur so that the resulting plant can flower in future years. Mike
treelover3 is right. For some reason I misunderstood the original question and was thinking of just the flowering phase of Hoya. Once your cutting has rooted it may be a couple of years before it develops these flowering spurs. Again, once they develop, don't dead head or remove them. These plants don't mind being root bound or crowded in their pots either.
Treelover3 is right. I have been propagating Hoya from single node cuttings. They flower within an year. Since new flowers are borne on tender, wirey, new growth, one must take care of these. Quite often these tender tips get damaged or are fall prey to pests. Hence no flowering. It is also true that once old flowers drop down, new flowers show on the same head. This may repeat as much as 15-20 times. I am in India, on western coast near Mumbai. Here Hoya flower almmost all year round.
Hi, can anybody help me. How long does it take to propagate,and how long does it take to root a Hoya from single node cuttings. And how long does it take from a stem with at least 3 sets of leaves and rooting hormone? Thank you for any and all information. leah
leah, The amount of time needed for a cutting to root will depend a lot on the time of year. Generally, expect to wait at least 2 months before the cutting has sufficient roots to take care of itself and be moved into its own pot. Late spring and summer will give you much faster results and fall and winter will generally take longer for cuttings to root. Also, this isn't an exact science, and cuttings may just sit there for a while and do nothing. Don't fret, just go with the flow and wait. The time needed is roughly the same for both types of cuttings, but the 3 node cutting will be a stronger-growing plant from the start since it has more leaf area, initially, to photosynthesize. Expensive, new, rare and slow growing plants are generally propagated from single-node cuttings whereas more inexpensive, faster growing and common plants are propagated from 3 node cuttings. It all depends on how much material you have to work with and how many plants you want to produce. Rooting hormone will generally speed the amount of time needed for rooting, but it isn't generally necessary to use rooting hormone on hoyas since there is almost always adventitious roots along the stem already. Good luck, Mike
Thank you, Mike. Right now I am trying to propagate many diff cuttings. I started off with 2, my cat got to them so I decided to divide them. I have them in a large Ziploc bag, which I blew into and misted water in. Some are in a small pot with miracle grow potting soil and added perilite. Some I used the hormone on and some I didn't. And I just dropped some leaves in the bag. I am trying to experiment, as I'm new to hoyas. Just got my first one few weeks ago. I didn't know what it was I just thought it was beautiful foliage. And was pleasantly surprised when I did research on it and found it was a flowering hoya. I have noticed that the soil in my main hoya hasn't dried yet(I havn't watered it in about 2 weeks). I'm contiplating taking it out of the pot to add some perelite to the soil. It's very full in the pot so not much air gets to it. Does any body have any suggestions? Thank you leah
Hey Leah, I have an older hoya that my mother started from cuttings a lot of years ago. Without giving it a lot of thought I have started many new plants from it by randomly taking cuttings & sticking them in water. I put some cuttings in a jar about 2 weeks ago and they have roots now. Here's a pix for you. Have fun ....good luck.
Thanks these are nice photos. I got a heat mat, I put the cuttings in soil on the mat in a greenhouse, I created out of a clear storage container. My fishtail hoya sprouted roots in 2 days. My others: crimson queen; a mini leaf type, unsure of the name; and one that is krinkley but not as much as the hindu rope plant. None of these have roots. So I put the krinkley one in water in the" greenhouse" it got roots after a day, I added the mini one to the water just today(I'll see what happens). I think my problem is I havn't been keeping the soil wet enouph, now I've been checking it everyday.
On other aspects of Hoya propagation, how can one pollinate the flowers and get it to develop fruit? The flowers produce copious nectar, but as far as I can see, they don't have any stamens at all (are they dioecious, with most cultivated plants female?). What is their natural pollinator?
Hoyas are pollinated by insects around here, or possibly hummingbirds under the right conditions...so obviously the plant has to be outdoors for that to happen. After pollination, the plant will put out seed pods. On pubicalyx and carnosa they look like long brown stringbeans. Eventually the pods burst open and the seedlings are taken by the breeze, each one with its own bit if "fluff" like dandilion seedlings. If one of your plants puts out these pods, you can enclose it in a section of nylon stocking while it is still attached to the plant, that way when it bursts you will catch the seedlings. Plant them asap, they are not viable for very long. In all my years of keeping hoyas outdoors this has only happened to me one time. Possibly there are ways of doing it manually but I am not familiar with those.
Interesting, thanks! I'm still wondering what/where the stamens and pollen are, there is none visible, even on dissection of a flower.
I liked the story about the seed pods. Very interesting as well. I have a question and am not sure that it belongs here but since we are on the topic of hoyas.........do anyone of you know what the life span of a Hoya is? Those are mine in the two photos above and the largest one just doesn't seem as happy as it has in the past. I did re pot it a few springtimes ago..... so maybe that's what it needs again. This plant has been around for a lot of years & I've taken many cuttings from it and it's flowered several times where it has been sitting. Any comments on that??
Hi there I took cuttings early last year with no flower stem on, and has just got a buds, although its not easy here in England, the cold just does not help them flower. some plant food i got from qvc , helps a lot, cant remember what its called but you put a teaspoon in a ltr of water and spray leaves . a tip i got for cuttings and it works well is plant them in large jars. soil just a little water to damp and keep top on. dont get them in too much sunlight . anyone want to swop cuttings , is it ok to send plant cuttings to other countries?
I have some Hoya climbers. One of them I have grown on coconut outer skin, with inner fibres intact & addition of some sphagnum moss. It is 15 years old. I am also enclosing a photograph of an epiphytic Hoya.
I got a few new hoyas today from Asiatica, a grower in Pennsylvania. All of them are growing in a mix of coconut husk, orchid bark, perlite, and chopped up styrafoam peanuts. I am using less and less potting soil myself in my soil mix these days....does anyone have a good source for coconut husk they can share? By the way, the new plants from Asiatica are awesome....some are smaller, but a few were HUGE, the prices fair, the plants healthy, the owner very very nice and very helpful, the selection great, and 3 of the plants I got have flower buds!! I would definately recommend this grower, and I believe they have selection of about 130 hoyas on their website.
Hello Tweetie, I'm afraid plants cannot be exported as simply as by posting them as you live in the EU and are covered by the usual plethora of regulations. (I have an export/import licence so I can tell you how to get one if you want one). However, all is not lost, I lost all but my Carnosa and cannot locate Bella or the variagated Carnosa outside Sweden. I am hoping you know of a UK supplier?
Hello, I'm new to this wonderful site which I only found by browsing. Firstly, I have visited the gardens many times on my visits to Vancouver. Keep up the excellent work! Secondly, I am seeking cuttings of Hoyas to experiment with in an aeroponic rooting unit that I have. This has proved incredibly successful with many plants and I have a feeling that Hoyas will root exceedingly quickly and effecively aeroponically. Has anyone tried this method or has anyone cuttings they would like me to try to root this way?
