Tropicals & Tender Perennials: Bug questions, 1 by kabob

kabob wrote:
Are there some hoyas that are more prone to bugs, ie mealies, spider mites, etc. than other hoyas? I've had a couple Iris Maries over the few years I've collected - lost all to spider mites! Now, my current Iris Marie (that bloomed!) has spider mites - so did chlorantha and cembra. I've already put them in a closed baggy after spraying them with neem. But it got me thinking about whether some hoyas are more prone to bugs than others. The cembra and Iris Marie are the "bush" hoyas...is that a connection? Or is it the conditions - ie more/less humidity, more/less heat, more/less water, etc. Anybody have any thoughts on this? Also, how can you tell when the plant is spider mite free? Mine have been baggied up for a few days - still have that spotted discoloring from the spider mites - are the mites still there, will the discoloring go away? Thanks for your thoughts!

Karen