Hoya newbie...need ID & info

I've been lurking on this forum for a short time, admiring these lovely plants, and when a hoya jumped into my hand at Lowe's, I figured I had no choice but to learn more about them. Then, when I went back to Lowe's, four more jumped right into our buggy! Can you imagine?? I'd really appreciate if you could give me a bit of help here, as I feel like maybe an addiction is forming.

These two are tagged at Hoya carnosa "variegata" 'Rubra'. Do you agree with that? Also, one has a very long, bare stem. I tried to position it so you can see it in the picture. Do I leave that, or clip it off?

I'd like to repot them into a hanging basket, but the smallest I have is about 8 or 10 inches. Would that be alright? I've read that they like to be potbound, which they are, so it might be better to repot them to a container closer to the size they're in, or just leave them as they are. What do you think?

Also, the only potting soil I have is Miracle Gro potting soil. Would that be alright to put them in?

I'll post pics of the other three next.

Many thanks in advance for your help!

Here are the other three. They are tagged Hoya 'Rope' Hoya carnosa. From what I've seen here, that would be correct, I think.

I have the same repotting questions for these as I do for the two above.

Thanks again!

Raingazer, it seems to me like they are correctly id'ed. The hindu rope is called hoya compacta. You could probably pot those three into one 8" pot. The two carnosa rubra's(aka Krimson Princess) could probably go into a 4-6" pot. I think if you were going to use miracle grow, I would buy a bag of plain perlite. Mix in a considerable amount of perlite, and the miracle grow should work. Hopefully the experts will be on here soon!! Congratulations and welcome aboard!
Heather

Raingazer, your plants are lovely, and you won't be sorry you were bitten by this particular addiction.

Your hoyas are pretty much correctly identified. Do not cut your leafless tendrill off, leaves will grow on it, and possibly even flowers before the leaves. You can wind it around a hoop or twine it in with the rest of the foliage.

Yes, hoyas prefer to be potbound, and none of my carnosa type hoyas will bloom unless they are potbound. My rule of thumb for transplanting a new carnosa type hoya, is to wait until the following spring after they've bloomed for the first time. And then only go up 1" in the size of the pot. If you want to use a pot that large, then put your three rope hoyas together in the pot first, and see how much room there is; if you can add a large amount of soil, the pot's too big. You could also just leave your plants in their existing pots, and support them in the larger pot to look like a fuller plant.

If you use Miracle Grow soil, add some kind of mulch (small bark chips, porous pebbles) to it to make it looser to provide good drainage, and don't fertilze it for at least three months. I use a 50-50 combination of orchid potting soil and regular potting soil.

Last of all, hoyas like bright light but not a lot of direct sun. Dappled sunlight is great (in the summer, hang them under a tree), so is very early or very late day sun.

Good luck with your new babies, and welcome to the gang!!

Christine

Thanks for all the information!! I am a newbie to Hoyas also. As soon as mine arrive, I will post pictures. Thanks for the potting information, Christine. I do have Orchid mix, so I'll be ready!
Good luck to both of us Amy !!
Margo

Such good information! Thanks so much! I think I'll leave them as they are for now. There are tiny roots barely poking through the drainage holes at the bottom, so they're not severely potbound. I'll just set them in the hanging basket for now.

We were at Walmart yesterday, and they had their orchid potting mix on clearance. Wish I would have gotten some. I'll go back in a day or two and pick some up.

Just for my future reference, I almost always have perlite and/or vermiculite on hand. Would either of those work to mix in with potting soil for hoyas?

Thanks again!

Edited to include:

Good luck to you, too, Margo! Looking forward to seeing those pictures.

This message was edited Nov 4, 2005 11:14 AM

Welcome raingazer and Margo. Congrats on your hoya purchases. A nice start to a wonderful addiction.
Tami

Welcome to the wacky world of Hoyas, RainGazer! It is nice to see a fellow Tennesseean get bitten by the Hoya bug! There are not too many of us in the state.
Perlite is an excellent addition to your soil mix. I use either Fafard mix or Pro-Mix and often add perlite to make the mix lighter.
Most of the box store Hoyas are from Exotic Angel. They use a soil mix that is more like a spounge than the light, airy medium Hoyas like. I tend to remove all the soil from these plants and re-pot them into my own mix. (I actully hose off all the soil from EA plants)
Good luck with your new collection! I feel sure it will bring you lots of joy!

Hi Amy.. I'm a Hoya nut, too, in addition to being a Brug nut! If you ever get down to the Space Center, give me a shout via D-mail. I would be glad to share cuttings of my collection with you (she says as she slyly twists her mustache thinking, "A HA!! Another addict in the making!!!")

;)

Barb

OOPS! Margo.. welcome to you also!

OH yes...(I see with my little eye a new victim) welcome to the Wild/Wacky World of Hoyas. We are all really nice here and our only aim is to hook you into our little circle of addictions. Brugs are a natural extension of Hoya...many of us have expanded to them...and for the others, it is simply a matter of t ime.....

he he he he Carol :>)

Welcome raingazer and Margo!!
If you like Hoyas ~~ THIS IS THE PLACE TO BE! I've only been around a couple months but you will find that the folks here on the Hoya Forum are THE BEST! But be forewarned.....if you aren't addicted (yet) ~*~*~ YOU WILL BE! There are many "enablers" on board and everytime one of us newbies join, their eyes light up, they wring their hands and gleefully say "How nice to meet you, my pretty"!!! =O)
Again...WELCOME! You will LOVE this place..!
Betsy

Welcome Raingazer and Margo - you've come to the right place!

What is it about Brugs? Everywhere I go I hear about them. Maybe they're trying to tell me something?

meltn, thanks to DG I have quite a few plants now that when I call them by name people around here look at me funny and say, "Huh?" LOL Evidently when you get beyond cannas, daisies, and roses, it's unfamiliar territory. Oh well, I don't mind being the odd duck...it's quite rewarding, actually! ;o)

bjf, if we do actually go through with those plans, I'll be sure to give you a yell. Thanks for the offer!

Aloha, I am a PROUD new victim! And I have already developed the brug bug, so I don't even have to worry about that. I wanted a couple brug cuttings to start out with. It seems by the time I get them all, I'll have about a dozen or so... What is an extra or ten?

Betsy, I've found that Dave's in general is the BEST place to be! Going well beyond just being extremely knowledgeable and helpful, everyone here is SO nice! What more could anyone ask for?

Thanks for the welcome, Tami and kabob!

RG

This message was edited Nov 9, 2005 10:02 PM