Milestone - H. deykei bloomed!!!

Perhaps others have bloomed, but the leaves always thrill me so I never looked for swollen rachis...or umbels forming or..... Here is a pic of my grandmother H. deykei...4 years old on a 24" hoop and she is full of umbels .... first time for me!!! One has bloomed and is rather spent...but there are tons more on the sidelines!

I find H. deykei slow (like most of the H. finlaysonii family) and the blooms don't last a very long time (H. deykei = 3 days). The fragrance is of 'clover' to me... When I moved this plant into higher light she started to form the peduncles....

I am getting busy in the GH...Ted Green and his wife are coming in on Tuesday for a visit and I am like a school girl awaiting the visit from the Head Teacher. I have pulled out a tray of ??? NOIDS...actually hoyas I have from other growers and I don't trust the names and have seen the holotypes and the leaves don't match. I am hoping Ted can give me some clues. The Eriostemmas are blooming madly out in the gardens...H. ciliata is just solid with blooms...like little Ninja Stars...I sure wish they had a fragrance.

Ted is a kick...more energy and stamina than I have 20 years his junior...he is witty, interesting, full of stories. Dorothy is delightful! Susan (Nightbloomer) and I spent a wonderful afternoon with them last fall. As Ted is a Landscaper and Orchid Grower as well, I plan to pick his brain and ask lots of questions.....

Carol

Carol, that H. deykei bloom is stunning! Congratulations!! I love all the buds on the one right behind it.

Have fun with Ted and his wife. I understand Mr. Green is one of the top experts in the field, along with Dale Kloppenberg, Ann Wayman, Christine Burton, and David Liddle, so it really will be like the headmaster coming for a visit. Try and keep up with him - I understand he can hike circles around people half his age.

Nice to know deykei does bloom.

Good luck on the getting ID's. Chris Burton visited me last spring and it was wonderful having an expert in the house! I gave her the clippers and a bag and told her to take whatever cuttings she wanted. She also took a pencil and changed labels that were not correct. I am still finding labels with the words "no way Jose" written on them. She pointed out various things about my plants that I had to find the magnifier to see! I learned more about Hoyas in the 3 days she stayed with me than I have in the 4 years I have been collecting them.

Now if we could pass them all around--you know "hoya house calls".......Heee-Heee Would it not be fun to put them all together to work on one hoya at a time untell they agree................No more fighting YAAAAA

Oh Carol you lucky gal.
I LOVE my deykei, but have never even seen a bud or peduncle on it.
Have fun with your company. Take lots of pics & tell us all about it after.
Marcy

That is right Sandy. Then we can look out our windows and we will see donkeys and pigs flying! ;~)

Carol the H. deykei is beautiful. It really is a slooooooow grower. Have a wonderful time with your house guest. It will be nice to get some of those noids ID I bet.

Mel your funny, I like the ID " No way Hose". I bet you cracked up every time you seen a tag labeled that. Ha Ha.

EEE Gads I would love to be a fly on the wall at that gathering !!!!!!! When pigs fly Ha HA..

It's interesting to hear everyone's opinions about things - and I have come to the conclusion that there is not one defining authority but just lots of opinions/personal interpretations. Usually with some place to begin...the full story can unravel itself with a little research and perhaps not supply definitive answers, but quell suspicions. I am mostly curious about some hoyas Sandyc sent me that she got from Bob Smoley...to get an idea about their ID as they haven't bloomed yet. Also, I KNOW I have 2 plants of D. parasitica that have a largish dark green leaf (for a dischidia) and I have lost the tags. It will be fun to 'trade' with Ted.

Also, he is a man of wide scope of interests...not just Hoya. He has lived in Hawaii since Zeus was a corporal and knows a lot about the botany and horticulture of the islands. Another good friend, Gary Meredith who collects hoyas and other wierd and wonderful plants, is also coming over for lunch. I suspect we are in for some good stories.

In the meantime...yes, H. deykei IS a slow grower! I have found it does like more light than I suspected ... and lots of water. I actually ignored this plant for a long time...maybe that is the secret!!!

C

Mel you are to funny.................A girl can hope for hoya peace....

Mel maybe I will sign up for a Chris visit, I know I have plenty of incorrectly named hoyas! I'll just start writing "no way Jose" on some labels to save her some time:-).

Blessings,
Awanda