I am starting the second phase of Sara's "Hoyas: latifolias, new hoyas, addictive personalities.
The original thread can be found at http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/753372/
Oink,
Ann
Hoyas: latifolias, new hoyas, addictive personalities - #2
Ha, Ann, you really are brilliant aren't you!! I am so glad that there will still be a "catch-all" thread for all the little bits of this and that which are so much a part of hoya growing. I personally enjoy viewing where and how everyone keeps and grows their hoyas. I have gotten many a good idea from the pictures that you, Karen, Julia, Mark, Gabi, Jen (both of them), and everyone else kindly shared.
I have hung many more of my hoyas, where previously I primarily used trellises, and stands. I have found so much unutilized space, really, and things look so much more balanced with hoyas hanging now. I love chains, Mel's wire hangers, beads, and hemp cord!
I am sorry that the previous thread was considered a "challenge to see how long it could get". Anyone who really knows me, knows that I am very non-competitive. I really just viewed it as a place to post the ideas and fun pictures that really didn't fit in anywhere else.
Cheers,
S
Thanks Slambii ... and I must admit that I really find the thread useful as well - in fact, that's where I got the bright idea to bring the dining room table up to my bedroom bay window - everyone has been so creative at space utilization! Meanwhile, I thought I would share with everyone a little fun idea I had - a fellow forum member gifted me this absolutely lovely H. retusa last week, and I really wanted to put it in a jazzy little pot, but couldn't find any small enough, so as I was foraging around TJ Maxx on my way home from work Friday, I saw this cute little cup on clearance and thought it would work perfectly as a "pot" of sorts.
Ann
Awesome Ann! "Slambii" totally makes me snicker, you really have no idea. That retusa is really a nice plant isn't it? It looks pretty cool in that cup too. What a wonderful gift from such a generous member of Dave's to boot! There really isn't much better than hoyas in the mail is there?
I can't remember the name of the store that I went to to get the new stands, I need to run up and get my receipt. Oh, ok, it was Ross! Ha! I just asked Bryan the name of the store I was at today. He is a much better shopper than I am.
Must be getting late here, I am really too dark of a blond to be drawing such blanks, and no beer or wine tonight...HeeHee.
Please share a picture of your dining bedroom bay window set up...inquiring minds and all that jazz!
S
This message was edited Sep 23, 2007 11:17 PM
Ok, as long as the title of this thread contains "new hoyas" I have a picture of the obscene number of cuttings I received last Wednesday from an awesome hoya friend on this forum. Actually, there are cuttings from two different members. The ones in the white bucket are about ready to pot, and the ones in the red just started rooting.
I am probably done for the season now, as we have had snow advisories in the higher elevations, and I am NOT ready for that. UGH. Usually I have until at least mid October, but apparently we are experiencing "el ninya" according to the news last night. Brrrrrr.
Sara,
How big is your house? I'm just curious how you can squeeze in all those Hoyas. It is relatively easy when you are dealing with rooted cuttings and small starter plants, but what will you do as these plants mature. Do you have dozens of windows or do you eventually plan on a greenhouse. I'm asking because I'm sort of wrestling with these questions myself. I'm going to post some pictures of my Hoya windows as I try to squeeze them in some time today. I have very little room left and I still have 30 or so cuttings that are rooting at my work place. I've started experimenting with artificial lighting, but am toying with the idea of building an attached greenhouse. It is a real puzzler to me where to put all the plants.
Doug
This H. cv. Iris Marie is a case in point. It is taking up most of my window. What does one do when they have 75 or a 100 of these?
You could send them to Canada...they would love it here :)))
What a beautifully grown Hoya....
Doug, your picture actually makes me like that hoya!! I always think that I am full, then I just scoot stuff around, shove them closer together, and RELAX.
The relaxing part could be considered my main problem though, as Bryan thinks I am too relaxed, and the kids are often caught parenting me!
I did have a bit of anxiety when I opened the latest box though. I was only supposed to get 4 cuttings from the person I traded with, and ended up with something like 16 or 18 - I don't have the monster list in front of me right now. My hoyas are a mix of cuttings and medium to large plants, and very few are as big as your cummingiana and c.v. Iris Marie. I will add hooks, and hope for the best though.
No plans for a green house, at least not year round, it is WAY too cold here. Look at it this way, Mel moves her entire jungle every year, twice. Just packing more stuff in should be easy compared to that. HA!
S
Doug - that is one beautiful plant! How long have you had it? Has it bloomed for you
Sara - whatcha get? They look awesome!!!
Karen
This message was edited Sep 25, 2007 7:35 AM
Karen,
The plant is 4 years old, but never really took off until this year when it increased in size three fold. It has never bloomed for me, and at this point I'm thinking it never will. I had it outside in my small 6X8 seasonal greenhouse over the summer and it still did not bloom. Sara, I'm going to try to take your advice and just relax. It does not come easy to me; I'm kind of high strung!
Doug
That Iris Marie is amazing. I have also had one for 3 years, but it is no where NEAR that size. I still have it growing in it's little 4.5 white pot.
I think that one will bloom for sure. Probably next year. It obviously has spent all it's energy growing the huge PLANT.
As promised, I'm posting a few pictures of how I've squeezed some of my Hoyas in to my house. I'm particularly happy with this set up. This is a bathroom window with H. macgillivrai in the foreground with a T-5 fluorescent mounted vertically which does a nice job of side lighting the plant. In the background are various small Hoya's on shelves I installed in the window.
My mudroom with some Hoyas. I insulated this room during the summer in hopes of keeping plant in there year round.
One of three living room windows that are usable for plants. I don't know if anyone has noticed, but I've installed closet maid standards on most of my windows, which allows you to mount as many shelves as you want and they are infinitely adjustable. You can also hang small baskets from them.
Living Room window number 2.
I really like your setup......may I ask where you got those cute little brown hanging pots??
Short bedroom window partially filled with Hoyas, light fixtures on the ceiling for supplemental light. I had to build a interior window box to ensure that the cats wouldn't jump up and know a plant on to the floor.
The little hanging pots come from Logees. They are about a dollar a piece plus shipping.
Hey Doug, what are the coppery looking plant supports in your living room 1 window photo made of?
This is my last window shot. Once you have seen one window, you've probably seen them all and I don't want to bore people. Notice the lacunosa, See how it floats in the air with no means of support. That is a long story, but some day I will tell it.
Mark,
The coppery supports are copper refrigerator tubing. I stole the idea from Mel and David. It comes in 10 foot rolls for about $7.50. You can make three trellises from one roll if they're small like mine. I bought a tubing bender to help shape them. The bender is $11.00 and is really easy and fun to use.
Doug
This message was edited Sep 25, 2007 2:51 PM
Doug,
You have really done a great job utilizing your space! What a beautiful set-up.
Thanks so much for sharing!
Gabi
Ah Doug, the suspense - please tell about the lacunosa!
I am terribly jealous about the fact that you are allowed to "rig" whatever you need to for your hoyas. My "rigging" is limited to ceiling hooks only, and even then I must sneak a bit. I do love your window, and you are mistaken, one window is not the same as the rest, as I enjoy looking at each individual plant in the windows. :)
I think that as good a job as you do with your plants, and their placements, you should simply not worry about numbers, and just go with the flow. Continue adding plants that you want, until you simply can't anymore. Just ask Ann, that will never happen. You have a tub and shower right? HeeeeHeeee.
S
Gabbi and everyone thanks for the compliments. It sure is a fun and positively addicting hobby! I don't know if it has gone too far though when you start puting mylar on the walls and hanging lights everywhere like this room waiting to receive more Hoyas.
Doug
LOL Doug!! Mylar on the walls. You win miss piggy's (or is it mskitty) oink contest. That is really funny, your room looks like a big helium balloon.
Seriously though, WHERE did you get rolls of mylar? I am fairly positive that I would not be allowed to hang that, but inquiring minds and all of that.
Sara
Sara,
Unfortunately, when I get into a hobby, I get into it. I guess it's called being obsessive. It is a disease. I wish I could be like other "normal" people that could have one or two plants and be happy. I have to have as many as I can get. It doesn't just apply to plants, it leaks over into many other areas of my life as well. I was in the "aquarium hobby" for 15 years ( I still have one 180 gallon tank in operation, which weighs around 1,800 lbs). Every square foot of our house at the time had a tank in it, to the tune of 35 tanks, it actually made the floor start sinking because of the extreme weight. So I've only just begun, so to speak, with the Hoya hobby. The mylar is available in rolls at any hydroponic dealer. The stuff is mostly used to cover "grow rooms" and we all know what most people are growing in those things and its not Hoyas!I bought this roll online at HTG Supply along with the light fixtures.
Doug
Really nice setup, Doug! I enjoyed seeing pictures of your plants - love the copper trellises!
Karen
OMG.... to heck with diamonds...I would MARRY a man that would set up a room like that for future hoyas. I love it. Also loved all your windows.
What kind of lights are those above that table? Are there 4 bulbs in them?
Marcy
LOL Marcy, Doug could weave a mylar ring for you - it's pretty shiny too! Hee Hee.
Doug, I have an aquarium too, not nearly as big as yours though. I always worry about weight too, and mine is only 75 gallons. I am just picturing your house sinking a few feet every few years. That would have to be seriously hard on resale. :) I have read that it weighs 10 pounds per gallon, and then you add in the gravel and any rocks as well as the stand too.
LOL...at Dougs talking about what they are "growing in those rooms". When I go to the hydroponics store to buy that special Fox Farms soil, there is a sign on the counter that says something like "DO NOT ASK US what is the soil for "pot growing", as we will not sell to anyone who asks about this type of culture." Ha Ha
And when I google the name of the soil mix, I get all kinds of links to sites for growing ...ah....Mary Jane. Ha
Can you just see the raid on my house & the stunned look on their faces when they see just a mass of hoyas. Ha Ha.
Marcy
OH MY GAWD!!!!! I wanna wrap my bedroom in mylar!! Where do you get that stuff?
Please Doug, tell me where to get the mylar - my room is very light but if I put that on my end walls I think I could actually increase the Hoya square footage. Although Sara said that might be as bad as wrapping myself in saran-wrap ... That mylar room is the bomb!!! I love your windows too.
By the way, Doug, you have not even begun to tap your space - so relax and buy some more! With all the greenery and shiny material on your house, the cops'll just think you're grower or a cooker (LOL).
:-)
Ann
LOL, Marcy!!!
Speaking of ideas (not as awesome as mylar!!!) - here's my contribution to all hallows eve (my favorite night of the year).
I love it!! I looked at the reflections on your walls Doug, from the mylar, and it almost looks the way water does when light hits it the right way. I am stunned at all of the different things I learn on this forum. Thank you tons for sharing your growing methods...you really have me thinking.
I wasn't able to finish my sentence asking if I could hang some mylar on our walls before I was met with a resounding "NO". Do you suppose you could have your wife talk to my husband about being a bit more flexible with this compulsion we all seem to share?
To answer your earlier question Doug, no, our house isn't huge - about 1800 sq. feet on each floor, but I only grow on the main floors. The basement is known as the death cell - where plants go to die (not hoyas though). I am really lucky that we do have very large picture windows in every room, and I just pack them full. I start with the floors, add shelves, and then in go the ceiling hooks, and the hanging begins until there is literally a green curtain in place. I just use every area with a light source that I can, and even hang on walls across from windows. If it will grow in a space, I use it.
Boy, I really think I could get some mileage out of that shiny mylar though.
Cheers,
Sara
Sara,
Your house sounds like the most wonderful place to grow Hoyas. Both floors of my house added together only total 1500 square feet so you have much more room. It sounds like your room for expansion is almost limitless. I would kill for some picture windows.
Ann, l love your Halloween Hoya - perfect for the season! Marcy, the lights in the "Mylar Room" have four bulbs in each at 54W per bulb for a total of 416W. The other lights in the room have three bulbs per fixture at 32W per bulb for a total of 192W.
I loved all the good natured kidding about the "Mylar Room." I often wonder what it would be like to be married to someone who would be into your hobby as much as you are. It might not necessarily be a good thing. Instead of having one room covered in mylar, the entire house including the ceilings could be wrapped. Holes could be chopped willy-nilly into the house through load-bearing walls to throw in huge picture windows. Holes would also be chainsawed through the roof for many skylights. As a matter of fact, why not tear the entire roof off and cover whats left with polyethylene. After a while, the entire thing might just fall in on you.
I guess it is good that opposites attract. My wife's attitude could best be described as benevolent resignation. She is pretty great! There are not many people that would put up with all of my hobbies over the years. I can't tell you how many times I flooded our old house with aquariums that would run over when I would forget that I was filling them.
Anyway, there are sure a great bunch of people on this forum, and I'm very happy that I've found them. It is great to be able to discuss a passion like growing hoyas with like minded individuals. Without forums like this one, there are really no outlets for discussion, because I seldom or never run into people who enjoy the things that I do.
Doug
Doug, I'm actually not kidding! I am really thinking I could put the mylar on the ceiling of my bay window and as a sort of "table-cloth" on the table so that there is reflection on three sides of the hoyas. I also think I could use it in the bathroom. I have a south facing window and the bathroom is painted white, but the light is dramatically lower about three feet in from the window, so I think that if I put the mylar on the walls on either side of the window (up to about 4 feet in) that might be enough reflection to allow another layer of hoyas in that area. Do you get it mail order or is there a hydroponic store in your area?
Ann
Ann,
I found this source for mylar. I have not ordered from this business, so i cannot vouch for them. Perhaps Doug will be familar with the company since it is located in the New England area (Southampton, MA).
http://www.nehydro.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=8
Shirley
Ann,
The mylar can be purchased through the internet or direct if you have a "head shop" or hydroponics supply shop in town. There are even vendors on eBay with it. Typically it comes in 1 and 2 mil thicknesses. The thinner it is, the easier it will tear. It can be cleaned (lightly wiped down with mild detergent) pretty well but again, the thinner it is, the more you have to worry about ruining it. They make some heavy duty stuff that can be used as a sort of drapery or curtain, but the thin stuff like Doug used is meant to be 'stuck' to a solid surface (use tape or glue stick or similar). Make sure to buy the aluminum or metalic reflective surface vs. the white. These tend to offer up to 95 +/- % reflective quality vs. the white which offers 85 % +/-.
Rolls come in all sorts of widths and lengths. And prices vary greatly depending on the sources. Shop around a little.
It can 'crinkle' slightly but shouldn't be as bad as aluminum foil. The more wrinkled it gets the more it creates what are referred to as "hot spots". These creased areas will cause more or less light to be directed to particular areas and you won't get even light distribution. So... don't sit on the roll when you get it and take care not to wrinkle it too badly when applying it :)
What color are the walls in your house? You could always paint every surface in your house a flat white to increase light reflection. LOL Is that going overboard? Darker colors tend to absorb the light and don't reflect as well.
-Andrew