Not a question as such, but I've been busy following the arrival of my Hoya order from David Liddle. So this is what I've been doing, hoping that it'll make some packed-in-tight-as-sardines-in-a-box Hoyas into happy Hoyas enjoying an open airy natural environment.
They were all well rooted cuttings in a light organic/perlite mix. So I replicated this mix (without any fertilizer) as much as I could and potted up the plants in 120mm plastic pots. Watered them in then left them a couple of days.
Meantime, made up wire hoops with eyelets that the pots would sit in and hang from. At the same time checked out a spot in the garden sheltered from the prevailing (when they arrive) winds. Also in filtered sunlight early and very late in the day, but good light the rest of the day.
The best spot was under a Ficus benjamini, so I hung the pots from one branch about 2 metres above and parallel to the ground. Then I ran an irrigation line above them with staked drippers in the pots. The staked drippers should stay put better than hanging ones.
Then I attached all the pots to a long piece of bamboo so that when it does get windy they won't blow around so much and not hit one another. They're high enough to not get damaged by wallabies or jungle fowl, but possums could be a problem (the only solution to possums is keeping your fingers crossed).
Then came the moment and I turned the irrigation on. Set the drippers to a slow trickle. Water soon ran through the pots so big tick for potting medium drainage. Now I just have to wait for them all to settle in.
It's amazing just how much a little job like that takes, especially when you're designing and planning as you go. And unfortunately no photos at this stage, my camera is in for repairs for the next several weeks.
Setting up Hoyas
Tropic,
I've seen from Aroids what a great job you do
on your projects.
I bet it's great! Can't wait to see a pic when they
are settled and really growing.
Wow, What a time consuming job! It really sounds amazing and I too look forward to seeing photo's of that arrangement!
Whew, I think I need a nap after just reading about all that work! Sure glad I don't have to worry about wallabies and jungle fowl getting into my plants. We do have squirrels, possum and raccoons but the only one that causes problems is the squirrels, which is my fault since I feed songbirds, which attracts the squirrels! Last year I had my few (@24) orchids hanging in a tree in the backyard and those critters tore the orchids apart ... I was finding bits and pieces all over the ground, and I read that some orchids are edible so I guess the squirrels had a nice snack of my plants. I also was finding labels, tags and moss scattered about the yard. A couple of orchids even went missing from their baskets entirely, so I figured some squirrel nest in the trees must be decorated with pretty blooms!
Oh, Lin;
It doesn't matter if you feed birds or not - you'll have squirrels.
They dig up any and everything.
I planted a 1 gallon shrub and later found it on my walkway!
My uncle got so tired of them, he began shooting them (sorry).
I told him that it only eases the overpopulation and the neighboring
pop. just moves into the open space. After 80 something - he gave up.
LOL, a guy who teaches at the college with my husband lives out in the country and he hates squirrels, and shoots them! I was sooo shocked when I heard him say that. His wife gets mad at him for killing them. I don't know the guy well but every time I see him, I call him the squirrel murderer! ^_^ I even recently bought a little resin squirrel at K-Mart and told my husband I want him to take it and sit it on the guy's desk when he's not around, I couldn't resist! It saddens me to hear of someone killing an animal, but I do know in some instances it's necessary. I am so afraid of snakes and wouldn't kill one unless I knew it was poisonous (which last year we had two coral snakes in the yard!) I have a riding mower and ran over a snake a few years ago and it bothered me ... I felt so bad because usually I can see them scurrying through the lawn and I stop until they are in the shrubbery or a flower bed and out of way of the mower.
Lin! you just reminded me of a story. Years ago when DM and DB lived in their own home my DB called all upset...he was sure he'd run over a bird with the lawnmower! He had me drive down there (15min.) and look. He was all upset and shaking...turns out he'd run over a milkweed pod!! I have to admit though at first glance those fluffy seeds sure looked like feathers!!
LOL, Lee Anne! That is the cutest story, Love it! I can just imagine how upset he was, thinking he had mowed down a bird! I was the same way when I ran over the snake! It freaked me out with the noise and pieces of snake shooting out every which way from under the mower!
My father had his last posting with the AG Service on Kangaroo Island in the early 1970s, and then retired there. I spent a lot of my school holidays over there and dad ran over a red-bellied Peninsula tiger snake in the ute one day. He had to pull up, go back and finish it off - I was very upset at the time (I was about 10 or 11 and adored lizards and snakes - still do).
The kicker in the story is that a year or so later I went on a tourism bus trip up the other end of the Island and had to sit next to an opinionated mainlander tourist who insisted that "there were NO snakes on Kangaroo Island". I related this story to her but still couldn't convince her she was wrong. Boy did I have a laugh - What a noong!
I have just read this back, and realised that it probably needs footnotes for non Australians. So here you go.
AG Service: my Dad (Bob Clare) gets a few mentions here: http://www.pir.sa.gov.au/aghistory/home/the_department/life_stories/an_autobiographical_account
Kangaroo Island: http://www.southaustralianhistory.com.au/ki.htm
red-bellied Peninsula tiger snake: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiger_snake
ute (the "national vehicle"): http://www.beaututes.com/gallery/
mainlander: anyone not born on Kangaroo Island!
noong (or sometimes, nong): Annoying idiot - see: http://www.slangsite.com/slang/N.html
TTFN, KK.
Edited to fix spelling error.
This message was edited Jun 8, 2009 7:27 AM
KK: Thanks so much for those links! I'm going back in a few minutes to finish reading about Kangaroo Island ... very interesting!
EEK ... Snakes do scare me!
Oh ... and after reading a few of those great definitions, some would probably consider me a Nancy Neuter. ^_^ I'm getting old and set in my ways and sometimes don't like trying new things, LOL.
Checked on my new Hoyas today (I'm away at work for a fortnight and only got back today). The photo shows the way they were set up for while I'm away. It's our dry season and the irrigation comes on automatically twice a day, morning and evening. The drippers were turned down very low because it's the dormant period for these Hoyas, but at the same time I can't let them dry out completely.
As luck would have it while I was away we had what we call a "freeze" here, the minimum temperature got down to 10C one morning, which is about the absolute lowest we can get. That wasn't the real worry though. This cold air coming through is very dry and that isn't helpful. The nearest official weather station is about 5 kms from my place, but out on the flats whereas I'm back on a slight slope. My minimum temps are often a couple of degrees warmer than the weather station. But the humidity is much the same, and that morning it got down to about 13%.
Needless to say I was anxious to get home to see what effect this had on the Hoyas. However, there was no apparent problem with any of them. Most looked exactly the same as when I first potted them up after they arrived 2 weeks ago. But the H. ciliata (ILM 0390) had put on a burst of growth, a new shoot of about 30mm. The cv Gold Star (IML 0143) has a new fine shoot of about 5mm. The rest aren't showing any signs of either progress or deterioration. Still, it's only 2 weeks so far.
I turned off the drippers as being home for the next few days I can do manual watering if needed. The soil in the pots is damp but not wet. But I did mix in a lot of perlite into it to make it drain well.
This is the H. ciliata (IML 0390) showing the new shoot.
Tropic, they look great.
10 C is not that bad, especially if that's as bad as it
can get!
Most hoyas are not going to complain about that.
Eriostemmas maybe, some.
Funnily, I understand the ciliata and the cv Gold Star are Eriostemmas. Two of the others are as well: aff. sussuela (IML 0010) and aff. sussuela (IML 0175). Can't wait for the wet season to roll in and for all these Hoyas to burst into rampant growth and flowers. Always an optimist! :O)
Yes, but 10C is just not that cold.
They may sulk but that is about all.
True Alison, I'm hoping that'll be the limit of any 'bad behaviour'. During today I noticed a couple of others had started putting on a (tiny) bit of growth.
Your climate sounds just about ideal to me Tropic.
I enjoyed your photos of the aroids you found and the tour
of the orchid house in Port Moresby.
You are fortunate in many ways: climate, travel, and
nearness to lots of great destinations.
Alison, I think as gardeners we tend to make a rod for our backs, aways wanting what doesn't seem to want to grow where we are. There's too much grass greener than ours over the other side of the hill.
Weekend is drawing to a close. Have been checking Hoyas regularly (like nearly every 15 minutes) trying to prompt them into more growth. I'll be away from home for another fortnight so I've put the drippers back in the pots. They've done the last 4 days without watering but a fortnight might be too long.
I'm surprised at how fast the ciliata is growing. Seems to like winter, just hope the summer isn't going to be too much for it. This is the current stat of affairs, will see what it's like after another fortnight.
H walliniana - no indication of growth
H cv 'Gold Star' - small, fine shoot
H cumingiana - new pair of leaves, slow growth
H aff clemensiorum - no indication of growth
H sussuela 'Bamaga' - very small start of new shoot
H sp. 'Kapit Borneo' - no indication of growth
H mindorensis - no indication of growth
H megalaster - no indication of growth
H ciliata - over past 4 days added another 15 - 20mm to the 30mm growth during the past fortnight
H macgillivrayi - no indication of growth
H sussuela 'McIlwraith Range' - no indication of growth
Some with no new growth yet are slow growers....and reluctantly put it on... When spring comes for you you will be surprised at the growth!!!
Not much change over the past fortnight. Thought our winter weather moving from below average to a bit above average might prompt them into more action, but alas no. The maximums this past 2 weeks have been 34C to 35C, and the minimums 20C to 22C. I think they know it's still winter and will bide their time.
The ciliata has put a few new leaves out on the main stem and the new shoot has more than doubled.
The cumingiana has also put on more leaf growth. It seems to want to be a sprawling shrub rather than a vine.
New but very small shoots on the mindorensis is the only real change.
I hope they're not like the "watched kettle" that never boils. It'll be my fault for their slow response.
Great growing! Yes, cumingiana is a sprawler. Ted Green has his in full sun and it is almost a bush growing over a rock. I think I am going to do that to....OH MY, when it blooms! Here they call it the Coconut Hoya!
Well, I'm back home again. First thing I did was to check the Hoyas. Last time home I decided they were getting watered too much for the dry season, the automatic irrigation comes on morning and evening. Being too big a job to run a separate line to them I put in one of those battery operated timers. It's set to 72 hours, so it turns on every 3 days. The important thing was to get the timing right, it had to coincide with the time that station of the automatic irrigation program was on.
When I got back the hoyas were dry. Their 3 day cycle for watering should have been the night before but I noticed the water pressure was too low, one of the joints had sprung. After repairing that (and waiting another 3 days) it came on like clockwork. Means they get 1 watering for every 6 they used to get.
There wasn't a real lot of progress in growth but no negatives either. Weather has been up and down. Earlier on the minumums got down to about 13C (days about 30C). Then settled back to minimums 16C to max. 32c. Last few days minimums have been 19/20C to max. 34C. I guess the Hoyas will know when real growth should start.
This is the current state of affairs:
H walliniana - 2 small new leaves after weeks of nothing.
H cv 'Gold Star' - small shoot has developed into leaves
H cumingiana - keeping on growing slowly
H aff clemensiorum - still no indication of growth
H sussuela 'Bamaga' - still only small start of new shoot
H sp. 'Kapit Borneo' - still no indication of growth
H mindorensis - still no indication of growth
H megalaster - new fine shoot
H ciliata - still growing well
H macgillivrayi - still no indication of growth
H sussuela 'McIlwraith Range' - still no indication of growth
Photo: I like the leaf of H. aff clemensiorum, even if it hasn't shown any growth.
For your Australian hoyas...following their environment is the best... The others...well, looks like you have it down pat!!!!
Carol, that's what David L suggested. The plants I got were for a single monsoon (per year) hot climate. Some of what I selected David recommended against. Better that I get these (fingers crossed) growing away madly before I start stretching the limits.
That said, the pubicalyx I got a couple of years ago is supposed to be a cold grower. Yet it's growing okay here, although the leaves in the sun get baked and yellow a bit. Doesn't flower much though.
David was also horrified what I did on my first attempt to grow H australis rupicola. During the dry season I put a cutting in a pot in the shade and watered it to try and get it established. No surprises with the results.
HAHA...australis rupicola and the other one I have a tough time growing...it is so wet here!
I have some pubicalyx growing in the full sun, in the full rain and they bloom constantly...but look horrible with yellow leaves. Oh well, I just say it is the 'yellow leafed clone'.... hahaha
I'll add that to the tag, Hoya pubicalyx "Yellow leaf clone" ;O)
Some progress finally starting to show for most of the Hoyas I got from David Liddle. This is the current situation:
H walliniana - has suddenly rocketed off producing a stem of about 25 cms during the fortnight plus a shorter one. Seems to want to attach roots to the pot.
H cv 'Gold Star' - small shoot has developed into leaves and continuing steadily
H cumingiana - steady growth, not as fast as before
H aff clemensiorum - still no indication of growth
H sussuela 'Bamaga' - the new shoot from couple of weeks ago remains small
H sp. 'Kapit Borneo' - has rapidly put out umbel with largish buds now, two more small umbels (one of them tiny), but no new leaves
H mindorensis - small new shoot
H megalaster - rapidly produced large leaf and a new fine shoot (or umbel - too hard to tell yet).
H ciliata - growing more steadily now
H macgillivrayi - has produced first small shoot with a tiny leaf
H sussuela 'McIlwraith Range' - possibly starting new shoot, very small.
Biggest surprises were walliniana which seems to be trying to make up for lost time, "Kapit" which suddenly produced umbels, and megalaster which suddenly produced a large leaf.
They're still being kept fairly dry. The weather is still much the same but relative humidity is staying low longer. This is the final month of winter so temps will steadily rise. Anyway, 'touch wood', it's all still going well.
Congrats....you are a seasoned grower, now!
Thanks Carol, but I think I'll wait until I've managed a complete season before even considering "seasoned grower" status.
Congrats! From the description of the progress, it sounds like your DL cuttings are doing really great!
Thought I'd resurrect this old thread. For a couple of reasons. It's just over a year since I set these hoyas up. They started in winter and now it's back to winter. They've been out in the elements, no climate control. So they had to do the best they could themselves, except for water. They've been on automatic irrigation once every 3 days plus whatever rainfall they got.
Second reason for bringing them up again is that I nearly lost them all. Because I'm away at work a fortnight at a time if anyrhing goes wrong they're on their own, til I get back. Well, it looks like things went very wrong this last time away. When I got back this weekend they looked very dry, lots of leaves badly wilted and quite a few completely yellow/brown.
Gave them a good manual soaking a few times. The yellow/brown leaves came away easily pulling on them. Some of the growing shoots had dried off as well. Not sure what actually went wrong. Now, 3 days later, most seem to be recovering although some of the leaves still look 'skeletal' (dessicated) but green.
The one that did the best in all this was H. macgillivrayi. None of its leaves look as though anything went wrong but some (not all) of the growing shoots did wither. What did surprise was the damage to the H australis ssp tenuipes, it lost most of its leaves.
Low humidity and high day temperatures are on for another couple of months. Makes me wish I was nearer to the coast. Fingers crossed I don't get anymore 'blow-outs' like this.