Hoya's Beautiful Star Shaped Flowers
By Jos Van Hage
Saturday, November 22, 2008 03:44 AM
A beautiful vining houseplant is the Hoya or Wax plant.
This easy to grow plant has thick waxy leaves and clusters of beautiful star shaped, waxy, flowers that are very fragrant. It is fast growing and can grow up to 15 feet long, so it can be either a hanging plant or a trailing plant. You can also grow them on a circular trellis and wind the stems along the trellis so that it does not take up as much space.
Hoyas like to be grown in bright, indirect light such as an east, west or south facing window. They require average humidity but the foliage (when the plant is not in bloom) can be misted with water if the humidity is low. During the spring and summer when the plant is growing or when it is blooming a hoya should be kept moist but over the winter months ease up on the watering allowing the soil to become dry between waterings. You will be able to tell if it becomes too dry because the leaves will become wrinkled. Fertilize during the growing season every 4 weeks and over the winter months once every 10-12 weeks. Hoyas do well in an average temperature of 18-20 Celsius during the day and 12-15 Celsius at night. If possible place the plant in a cooler (12-15 Celsius) location during the winter months when the plant is not growing.
A hoya plant is easy to propagate by taking stem cuttings in the spring. It will take a few years however for the plant to produce flowers. Sometimes people have difficulty in getting their hoya to bloom. A hoya plant likes to be root bound so do not repot a hoya until it is absolutely necessary. Lack of light can also prevent a hoya from blooming. Once in bud do not disturb the plant by moving it. After it has finished blooming do not remove the dead flowers because it will re-bloom on the same spurs as before and also do not prune off any leafless vine extensions. When a hoya is growing the new growth is a leafless vine and then the leaves will appear later. If you want to groom your plant you can prune it by cutting just above the last set of leaves so that you are not leaving a stump. You could use the discarded vine for a cutting if it is mature. Cuttings should be cut just below where the leaves join the stem, removing the bottom leaves. Place this part in the soil and have the next set of leaves be above the soil. You only want one set of leaves above the soil so clip the cutting just above the second set of leaves.
Hoyas are a long living plant if cared for properly and do not require a lot of maintenance or care. They will give you many years of enjoyment.
-Jos
Jos Van Hage owns two Art Knapp Garden Centres in the Prince George area:
- Highway 97 North at Northwood Pulpmill Road
- Highway 16 West at Kimball Road
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