The tiny plant grew steadily and finally put up a vine. It grew much the way that Hoya undulata grows in that forms many leaves at the base, before sending out that first vine. I soon wrestled with how to repot this plant without stressing it out, and avoiding the dreaded root rot!
I received Hoya sp. Kalimantan SLM-01 from Jimmy Meyer’s on North Carolina, midsummer of last year (2020) as a tiny plant rooted in a course mix in a 2 inch pot. All I knew of the plant was that it was supposed to get strange “ant-leaves” like those on Hoya darwinii, but was supposed to be much easier to grow.
After posting a video of this wonderful plant on YouTube, a viewer from Java asked me if Hoya sp. Kalimantan SLM-01 and Hoya sp. Buntok were the same Hoya. After googling Hoya sp. Buntok, there is no question that they are the same plant. Buntok is in Kalimantan, Indonesia and is apparently where this plant was first discovered.
I love this Hoya and we will spend the next week or so talking about it!
I just wanted to share these photos of the retirement gift that my co-workers at the Library commissioned out of stained glass for me. I think it was perfect with the Hoya bella flowers and books, symbolizing all my years at the library and my love of Hoyas. There is no way photos can do it justice, but here are a couple of shots.
Here is a close up of Hoya hainanensis in flower; there is no scent detectable with these blooms.
While many of my plants suffered this winter from the cool temperatures, Hoya hainanensis kept on growing very well and just flowered for the first time in quite a while. Tomorrow a close up of the flowers.
I think that if this plant could flower far quicker than the 4-5 years that it took me if I would have dealt with its root rot problem early on and restarted it from cutting. If grown properly, it is a stunning Hoya with large butterscotch scented blooms as a bonus. I give this plant a very high recommendation for all growers and hope to see it made more widely available.
Hoya anncajanoae is in the Acanthostemma Section of Hoyas and has pretty large flowers for that section. It also has the fragrant caramel scented flowers of the type, and I found it to be a heavy nectar dripper.
Hoya anncajanoae is endemic to to Luzon Island in the Philippines and was named after its discoverer, Ann O. Cajano, a technician at the Botanical Herbarium and Museum of Natural History, UPLB College, Leguna. It was published by Dale Kloppenburg and Simeona V. Siar in 2008.
