Hoya microstemma was originally collected on September 14, 1909 by Rudolf Schlechter in what was originally called German New Guinea. Today it would be called Papua New Guinea; it was found on the Northeastern section of the island in the Torricelli Mountains, at about 800 meters in elevation. This particular clone of Hoya microstemma was collected by Nathalie Simonsson in 2011 in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea. Her specimen was found in the Southwest, whereas Schlechter’s specimen from1909 was found in the Northeastern part of PNG, where it has not been found again. The forest where Nathalie found her plant was scheduled to be logged, so who knows if it is still able to be found in the wild?

I received a small cutting of Hoya microstemma (NS11-145) from Julie Kennedy in May of 2024. The cutting was rooted but spent too much time stuck in USPS limbo in a distribution center in New Hampshire so it arrived in not so great shape with the roots rotted off. I managed to re-root the cutting in water, and planted it in coconut husk chips in a 3oz clear plastic cup. The plant once properly rooted was pretty straight forward. I would consider it to be a medium slow grower, but in a few months I was able to up-pot it to a clear 5oz cup and give it a little trellis. It formed its first peduncle 6 months after rooting from a cutting and began developing buds immediately.

Hoya microstemma (NS11-145) blessed me with flowers that opened on Christmas Day 2024. Supposedly the flowers smell of vanilla, this might by true if grown in a small glass terrarium, but in my large grow tent I could not detect any scent from my very tiny blooms.

I have only been growing this plant now for around 8 months or so, but I believe this plant might be best appreciated when grown in a small hanging basket with several cuttings. It grows slowly and does not twine so I would think a hanging basket would be best, and after my plant gets large enough to take a few cuttings, that is probably the direction I will head with it. Hoya microstemma (NS11-145) is a easy growing small Hoya that gets my highest recommendation. I believe with careful tending, this could be a spectacular small specimen plant after a couple of years. The flowers last for about 3 days, don’t drip nectar – a huge plus, the leaves get beautiful red tinging in high light, and there is nothing bad to say about this fine little plant. Pick one up today!