Hoya alagensis not only started to grow well, but soon was growing almost too quickly to keep it in check. It could easily grow 4-6 inches a day, and it began to put on peduncles until I had more than a dozen on the plant, but it never would bud up. I would check it every day and there was never any sign until recently I discovered a set of giant buds nearly ready to open that were hiding in plain site at the soil line.

The big problem with the plant was that the leaves were always chlorotic and yellowish in color which would drive me nuts. It also did not grow well with a pattern that was always stop and start. Finally last year I stopped using reverse osmosis water and started using straight tap water; almost overnight the leaves starting improving, and all new growth started coming nice and dark green.

I received this new clone of Hoya alagensis from Jimmy Myers of North Carolina back in the summer of 2020. The cutting rooted quickly but never grew well for me. Last summer it looked so bad that I almost threw it out. Tomorrow I will tell you what completely turned this plant around.

I hope that I am not speaking to soon here, but for the first-time ever I have a couple of buds on Hoya hamiltoniorum. If this plant manages to bring these buds to term, I will have a lot more to say about this species down the road. The buds are not very impressive, but it is a start on a Hoya that has not really liked me all that much.

This Hoya was down to 2 sickly looking leaves last fall when I treated it with hydrogen peroxide and managed to bring it back to a degree. Now it has 4 leaves, but it is far from thriving. It did however just put on a nice set of buds, and let us hope that it won’t be the last set of flowers that I ever get from this plant. This species does not put on roots easily and that is why I have been loathe to take a cutting and try to restart it.

Hoya imperialis does not grow nearly as well for me any longer and I have no real idea as to why. I have difficulty getting those really dark green leaves that I used to have without thinking about it. I suspect it is the lighting that I have moved to does not suit it like the old T-5 fluorescents. Anyhow I did just get this one to flower at a little over one year of age.

This is supposed to be a new clone of Hoya alagensis that is covered in peduncles, but never seem to bud up. I look at this plant every day looking for signs that it might bud up, but am always disappointed. This morning I had to move a few plants and when I stepped back I saw these massive buds almost ready to open. I could not believe it as I had this plant out 2 weeks ago to flush the soil and never saw them. Totally weird and totally cool, they are a gift from the plant gods I guess!

The flowers only last a day, but what they lack in longevity, they make up for in shear quantity of floral displays.

I came really close to losing this one, but it is back in the fold, growing well and just flowered this morning.

I left my tent for a second this morning and when I went back inside to grab something, I had a cat sunning himself under the grow light!