I still can’t believe that I ever managed to get this very difficult species to look this amazing especially after struggling to keep it alive for years. The secret my friends is to grow it in coconut husk and water once a week!
In the 15+ years I’ve grown this Hoya, I never once had considered growing it as a hanging plant, but I finally changed it up. Here is the result:
I really have to thank Paige who sent me a cutting of this plant a number of years ago. I have always struggled with it, but finally I have grown a beautiful specimen. Here it is just off a fresh up-potting:
Hoya benchaii is a great plant that is very similar to H. kloppenburgii. There is probably no reason to grow them both, unless you are an obsessed collector like myself. Despite my many difficulties over the years with the plant, now that I have a large specimen, it is quite striking and worth keeping. Here are the parameters to keep it happy. Grow it in coconut husk chips with a little pumice thrown in. Keep it in a clear orchid pot so watering can be more easily judged and pests discovered before too much damage is done. Keep it warm and humid, and if you are lucky it will eventually flower for you!
This is the final Hoya benchaii comparison photo and tomorrow we will wrap it up with this species.
Hoya ‘Almost Paula’ is one of my favorite hybrids that is never out of flower!
It is hard not to love the dark red color of H. sp. UT-247!
Hoya cutis-porcelana is never out of flower so it makes a lot of appearances in this blog!
Now we start a series of comparison photos between Hoya benchaii and whatever else I had blooming at the same time. Here it is paired with Hoya blashernaezii ssp. Siariae:
Finally in early December, my first set of buds opened. I really earned these flowers after struggling with this plant for six years. I neglected to say that I also had to battle root mealies on these Hoyas as they seemed particularly attracted to it. Anyhow, I finally got these flowers under my belt and now both plants have bloomed a few times since.
