Hoya, or wax ivy, is an evergreen representative of the subfamily Goby. It can grow in the form of a bush or creeper. Now there are about two hundred species of this plant. The homeland of Hoya is the tropics of Asia and Polynesia, as well as Australia. If the hoya is presented in the form of a liana, then it can often be found in rare forests, where it finds a good tree for itself or on a rock, which it uses as a support.
In this article, we will try to consider as much as possible all the features of this plant and get acquainted with the photo of the hoya.
Description
If we talk about the hoya, which grows in the wild, then its vine can reach ten meters. On young purple-brown shoots, leaves are almost completely absent, but over time, they begin to appear along with aerial roots. Simultaneously with this process, the shoots acquire a green hue, and later begin to lignify. Hoya leaves are rather large and fleshy. At a young age they are very shiny, but getting older, acquire a matte shade. The shape of the leaf plate is round, slightly pointed to the apex. The flowers of the plant are not too large - only two centimeters in diameter. They are star-shaped and collected in beautiful umbrellas. Most often, the flowers have a pink or white hue. The imperial hoya, whose flowers can reach a diameter of eight centimeters, is significantly different from its counterparts. They have a pronounced aroma and are very attracted by insects.
If you want to grow hoya at home, then for normal flowering it needs a lot of sun. Modern plants have become quite domestic, and even in the summer period they do not need to be carried out to fresh air.
Species and varieties
In a short period, breeders have bred a lot of new varieties of hoya, while before only Hoya Bella and Hoya Karnosa stood out.
First of all, I would like to talk about the most common hoya, which is quite common. So, the flower of the fleshy hoya is an evergreen plant that necessarily needs support for normal growth, since its lashes reach a length of six meters. Beautiful flowers of a white hue with a pink center gather in a socket. They exude an incredible aroma that you want to inhale constantly. The leaves are not too large, matte, but very hard and fleshy.
Hoya is beautiful. This is a bush with fairly long branches, which are covered with small leaves densely located on the shoots. The beautiful Hoya has incredibly beautiful flowers, it seems that each of them was made to order. Small white stars have a beautiful purple crown in the center.
Hoya multiflora. A very beautiful plant that has small yellowish flowers collected in beautiful inflorescences. They have very narrow petals and an unusual crown in the middle.
Hoya Lacunose. This is a climbing plant, whose shoots grow in a dense cascade. Each of them is covered with dark green leaves that look like a rhombus. Flowers collected in elegant umbrellas look like fleecy corollas and an unusual yellow center.
Hoya variegated. This is a vine that grows rather slowly. Her shoots are strewn with colorful leaves. And during flowering, it pleases not only with the beauty of flowers, but also with a wonderful aroma.
Hoya is linear. On the shoots of this plant you can find many narrow linear leaves that can even be confused with needles. She also has unusual flowers that have an amazing gray-green hue and an incredible aroma. Young lashes differ in that they are almost completely white. Flowers gather in umbrellas of approximately twenty pieces.
These are not all types of hoya, however, the presented ones are most widespread.
Care Rules
It is difficult to give general recommendations for caring for hoya at home, since each plant requires special attention and care tips, respectively, are different. This is due to the fact that different varieties were found in different corners of the earth, which means they have their own special preferences. However, there is one rule that is suitable for each type of hoya without exception - waterlogging of the soil should not be allowed. Indeed, in this case, liquid mud forms in the roots, which entails serious consequences.
So, you can divide all the plants into conditional groups, so that it is easier to decide which type of hoya to choose for yourself, so that caring for it does not cause much trouble.
- The meaty hoya will feel great on the windows that face the south, as she is in dire need of sunlight. Hoya can be watered only when the top layer of the earth is completely dry. However, if you choose a southern plant, then its soil should be constantly moist, this is a feature of the species.
- For a multi-flowered hoya, you can choose any window except the south one, since it does not tolerate direct sunlight. And its soil must be constantly moistened. The same irrigation rules for linear hoya, however, you need to put it in a sunny place.
In the summer, any hoya will feel fine when the air temperature in the room is not higher than twenty-five degrees and not lower than eighteen, but in winter, the temperature should not drop to more than ten degrees. But if possible, you should try to keep it at around fifteen, to be completely sure that the plant feels comfortable.
If you grow up Hoya Bella, home care has one peculiarity - it has almost no rest period. The only thing is, when daylight becomes shorter, the hoya can slow down its growth. During this period, it is recommended to slightly reduce watering and not to fertilize: the flower should rest a bit. However, if you can provide the plant with additional lighting, then most likely this moment will be completely avoided. However, when growing hoya bell, home care requires constant heat in the room, otherwise the plant will simply begin to shed its beautiful leaves.
Fertilizers and fertilizing
In hoya, the features of care are not too different from other plants, however, there are still some nuances. For example, fertilizers must be remembered, because this is a very important point in growing plants.
If we talk about wildlife, then different types of hoya have their homeland, where they have a special soil and growing conditions, so at home you have to adapt to the preferences of the plant. Each variety needs different fertilizers. The general rule for everyone is that each hoya requires fertilizer for succulent plants. Since, based on the observations of gardeners, it is on this group of fertilizing that almost every species reacts equally positively. And those gardeners who will not be lazy and periodically begin to transplant the plant in a new pot with updated soil, will not feed the plant at all.
Transfer
Every spring, it is necessary to transplant young plants. As for older individuals, their transplantation can be done once every three years, but only if there is an urgent need for it. Hoya does not need a big pot, but he must be new. Do not use dishes in which some other plant had already grown. And remember that even a pot you just purchased should be washed well using soap, and the substrate in which you plan to place the plants must be sterilized.
It is better to choose neutral soil for growing hoya, although the use of slightly acidic soil is allowed. But it is advisable to independently engage in the preparation of the substrate. For this you need to mix:
- one part of sheet land;
- one part of humus;
- two parts of clay-sod land.
Some gardeners, in order not to spend time and money on preparing a substrate, simply acquire land for orchids in the store, and some even use ordinary garden soil. Here a lot depends on which variety you have chosen. During the transplant, be sure to cover the bottom of the pot with a drainage layer. Hoya is transplanted into a new pot with an old earthen lump.
Seed propagation
Growing hoya from seeds is not so simple, if only because it is quite difficult to get the seeds of this plant. But if luck smiled at you and you found them, you will have to do everything to ensure that this rare planting material is not wasted.
For germination, only fully ripened and dried seeds can be used. And most importantly, they can be planted only in the year when they were collected. For planting, an earthen mixture is used, which is mixed with chopped sphagnum moss. This is surprising, but after a week you can see the first shoots. During this period, the main thing is to ensure that the substrate does not dry out, but is not too wet. It must be constantly maintained in one state.
The container with seedlings should be in a place where there will be a lot of sunlight, but without direct sunlight. And also indoors it is necessary to maintain heat. There is a small risk of fungal diseases. For prevention, it is recommended to regularly spray the seedlings with a Bordeaux mixture or with any other preparation that incorporates copper. After about three months, the seedlings will grow stronger and they will already have a few real leaves. During this period, you can safely dive and plant them in personal pots. As you can see, growing hoya from seeds is not difficult. The main difficulty is that the seeds are almost impossible to find in the free market, and only a few manage to get them from a home plant.
Cuttings
If you want to be sure that you get a new hoya plant, it is best to choose this method. Since the cuttings of the hoya root quite quickly and without any difficulties. You do not need to select too long cuttings, the main thing is that there are two and nodes and several pairs of leaves on the shoot.
There are two ways to root the cuttings. You can do it in water. To do this, select the container where you place the cuttings and wrap it with foil. You need to leave only a few holes, where you then insert the cuttings. Only the topmost pair of leaves should be left on them, and everything else is pushed through the foil so that the lowest node is necessarily in the water. Before this, it is recommended to treat the lower part of the slices with a special solution that stimulates root growth.
Place dishes with cuttings in a room with high humidity and a temperature of at least twenty-two degrees. To achieve high humidity, you can put a plastic bag directly on the cuttings, but in such a way that it does not block the air. Under correctly created conditions, the roots appear within two weeks. It is necessary to monitor this process, since it is better to transplant while the root system is at an early stage. For later the cuttings become too fragile and there is a big risk of damaging them.
The second method of rooting is carried out directly in the substrate.
First of all, the gardener must choose a soil through which all excess fluid would immediately flow. As in the previous method, before planting the cuttings, the lower cut must be treated with a stimulating drug so that rooting is quick and easy. The soil and the pot must undergo mandatory sterilization to exclude the appearance of various diseases and pests. The shank is deepened so that the bottom node is completely underground. If you choose a room with low humidity, it is recommended to wear a transparent bag on the cuttings, so that they feel comfortable. Within two or three weeks you will notice that changes are taking place on the cuttings - this is a clear sign that the rooting was successful.
Some order cuttings in online stores and due to the long transportation, they can dry out. In this case, you should leave them in sweet water for several hours so that the shoots can restore their natural moisture.
Is it possible to grow from a leaf?
Growing leaf hoya is rarely successful, but if you are a patient person, then why not give it a try. A healthy leaf is simply torn off the plant and placed in light soil. The roots on it appear quite quickly, but then for some reason, the plant does not go into growth.
But some scientists tackled this issue and came to the conclusion that it is possible to grow hoya from a leaf only if the leaf was ripped from a wild plant.
So, there are some tips, taking advantage of which, you have a chance to grow a beautiful plant from a leaf:
- It is better to use chemicals that stimulate cell growth in hoya leaflets.
- To use such drugs, it is recommended to use a pipette. Only with its help will you be able to precisely drip one drop into the center of the leaflet, from where the liquid will be evenly distributed further.
- For rooting, choose leaves with at least small petioles on them.
- You can plant a rooted leaf only in loose soil and be sure to forty-five degrees at an angle. Otherwise, a positive result can not be expected.
Main enemies
In general, a hoya rarely suffers from any diseases or becomes an object of attention for insects. However, if you plant it in the wrong place or do not provide proper care, there is a risk that a scab, a red spider mite or aphids will settle on the plant. Fighting them is quite simple, just treat the plant with Actellic, in case of emergency you can carry out several treatments. If you grow species that have thick and coarse leaves, you will have to wipe them with swabs that are pre-moistened with alcohol. In addition, nematodes can disturb the hoyu. At the beginning of the article, it was already said that the pot and soil must undergo mandatory sterilization. This is necessary so that these pests do not appear.
Hoya refuses to bloom
There are several reasons why flowers may not be available in the hoya:
- in winter, the plant was in a too warm room;
- Hoya received too many top dressings;
- perhaps, during the pruning, the gardener overdid it and removed too many shoots or greatly reduced their length;
- may just miss the sunlight.
How to fix your mistakes and enjoy the beautiful flowering? If you kept the plant in a too warm room, then next winter it is better to place it on the balcony or a glazed loggia, so that the flower can just relax and gain strength during the winter period. Also, watering should be reduced at this time and fertilizers should not be applied. And in the spring, you can safely place the plant on a bright window and resume good watering, make all the necessary nutrition. And you still need to control such a question as the size of the pot. Because if it is too large, it can also cause discomfort to the plant. The ideal diameter of the pot for an adult plant should not exceed twenty centimeters.
The gardener may also encounter a problem such as yellowing of leaves. This happens in two cases: if the hoya has too little light or if it is in a too hot room. You can solve the problem only if you follow all the recommendations regarding plant care.
Hoya: signs and superstitions for the home
Unfortunately, despite the fact that we are all modern people, we cannot abandon the habit of believing in signs and superstitions. This is the reason that few people decide to grow hoyu (photo presented in the article) at home. What is the reason for this? Any signs appeared long before our birth and it’s difficult to say exactly about the reasons, so everyone decides for himself whether it is worth believing such statements.
Concerning the Hoya, signs and superstitions for the house promise to leave the spouse from the house, and wax ivy is able to expel all adult sons from the parental home. This superstition has not lost its popularity to this day.
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If we consider hoya from a biological point of view, it has long been established that it does not emit any toxins and is an absolutely safe plant in order to keep it in a room where people are constantly located. This plant belongs to the decorative and it can be planted not only in the office, but also at home.
The only fear is aroma, but not because it is poisonous. It’s just that some species have a too spicy smell and if you place the pot with the plant in a small room, then the aroma can get bored, or cause dizziness. But the smell of hoya should be wary only of those people who suffer from allergies.
Therefore, before growing such a plant, it is better to consult an allergist to exclude the possibility of an undesirable reaction.
Conclusion
Many consider hoya a moody plant, and indeed they are afraid to keep it at home because of the many signs and superstitions. But if you study all the features of flower care, you can see that there are no difficulties. The plant reproduces especially easily. Although the rest does not require special attention. The main thing is to place the pot with the hoya in a lighted and warm room, where she will feel as comfortable as possible and then she will surely please you with her flowering and aroma.