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pirate_girl

Recent EA Purchases Ailing - Help Me PLS!

pirate_girl
16 years ago

Hi Gang,

Looking for help/advise pls. for my recent purchases of H. polyneura & H. lacunosa (which I've nicknamed speckled lacunosa). I had posted abt these recently when I got them (they were both tagged EA).

I'm started to see some drying leaves on Polyneura & discolored/drying leaves on Lacunosa. On one if not both, while I left them in EA mix, I had, at the suggestion of someone here, substituted the bottom inch of mix w/ pumice.

The Lacunosa was the one I was hoping to share w/ interested parties here (3 or 4 folks expressed interest).

So how to handle the repottings, pls? Shall I remove all the mix from each, either washing or shaking it all off? These are bigger plants that I usually grow (8" baskets), so big I can only water them in the sink & by sitting them a basin. Removing all their mix is gonna be one BIG job however I do it!

I'm kinda nervous abt tacking it. Since I have a bad prior history w/ EA Hoyas am hoping for suggestions & advise as to how to best handle this job.


Of course, I have taken multiple cuttings of both as insurance, already have a small pot of Polyneura started & have water rooting cuttings going of both. Also, I've watered them (& misted) w/ VF-11, still they are looking somewhat unhappy!

Thanks for any thoughts...

Karen

Comments (30)

  • ines_99
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    you have my sympathy, I have lost all my EA plants with the exception of carnosa and linearis. I had a DS-70 that was absolutely gorgeous and healthy appearing die on me this winter. I tried both leaving my EA plants alone and I tried repotting them, neither made a difference. I really do not believe it is the EA plants themselves or even their soil - it is the fact that we buy them after they have suffered overwatering at the hands of garden center employees. Perhaps the type of soil used by EA is meant to hold water longer for reasons of upkeep at their growing facility. Then, the plants leave there and go thru the shock of a new enviroment at the store, where they also get too much water, then they go thru another enviromental change when we buy them...and so on and so forth. Carnosas seem to weather all this, but they are a tougher variety. The linearis I have was ordered for me by a garden center and I picked it up the day it was shipped to them, and I am the only person who has cared for the plant since it left the grower. So when I hear someone say they have had alot of luck with EA plants, I think they either have a tough variety or bought the plant before it was watered to death every other day by a store employee.

    One thing I noticed when repotting is that the root system in these plants is very shallow, and below the roots is alot of soil that stays wet because the plants roots are not using it. So when you water these plants, do it lightly. Don't thouroughly soak the whole pot. If you decide to repot, maybe just replace most of the soil, leaving the root ball intact. Shaking all the dirt off is probably too much of a shock and if the plant is made up of alot of little cuttings, it will fall apart on you.
    Another thing I've noticed, when these plants go they go fast, so it is smart to take cuttings. Whether to repot or not is up to you, like I said it made no difference in my case, I did it with lacunosa and it looked ok for about a month and then died anyway. The cuttings I took from these plants are all fine, and the 6" hanging pots left over from the plants that didn't make it are great to have to pot up smaller hoyas, so not all is lost!

  • gootziecat
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Karen,
    I'm sorry to hear of your dilemna. Having only one hosta, being an EA carnosa, I can't give you any advice. It came waterlogged and I've done nothing, not even repotting.
    Generally everything I get dies, but this thing seems to be thriving, at least at this time.
    Thanks to you, I took a cutting today and put it in water with a drop of VS-11 as a precautionary measure. Thank you for giving me a poke.
    I hope some one can help you or your plants decide they like their new home better.
    gootziecat

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  • bihai
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am almost afraid to speak to this issue. I am afraid if I do I may be misconstrued as trying to be some sort of a know it all, which I am not... I have a few Exotic Angel hoya plants. Probably 4, maybe 5 out of my entire collection. I have never done ANYTHING to any of them. Never repotted them, never taken cuttings of them. The lacunosa is of course new, I got that very close to when you got yours. The others are of varying ages. I know at least one is about 5 years old if not more.

    I DO water these plants EVERY day. Pretty much without fail, year round. They get fertilized probably once every week-10 days from April through November, and maybe once a month Nov-March. The only difference between my plants and (I am assuming) all of yours is that mine are hanging in a greenhouse, not in a "real" house. The temperatures are probably pretty much identical (in winter anyway) in my greenhouse to all of our houses. 70's in the day, not freezing at night. 55-60 nighttime in the winter, 65-75 nighttime in the summer. Of course in daytime in late Spring, Summer and Fall its a struggle to keep the daytime temps below 88-90.

    The only other differences between a greenhouse and a house house would be very high humidity, very high air movement from the multiple fans that run 24/7, and lots of light.

    The greater amount of light and the higher air movement in the greenhouse account for some of the plants ability to use more of the water that they are given. A plant in a house under less than ideal light and air movement conditions will need less water, but still need the humidity. The same is true for food. Houseplants need much much less food than outdoor or greenhouse plants. They simply can't utilize it in the same way.

    I grow very few houseplants year round. I have a collection of sansevieria, some house palms, a few anthuriums that I rotate in and out, a few philodendrons, a couple dracaena and a ponytail palm. I only water them once a week, because they can't utilize more water than that in my house. They only get fed once a month, and that's a weak feeding with time release nitrogen and a dose of all the necessary micronutrients and trade elements.

    I am not trying to say you need to duplicate my greenhouse conditions in your house, but perhaps you could try limiting water, limiting fertilizer and upping both humidity and air movement, using a vaporizer and an oscillating fan. If a vaporizer is impractical, you might try misting the leaves 2-3 times a day with a hand mister.

  • pirate_girl
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks all for trying; here's hoping more folks pipe up w/ suggestions. Oh Denise, where are you???

    Dear Bihai,

    I'm not one whose gonna think anything like what you're afraid of. While I see our growing conditions are quite different, I DO recognize your sharing info. in the hopes that some of it may help me, I appreciate your taking the time to do so. (Not all of us resent your having a greenhouse, pls, DO know that.)

    Well, I have watered these sparingly 'cause of my anxiety abt EA plants in the first place. Only once in maybe 10 days, & did it w/ VF-11 dilute as instructed & a couple of mistings of same.

    I had taken off the bottom saucers in the hope that would prevent these from staying soggy as EA plants often do. I usually have pretty good air movement as I always leave my windows open even in winter (I smoke), so they're usually open at least an inch, even tho' it got cold again here in NYC. Just today, I threw the windows open abt 4" just to give all the plants a nice breath of fresh air. I'm too darn lazy & busy for vaporizers or humidifiers.

    I'm off from work 'til Wed. (Passover), I may have to unpot the Polyneura just to take a look as it's the one looking worse. I've lost enough of the foliage that it's not all THAT Lush & full anymore, maybe easier to unpot. I just went back in the kitchen, plucked off anotehr 4 yellowing leaves, ackkk, it's killing me.

    Ines makes a good point abt how much soil vs. how much roots, I may just have to turn it out to look, really no other way to assess how it's draining. It could well be too great a volume of soil contributing to this demise as she suggests.

    I too have noticed that once these start declining, it's a very fast death, that's what's got me to wanting to act on it sooner than later. I've had this same experience w/ 2 large pots of Tsangii (DS-70), tho' the pots were not marked as to supplier. Once they started declining, it was a very quick death & no amount of cutting back the damaged portions helped.

    Well, cross your fingers, I'm going in for the Polyneura unpotting, I can't take the suspense. I'll report back.

    PS: Hi Gootzie,

    FYI: Tho' I water root most of my Hoyas, Carnosa will not water root for me. If you're doesn't show roots in 10 days to 2 wks or so, you may want to try another cutting or 2, leave 'em out a couple of hours & pot them directly into Hoya mix.

  • hills
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Ok, I've never had any experience with EA plants, but I've repotted both my lacunosa and polyneura recently. This is what I did.

    I took the plants out of their pots and most of the soil came away from the roots. I did break a couple of roots but the plants don't seem to mind. I didn't remove all the soil from the roots, I reckoned that would just cause more damage to the plants. I repotted them both into the smallest pot that would fit the roots. For the polyneura, I put stones in the bottom of the pot and then potted it in soil with a much higher proportion of perlite compared to my other hoyas. I'd lost a few leaves over the winter and I wanted to make sure it was well drained. The lacunosa I just repotted in my regular mix of soil, vermiculite and perlite (a bit of each, I'm not that exact!). Both plants seem to be doing well now, the polyneura I've left in the kitchen where it doesn't get that much sunlight and is cool, the lacunosa I've put on my main windowsill in dappled sunlight.
    I water them when they're dry, with weak beer fertilizer, and keep them on a pebble tray to improve humidity. I mist them when I have time...
    Hope that helps

    Hills

  • torajima
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I've had good success with EA hoyas... much better than hoyas I've ordered over the 'net, actually.

    The problem with EA plants is they've been severely mistreated. Usually, overwatered.

    When you first get them home, the trick is to let them dry out COMPLETELY before watering them again. Rip off the watering tray, hang them in a warm, sunny location, and leave them alone for a while. I've had a few hoyas that have taken 3 or 4 months to dry out completely. The growing tips may dry up and die, but that's okay... you're trying to save the roots.

    After this "treatment", you should be able to water your plants normally. I like to keep my Hoyas a bit on the dry side, so the multiflora gets watered once per week, the rest get watered every two weeks.

    This has definately worked for me... my Lacunosa and Multiflora have been blooming non-stop for over 6 months.

  • gootziecat
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Karen,

    Thanks for the tip about rooting carnosa. Since the root has only been water for a day, I may pull it out and pot it up today.

    I'm truly sorry you are having a time with your 2 EA hoyas. I think torajima is right that it is best not to water EAs for a long time. I probably didn't wait long enough on mine but time will tell. I know you've had hoyas long enough you've done all the right things so check out those roots, repot and give it a few mistings with VS-11 or superthrive. We all want to hear how it all comes out. Good luck.
    gootziecat

  • bihai
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Pirate Girl,
    its good that you keep the windows open, but IMO that's not really enough. "Fresh air" coming in through the window is great, but what you may need is constantly MOVING air. When a plant sits in a pot outdoors, it will dry out very quickly from the combined action of the heat from the sun, the wind moving air across the soil surface, and the plant being in full-steam-ahead active growth, sucking up the water to use for itself. In the enclosed space of the house, none of these things are occuring nearly as quickly as they would outdoors. If you can change even one or 2 conditions, like air movement and increased light (you have never said if you use any kind of supplemental lighting) you may solve your problems. I would try one different thing at a time after you repot, to see if there is any positive change.

    The only orchids that I keep in my house, I keep hanging in the window over my bathtub. I usually keep 4 phalaenopsis in bloom. When one goes out of bloom, I take it out to the greenhouse and mount it somewhere, and buy a new one for the bathroom. I don't buy expensive ones, usually some of the $10-15 Thai "Brother" crosses available at box stores. Its my way of getting new colors and crosses at the bargain rate. Phals do very well inside in windowsill light. In the bathroom they get the humidity they like from the shower and tub, and there is an AC vent nearby that keeps air moving.

    I'd never try to grow orchids in the other rooms of my current house. The lighting is good, air movement is good, but the humidity is not good. It could certainly be done, but it'd be too much work for a large number of plants. When we lived in our OLD house, and I had a 200 sq ft "Florida Room" (glass enclosed sun room with banks of 8x8 windows on 3 sides of the room) and I had an indoor water lily pond that measured 6 x 6, I grew most of my 300-400 orchids indoors in the winter, all winter long. There was a ceiling fan in there that I could keep on 24/7 at low speed, great light, and high humidity from the pond. I could never duplicate that in this house, but I have brought things inside for a while sometimes in winter when it freezes to our current much smaller and less well lit Florida Room. They do well with hand misting daily and there's a fan that can be run there as well.

    If your current plan of simply repotting doesn;t work, experiment around with your conditions. Add some supplemental lighting. Something as simple as a small oscillating fan set in front of a large bowl full of water (you could make it a nice Feung Shi kinda set up with a decorative ceramic bowl full of beautiful river stones) blowing over the water toward your plants may help.

  • pirate_girl
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Gootzie,

    I'd suggest you give that cutting a chance pls., don't keep changing its circumstance, maybe leave it in the water for a week, then pot it up.

    Well, my unpotting was interesting, sort of the reverse of what I expected. The Polyneura had extensive roots, they were pretty tightly packed, I suspect water wasn't penetrating the center of the rootball. Well, I went crazy, took the while dang thing apart, used a fork to comb through all the roots, combed out all the old mix which looked very peaty (a bit like sawdust) & much drier than I expected.

    So I divided it up into 2 pots & potted the larger one down from 8" to 6" & took broken off branches to water root. I have a third cup of very rooted pieces of it that I think I'll pot in the bathroom, shadier, cooler locale & see how that does.

    Hi Bihai,

    Unfortunately, my kitchen doesn't have the room for fans or supplemental lights (I've never grown w/lights, don't seem to need it, frankly have resisted lights altogether; trying to keep things simple). The pebble trays generally do the humidity trick for me, just haven't figured out how to do that w/ hanging plants (I'm new to hanging big Hoyas). I'm a but baffled why you went into that whole Orchid discussion, seems off point, but maybe you were really also discussing light & humidity??

    Hiya Denise, I got yr. EM, didn't see a post from you abt this, could you have dreamt it? Did anyone else see Denise's post here (which she thinks vanished)?

    Denise, my Multiflora is wicked lately, w/ the wick hanging into water reservoir, seems to be helping. My Lacunosas (which I find very easy), get watered more frequently than any other Hoya (usually twice a wk), I keep them on a wick in the pebble tray (no water reservoir), I water to excess & I think the wick helps keep some moisture an extra day or two, also helps drain them (a trick I learned from Al Tapla (he of Ficus expertise)).

    Hills, thx for sharing yr. methodology. I too am not a mister, work full time, can't do multiple daily mistings, I'm lucky if I can think of it twice a week. I repotted into a very pumice-laden mix in hopes it'll help the dainage.

    Well see what happens, thx everybody!

  • ima_digger
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'm a little late on giving info for your problem plant, pirate girl, but I do what torajima does. I let the plants dry out until bone dry and then water well, letting them sit in water until none is in tray. I then take away tray and only water when dry. They get watered with the garden hose. My plants hang outside all year, except when the temp goes below freezing. I have quite a few orchids and other plants on shelves around a pool. My garage can't hold them all when weather gets freezing. I have to pick and choose. Unfortunatly, the last couple of years I lost most of my hoya and about 14 orchids.
    Thanks to friends on this forum and another, I have gotten cuttings of hoya. I root some in water, and others I just stick in african violet potting soil mixed with perlite and orchid mix. I have some that I received two weeks ago showing new leaves. These are the ones in potting soil. The few in water show no roots or new eaves. I think I have to agree that humidity plays an important part in rooting. Now if I could just get rid of freezing temps here in Central Florida, I would have it made. :O)
    Eileen

  • bihai
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Sorry I "baffled" you Pirate Girl. It was just an example, an analogy, whatever you want to call it. Hoyas and orchids are actually very similar in their needs. Both are epiphytes that humans have forced into houseplant culture.
    I wish you luck. I would never do to my plants what you do to yours, disturbing the roots like that to remove old soil. To me, that's a description of really taking a chance on setting a plant back. The only time I would ever remove all the potting media and physically disturb the roots of any plant is when repotting certain orchids in which that is a necessary component of culture to remove old media and clip any visibly damaged or dead root material off. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me to do that for any other reason, especially with something like a Hoya. Even when dividing a plant for propagation, all that's really necessary is just to unpot, slice the root mass in half with a meat cleaver and repot the 2 new plants in 2 new pots.

    I have come to realize that I really can't contribute anything to the majority of folks on this forum. I am not a houseplant grower. Its just a 100% different method to grow plants outdoors or in a geenhouse setting than it is in an apartment. I water with a hose too, like Eileen. And, like Eileen, I used to grow ALL my plants outdoors in Spring, Summer and Fall and move them in for our relatively short winter. But fortunately I no longer have to play that in and out game. I don't have the problems and trials that you all seem to have with your plants. My hoyas don't die, they just grow their own way pretty much unsupervised by me except for hitting them with the hose and fertilizing with the hose end sprayer.

    So, good luck, happy hoya growing, I wish you only the happiest and stressfree gardening experiences.

  • pirate_girl
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well Bihai,

    I guess we'll just have to disagree on this one. I'm not such a believer that Hoyas are upset by having their roots disturbed. Clearly an intervention was called for if I didn't want to lose the plant. I learned yrs. ago from a great plant mentor that trying to trouble shoot a plant w/out unpotting it is akin to trying to see while wearing a blindfold.

    Obviously, we have VERY different growing conditions & I absolutely do not have the time for multiple daily mistings, perhaps you do.

    It seems to me the plant wasn't able to drink. I really think I did the right thing for it. Only time will tell.

  • Denise
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'm a believer in repotting myself. In my experience, some root disturbance usually results in renewed growth. It's kind of like rebooting your computer - seems to "reset" the growth. Yes, there's usually an adjustment period where the roots will get settled in the new soil, but then I find most plants will benefit greatly after that "settle-in" period. That's why we repot mostly in spring - because the settle-in time seems to be greatly reduced due to the raging growth hormones. (Can't keep a good plant down, so to speak!)

    Bihai, your water must be better than ours here! I use only purified water on my plants because we have lots of chlorine in our water, and the mineral content is high so if I used tap water, I'd have awful water spots all over my plants. I keep my collection small enough (around 350 plants...) so I can individually water. I see you're in zone 9 - whereabouts are you?

    Denise in Omnaha

  • gabro14
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Karen,

    You know from past postings that I would've done the same thing you did. I repot ALL my plants I buy that have questionable soil, mainly plants from big box stores and EA plants. I take as much of the soil off the roots as possible. I have never had a problem with disturbing the roots. Just my experience. And it seems like you had no choice anyway. I think you did the right thing.

    Gabi

  • Denise
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have to ask of those that have trouble with repotted plants: what kind of soil mixture do you use?? I find my mixture more conducive to my watering habits than the ones I receive plants in. If I leave the plants in the mixture I purchase them in, they tend to (though not always...) die a slow death. The EA mixture is in no way ideal for my watering habits. I've left a few in their mixture, just because it seems like it would be more damaging to the foliage to repot than not (like, for instance, a huge Dischidia ruscifolia...) But I've put these plants in a place where I will "fuss" over them.

    For as long as I've grown plants, I bring them home, and 95% of the time, I repeot them immediately, to avoid over- or under-watering. I know EXACTLY when to water when they're in my mix! I guess the issue of repotting is in the eye of the beholder, so to speak...

    Denise in Omaha

  • Denise
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    It also makes a huge difference where you grow - Bihai, you didn't answer where you are, but you're obviously in a warmer part of the country. For us northerners, our short season outside can be more of a pain than it's worth. We can have frosts up until May 15th here in Nebraska. We only have about 4 months of safe outside growing for plants like Hoyas. And it's not that I FEAR insects, I just don't want to deal with them. Once aphids start attacking my plants up here, it's a daily chore to keep them away, and I avoid using chemicals simply because I water by "feel" and don't want my fingers constantly in mix that's been watered with chemicals. On the other hand, most all of my succulents go out early (as they can handle very brief frost temps.)

    And I guess repotting is just one of those personal preferences. Ever since I started growing 30+ years ago, I bring a plant home, take it out of what I consider that awful commercial mix and put it right in the mix I prefer. I do this simply because I'm comfortable with my watering habits with my mix. Commercial mixes vary so much, and often times a new plant is so horribly pot bound that there's actually no mix left in the pot at all. If I didn't unpot the plant, I wouldn't know that until it starts to die. And, as someone pointed out, I don't want a plant that's terribly OVER-potted either... By repotting, I'll find that out also and correct it. Of course, if I was growing over 1000 plants, I probably wouldn't have time to do that unless it was my full-time job!

    Denise in Omaha

  • torajima
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    My two cents...

    Since most of us aren't growing plants in a greenhouse our other controlled environment, our conditions vary quite a bit. We all have to discover what works best for our particular location.

    I'm lucky enough to live in the country, and have good bugs (Praying Mantis, Lady Bugs, Spiders) everywhere. But if you live in the city, everyone is spraying poison on their lawns which ultimately kills all the good bugs (the pests tend to survive... go figure). So I can understand some folks fear of aphids, mealies, and other pests.

    But even if was afraid of pests, I'd still put my plants outside. I don't have any south facing windows in my house, and once the Oak trees get their leaves in the Spring my east and west windows won't get much (if any) full sun.

    But many people don't have this problem... and if they have a bay window facing the south, have good air circulation in the house, and artificially increase the humidity, they probably don't need to put their plants outdoors.

    As for repotting, I tend to agree with Bihai, but I understand why others would wish to repot. I look at it like this... if the plants have spent their entire lives in the commercial mix and have grown into gorgeous, full plants, the mix can't be THAT bad.

    But ultimately I think it comes down to personal preference and watering habits... the commerical mixes are more tolerant of neglect, and are best used be people that water infrequently. Over-watering can quickly turn fatal.

    The orchid style mixes are best for folks who pamper their plants. They are more tolerant of over-watering, but less tolerant of neglect.

  • hills
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    You know, if I put a fan and a bowl of water into every room I had with hoyas in it, my friends really would start to call me crazy. Just imagine the conversation; "Why do you have a fan on in here? It's freezing!"
    "It's for my plants"

    Not to mention the rocketing electric prices I'd have to pay for said fans being on all day.

    I think I'll just have to rely on the badly-made windows that are definitely not draft-free. And maybe try and take up misting a little bit more often.

  • nanw_4wi
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I always wonder why people who disagree so completely don't just dialogue via email, rather than banter back and forth here.

    Personally, I think it's the diversity of experiences with indoor/outdoor and greenhouse growing that give us a 'complete' idea of what works!

    I put most of my plants outdoors during the summer, as that's when they seem to do the most growing, but as Denise said, it's quite a chore when you've hundreds of plants and a short outdoor growing season.
    I understand, completely, as well, the other side of that.
    Sometimes when a plant is doing well indoors, I hesitate to take it outdoors as the adjustment period when they're brought back indoors seems to have a negative effect on the plant.

    I don't re-pot EA plants, either....I just leave them alone, as repotting immediately has killed a few for me, as well.

    I definitely wouldn't disturb the roots right *now*, Karen, since you've just brought these new plants home and they're already working hard at acclimating to your environment.

    I have found, like Sara stated above, that watering from the bottom works best with these EA plants. Watering from the top usually amounts to leaf/vine loss for me, too. That may very well be an air circulation issue.

    For me, anyway...Polyneura seems to like it cool and dry, with particularly good air circulation.
    My lacunosa wasn't an EA plant. I did have to repot that one right away due to it's size, and had no problems with it following repotting.
    Mine is in an east window and I honestly allow mine to go *very* dry before watering....it's blooming quite profusely right now!

    Wishing you success, Karen!

  • Denise
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Karen,

    Yep, it was our Aloe-boy! LMK if you hear from him and be sure to give him a hearty "howdy" from the Omaha gal!

    Denise in Omaha

  • chickadeedeedee
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi all.

    I don't know too much about hoyas (or any plant really) but I can post what has worked for me. Apologies for repeating some of the things others have already suggested earlier!

    Seems like lots of plants, be they EA or anything else, suffer from either over or under watering at the hands of store employees. Sometimes it is difficult to even find something healthy to purchase in the first place. I think the EA guys, hoya in particular, are set back by over watering. If I find a EA hoya that I *need* he comes home, the attached saucer or sleeve around the pot is removed and the plant is placed in a fairly sunny area in the home and gets a good dose of benign neglect.

    So far I have not repotted an EA hoya for at least the last 10-15 years although I do take cutting on occasion. I *used* to repot them but found quickly that was the kiss of death ... sort of like transplanting Bird of Paradise. At least in my hands they don't tolerate being disturbed.

    I tend to keep my potted hoyas on the drier side as far as watering. I do have humidity for them though. A *most* sophisticated piece of equipment ... a Vicks vaporizer from Walmart that was less than $10.00 US. LOL! It's VERY easy to get going otherwise it would be beyond me. Right out of the box the water reservoir gets filled with water, a gallon I think, and gets plugged in. That's it!

    I started to add a drop of Miracle Gro liquid plant food to the reservoir every other day hoping that would weakly feed my S. American orchids and H. curtsii, H. tsangii and others that I grow mounted on tree fern bark as epiphytes. Hope that does not gunk up the works. Has any one tried that or have suggestions? The reservoir gets topped off once or twice a day and takes one or two minutes at the most each time.

    The vapor that is emitted actually increases the air circulation around the plants! :-) I used to have the pebble trays primarily for my orchids but still needed to mist them all the time! With the vaporizer I mist the plants that are no where near the vaporizer. I am very lazy and the less work I need to do the better and I can just enjoy my plants.

    I have no GH although that is on my "dream about it" list. No fans either. I conserve my energy for the late spring when the whole herd of plants do go outside to get unfiltered variable light and rain and storms and all the fun stuff that Ohio weather brings.

    I know everyone has different growing conditions and their own individual levels of commitment or abilities to try to grow hoya or any other plants. The only plant I have ever pulled from a pot and washed the roots free of potting medium are orchids which I want to grow as epiphytes or those who were purchased as "rescue" plants and were in the wrong sort of medium for me namely sphag. moss.

    The hoya I grow as epiphytes were from potted cuttings and then mounted on branches or tree fern bark. I for one cannot grow an ivy if my life depended on it! I have tried and murdered several so I spare future plants from a similar fate. I just don't have, or can't get, the right conditions here. LOL! I can get Orchids galore, Anthurium galore, Ginger galore, Hoya galore and others to thrive and bloom but not an ivy!

    So there is what I do and know about the hoya. Hope this helps some and does not annoy any one either. If nothing else ... this longer than intended post is probably a very good cure for insomnia!

    Any one still awake?

    Hello???? Hmmmmmm. Goodnight then! :-)

    C3D

  • ines_99
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Pirate girl, how are the plants doing?

  • pirate_girl
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Ines, thx for asking...

    Well, it's a mixed bag: my (now) several pots of Polyneura are looking pretty crappy. Some discoloring leaves (now just discoloring, as opposing to drying out too). Am hoping that misting them w/ VF-11 might make them feel better.

    The Lacunosa (whose mix I did NOT change) is looking so-so, some whole sections of branches are fading & limp, yet others are vital looking & firm, some even determinedly climbing up the pot's hanging supports. Am going to mist that also & hope for the best.

    I watered these both last wknd, not sure if I should skip this wknd or not, barely moist on top, can't tell abt the bottom. The Lacunosa I can still bottom water, but no longer the pots of Polyneura ... sigh

  • chickadeedeedee
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hope your EA guys just need a little more time to recover and adjust! Fingers crossed for them. :-)

    C3D

  • pirate_girl
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well Gang, thought I'd post the update -- the repotted EA Hoyas are in a sad & ugly decline, the big pots are lingering at death's door, yellowing & drying, just awful.

    I watered the Polyneura last wk, even though the very bottom of the pot still felt slightly moist. The speckled Lacunosa looks too ugly to even talk about!

    The good news is that a pot of Polyneura cuttings that I potted separately in my own mix are showing new growth, on all 3 stems I salvaged, so yahoooooo, all doesn't seem lost!

    The separately potted speckled Lacunosa cuttings seem undecided, but not optimistic. In my stubborness to have this gorgeous plant, I may have to go back to HD & buy another one, is that sick or what?!

    Karen, the speckled Lacunosa obsessed Pirate

  • ima_digger
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Pirate_girl. I'm so sorry to hear that your plants are still not doing well. It's terrible when we try so hard to save them and they don't cooperate. I keep all receipts of plants that I buy at WM and HD and Lowes. If they don't do well, I return them. HD and Ls will take them back up to 1 yr of purchase and WM is 90 days. I just bought an orchid at WM that has leaves all shrunken. I rescued it and hope it survives. I'm giving it the 90 days to come back to life. If not, back it goes. I know it sounds hartless, but these plants are either over-watered or not watered at all. We are their saviors from employees that don't have a clue how to care for plants. I hope you took some cuttings from the sickly ones, Maybe the cuttings will be alright. I sure hope so for your sake.
    Eileen

  • ines_99
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Pirate girl, don't feel too bad, with my bad luck with EA plants, I just purchased another one myself - DS-70. Of course it was SOAKED but it didn't look like it had been in the store for too long. I am also on the lookout for that speckled lacunosa. My new game plan is to immediately take cuttings, no matter how good the plant looks. The lacunosa I lost last summer (sounded just like yours) I took cuttings from and it is in full bloom right now.

    I don't let these waterlogged plants get bone dry for a while after bringing them home. This may work with carnosas and some of the tougher varietys, but not for all hoyas. I certainly agree that they should be allowed to dry out, but not for any length of time. I check everyday, and the day I feel it is dry, I start watering again, but very lightly. I never completely soak the mix again, which is what I was doing in the beginning. Letting the roots get too dry and then soaking again is not the answer! I think that is the kind of treatment they get in the stores, leaning more to the constant soaking. You would think they would take the garden section employees and have a little Basic Plant Care seminar!

    Anyway, that is what I do now, let the plant dry out, then just start a schedule of light watering as needed. It involves checking the plants constantly, but if you are like me you are probably poking around with them everyday anyway.

  • Denise
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Karen,

    I feel your pain, girl! I did it 3 times with the variegated Dischidia nummulariodes, and lost them all. It took twice with the standard, and the 2nd one is doing pretty good for me. My polyneura is doing well for me this spring so far, though I did repot it as soon as I got it. It's out of the GH and in my sunroom now as I've read it doesn't like real hot temps. Hope your polyneura cuttings do well for you. It seems like one that roots pretty easily. It's one of the few that I water-root first with success.

    And drat on that speckled lacunosa! I'm going to have to make the rounds to our local Lowes, HDs and Walmarts looking for it. The pics I've seen are to die for!

    Denise in Omaha

  • trace00969
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Pirate Girl, I was readin through old posts and came across this one.....and knowing you are still around, I had to ask how the plants are doing now since it has been over four months? Did your cuttings make it?

    Tracy

  • pirate_girl
    Original Author
    16 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Goners, all, except for the Polyneura cuttings I took into my own mix, they're fine; thanks for asking.

    I did try to go back to HD to replace the Speckled Lacunosa. Someone (Ines I think) reminded us they have a 1 yr. guarantee, but while I did get the store credit, they likely won't have more new Hoyas 'til next Spring.

    On a brighter note, last wk I lucked out into an unxpected gift cutting of H reverse varieg. Kerrii, a very cool plant & I grow Kerriis well & easily.