Haha, I'm convinced that KP and KQ are habitual oversteppers by nature. My KQ started wrapping around the handle of my stepstool. She has aspirations, I tell you.

I love KQ because of it's vibrant colors. Your plant is quite healthy!

goddess9,
Haha! I think my KP has dreams as well, she has two vines that are 2ft in length and still growing.

Planto

Did you sneak into my house I have this exact thing going only my KQ has gone into suspended animation! The white and pink I find lovely, dont know how good or bad it is. I do know if it were a violet it is from being in cool temps and if no green appears it will expire from no chlorophyll. I dont know if the same rule applies, just lovely to look at. Very nice Planto!

Hi:

Yo can read link below, please use USA flag translator.

Thanks.

Here is a link that might be useful: Variegado, fuera rama

emt23,
I'm not sure what causes the white leaves to develop, but they are normal (it's not a bad thing). I read somewhere that they will eventually die from lack of chlorophyll but I figure we can just enjoy them until they do die. More white leaves may appear over the lifetime of the plant; the spontaneous nature of plants in itself is enjoyable don't you think? :)

Planto

Sorry to double post, just wanted to say thanks for sharing, Pepeuve. I enjoy looking at and reading about your plants.

Planto

I agree Planto, true wonders! Pepeuve nice pictures/article also! ~ Mary

Nice plant Planto, it may be common but is still a beauty to me; looks very healthy too.

In fact, KQ is one of my favorite Hoyas, largely because of its leaf variability & sometimes cupped leaves.

I leave the white leafed branches on as I like how they look, added charm in my view.

pirate_girl,
Thanks for the compliments. Do you have a photo of your KQ? I'd love to see one if you do.

Planto

I have several smaller ones. Recent, local acquisitions ('cause personally, I can't have enough KQ), I'll try to get some pix up this holiday or weekend. Thanks for asking.

Karen,
I look forward to seeing your photos.

Planto

Hi again,

OK, some pix of KQ, a small local purchase:

Nothing fancy really, but look at the variability of these leaves, (yes, I am a dork) but I find this endlessly fascinating & was likely part of what hooked me on Hoyas.

At my kitchen table where I garden & quilt, shows the lovely dappled light I sometimes get in the afternoon. I like to think this reproduces dappled light like through the canopy that Hoyas likely get in the wild.

Look how this shot shows all kinds of leaves on this

There's the unusual pear shaped, outlined in white

There's the 1/2 & 1/2 leaf, each half being green or white, nice clean color break along the central rib (see several of those here)

A pair of plain yet lovely leaves all outlined in white

these last above, where the outline is mostly irregular.

Here's a different plant, also a local KQ or some variety of it. (Sorry for the water spots, it came that way & haven't washed 'em yet.)

This one is much more 3-D looking w/ some cupped leaves. Don't think it shows well in the pic, but this plant has leaves more cupped (rather than lying flat) w/ those sort of dents or dimples reminiscent of Krinkle 8, or the dents in some versions of Lacunosa. Mostly thicker leaves w/ subtle yet regular outlining in white, almost all the leaves have that.

I think these are each 3" pots, likely I got 'em for $3.99 or $4.99, tiny investments yielding large pleasures. To me personally, it's a big bang for my buck!

Karen,
Thanks for sharing! The pear shaped leaf is just adorable. I can't say I have any unique shaped leaves like that, just a few cupped leaves as you mentioned. My hoyas are currently not receiving any sunlight but they are both still growing like weeds (will have to be happy with no blooms until we are able to move out of this apartment). I think I posted this photo before on another post but I figured I could share again. I love the dark purple color the new leaves have. I found both of mine at a local Lowes, they were on clearance (your guess is as good as mine as to why...). I had some money left on a gift card from Christmas so they only cost me $0.02 total. The long vines intruding in KQ's space is part of my KP, a non-variegated vine but I still enjoy them so I don't see the need to remove them.

{{!gwi}}

Planto

To answer your question, I use Dyna-Gro Foliage Pro.

It sounds like you have already correctly diagnosed what upset your Hoya. Those mature Hoyas really don't like change! Who can blame them? People are like that, too. I'm glad to hear you've wooed her into happiness again.

I am also a fan of Foliage Pro, mostly because it has all the micro-nutrients plants need, not just the main elements. And the 3-1-2 NPK ratio is also good.

But lately I've started rotating fertilizers. I used "Grow" and "Orchid-Pro" from the same manufacturer, Dyna-Gro.

People say balanced fertilizers (with all equal NPK numbers) are also good. And there are good things I've heard about MSU formula. It comes in powder or liquid and in "pure water" or "well water" formulas. RO, distilled or tap water with not a lot of dissolved minerals are all good with the pure water formula - but use the well water formula if your water is hard, too alkaline or has a lot of minerals dissolved. Powder is cheaper that liquid - but keep it very dry, as it absorbs environmental moisture too easily.

Jack's Classic is another manufacturer that I've heard recommended and plan to try as I run out of my fertilizer supplies.

One thing I would not use is "bloom booster" (high middle number in NPK). Knowledgeable people say it's a gimmick and that high phosphorus formulas do not actually encourage blooming.

There are some negative opinions of high nitrogen (N) fertilizers, but if your medium is partly bark, then high N helps. This is because as bark degrades (as bacteria consume it gradually, in other words), they need a lot of nitrogen, which may leave the plant with a deficiency, unless a high N formula is used.

Finally, no matter what you use, there is a pretty broad agreement on fertilizing "weakly weekly" (half or even quarter the label dosage, but with every watering), and on flushing pots occasionally, perhaps monthly, with pure water, to wash off all the accumulated fertilizer salts.

I have always watered mine "weakly weekly", meaning watering on a weekly schedule with a weak solution of whatever formula you choose.

I use MiracleGro and SuperThrive from March to mid-May, SuperBloom and SuperThrive from May to late Sept or Oct and then no feeding during winter months thru March. I also foliar feed with daily misting during those times. I have no idea if this is correct, but they seem very happy and bloom well for me. I started this schedule for my schlumbergeras and epi's after a friend recommended it and it worked well. Now I use it on my hoyas, too. I will admit, before this regime, I had no, few or sporadic blooming, but now even my stubborn macgillvrayi has cranked out a pedicle.