Why does my hoya move around on it own so much?

9 years ago

I got a large flowering hoya about a month ago.
I has stems around 4 ft long. Some of the stems are bare and have no leaves on them yet.

These stems will will change postions during the day.
At first i thought i was going crazy.
but i have a live feed camera in the room it is in (had break ins before) and you can actually see the stems moving!

Why does it move so much?
its kinda creepy.

Featured Answer

Denise

9 years ago

Oh, that's an awesome story, Mare! I think our plants are a lot more intelligent that we realize. For anyone who hasn't read it, I suggest the book "The Secret Life of Plants." It's fascinating! (Unless, of course, you're a vegetarian. Once you read it, you may have nothing left to eat! LOL!)

Denise in Omaha

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Comments (14)

aurorawa
9 years ago
-insects on plant
-insects or worms/grubs in soil
-gravity/gravitropsim
-slippery surface causing stems to "slide"
-phototropism, the reaction of movement in response to light
-tigmotropism, the reaction of movement in a climbing/crawling plant in response to external environment. This is what allows hoyas in the wild to climb up and attach to trees.
MsGreenFinger GW
9 years ago
A very interesting time lapse video on tropical plants, explained by David Attenborough. I think a similar thing is happening to your plant.

Here is a link that might be useful: youtube link to video
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Denise
9 years ago
Wow, that was a great video, Ms. GF! The first plant reminded me of a couple of Cissus I grow (succulent ones) that produce those little grabby tendrils. Now I understand why they "corkscrew" - to pull themselves up and climb. Very interesting!

NI001, I think they move mostly to find something to "grab". I always thought it was more about reaching for the sun, but it seems a lot of them I find moving away from the light rather than towards it. When you have a lot of climbing/twining plants, it can be a real chore to keep them detangled!

Denise in Omaha
marguerite_gw Zone 9a
9 years ago
needinfo101, that is very exciting for you. I suppose plants find some of us creepy too.
greentoe357
9 years ago
That is one great video indeed, MsGF! When I started reading the original post, I thought of this one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTljaIVseTc) - but I like your link even more.

I have to constantly keep my hoyas away from things, including from growing straight into fluorescent light fixtures, which burn them on contact. What a bunch of grabby little things they are!

I can see how this behavior can be called creepy, but I think of it as very smart, from evolutionary perspective. Plants that hold on to something tight have a much better chance of surviving and breeding, which of course is what evolution is all about.
mare2
9 years ago
I used to have an enthusiastic pubicalyx that grew in a hanging pot in an east-facing sunroom. The pot hung right in front of the raised shade so that the top was always shaded and the bottom got sun during the day. I used to notice the growing tips grew up at night and down during the day, but once I was sitting in there drinking my coffee and watching the sun come up, and the vines literally reached down to dip into the sun that was angling in. I'm not talking slo mo here - the whole process took maybe two seconds. It looked like arms reaching out, and it really WAS creepy, needinfo, I agree!
redhead48814
last year
last modified: last year
I am glad to hear someone else has this experience with their Hoya plant. I watched mine do a 180° turn last night in five seconds! I was so creeped out by it, I “assisted“ the vine by wrapping it around the plant stand. 30 minutes later, it had reached out to my Fiddleleaf fig after uncoiling itself! Time to do a timelapse camera.
marguerite_gw Zone 9a
last year
Is any particular hoya involved here?
redhead48814
last year
Marguerite, I have a Hoya Obovata.
marguerite_gw Zone 9a
last year
Many thanks for the prompt reply, redhead48814. I thought it resembled Hoya carnosa. I'll be keeping a close eye on mine from now on :)
Christa Boisvert
last year
last modified: last year
I had my hoya shepardii and my hoya publyx splash both moving tonight . the first movement i saw literally looked like it was haunted , it moved atleast 6 inches instantly and they were

at an angle that was angeled up
Christa Boisvert
last year
Shane Stobie
last year

So pleased to read these comments. My neighbour thought I was bonkers.

Why does my hoya move around on it own so much?

Denise

Comments (14)

aurorawa

MsGreenFinger GW

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