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HOYA CARE
A Beginner's Plant Care Guide to Wax Vines, Hoya (Wax Plants)
Family: Apocynaceae
Common Name: Wax plant, Wax Flower, Porcelain Flower, or Hoya
Botanical Name: Hoya species
There are so many interesting and appealing varieties of Hoyas, it’s not shocking the term “Hoya Hoarding”was coined to describe those that can’t get enough! When you find a new variety it can be almost irresistible to add to your growing indoor plant collection. The leaves come in many different shapes and styles.Some like the glossy leaved Hoya Australis, to the snowflake-like pattern of a splashy Pubicalyx. These beautiful plants can spice up any boring corner, and give anentirely new look to any room.
Grown in the right environment, Hoyas will push out bundles of beautiful fragrant blooms. Though their bloom time is brief, the candy-like flowers are the promise when you see a peduncle. This is one of the reasons hoya collecting can be oh-so satisfying. With medium to bright indirect light, Hoyas are one of the easiest indoor plants to care for. Theyrequireminimum watering and humidity levels.However, it’s important to remember any species with thinner leaves will alwaysrequire more of these than the waxier-leaved varieties.
Light
Hoyasabsolutely love indirect bright light! With enough light or close enough to a grow light, the leaves can get sun stressed. They will turn beautiful shades of purple, red, and other stunning colors. While hoyas can live in medium light they willcertainly not thrive. A south or west-facing window is ideal for these plants, as well as a good grow light focused on the foliage. This will give the plant the best chance to make the most leaves and flowers it’s capable of.
Water
In their natural environments, Hoyas grow on trees, wrapping their vies around branches. They use their aerial roots to soak up water and nutrients. This means that when they are in pots the soil needs to dry out before it’s watered again. When watering any houseplantadequately soaking the soil is important. Make sure the water drains out of the bottom of the pot to avoid standing.With most plants, including hoyas, the thickness of the leaves canindicate how much water they like. The thicker, more succulent leaf varieties are more tolerant of drought. Most Hoya leaves are hard and unbendable when they areadequately watered. If their leaves become limp or more flexible than usual, it’s a good indicator that the plant could use a drink.
Soil
The natural environment hoyas grow in also indicates what kind of soil they prefer.Because they take in their moisture and nutrientsmainly from aerial roots that get rained on daily, they need well-draining soil. You can use a universal potting soil for hoyas, but other ingredients like perlite or bark shouldbe mixed in. A good base mix for most aroids is one part soil (potting, coco coir, or peat moss), one part perlite, and one part bark. You can adjust this based on your watering habits. If you over water add more perlite or bark, or if you underwater add more soil. To test if you have a good homemade soil mix is to squeeze a handful. If it falls back apart when let go rather than stay in clumps you're good to go.
Temperature
All aroids love warm environments including hoyas. 70 to 85 degrees is what they prefer and always thrive closer to the 80s. Colder temperatures will always tell the plant that winter is here. A temperature drop will always slow down growth. If hoyasare put under 55 degrees the risk of cold damage is high. This is one of the easiest and fastest ways to kill a plant.
Humidity
While hoyas grow in typical house humidity, their growth isexponentially faster in anything higher than 60% and peaks around 75%. A lot of things can help raise humidity levels. Try sitting them on pebble trays or adding a fountain or humidifier. Even clumping plants together in groups can raise the relative humidity.
Fertilizer
All houseplants, hoyas included, like a nitrogen heavy fertilizer. Nitrogen encourages leaf production which is what we are growing them for! If you are looking for your plant to bloom try a fertilizer that is high in phosphorus. You might want to switch to this when you see a peduncle form on your hoya. A peduncle is the beginning of a bloom and a good sign if you're looking for those candy-like flowers. You want to fertilize your plantsregularly as long as they areactively growing. This means at least once a month, or more if you are diluting it.
Pro Tips
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A repot may not be as necessary as you think. Hoyas love to be rootbound!
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Hoyas are vining plant. This means they appreciate a pole or trellis.
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If your hoya is happy, don't move it! They don't take kindly to environmental changes.
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New growth looks like a leafless vine. It may not be pretty, but give it time. They put out leaves after the vine grows so don't cut them off
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