You're lucky you can at least leave one hoya outside Tarev. Mine would turn into mush if I left them outside lol.

Donald that's a beautiful hoya! I could only imagine how heavy it is.

Since Hoya carnosa KQ has succulent leaves, I find I can treat it like my other succulents that can endure the cold, as long as kept dry. Thankfully, even if it rains, the periods of rain are so short and it is quick to dry. I do prepare to have a burlap to wrap it if we do get some hard freeze warnings.

On the other hand, Hoya kerrii variegata is like my other succulents that are really sensitive to colder temps, so have to bring it in.

Donald, that is an amazing looking Hoya ... Great Growing!

Doing a rain dance here! It's currently storming ... thunder and lightening like crazy .... but it's dumping a ton of rain so I'm smiling and I can just hear my plants smiling too!

Winter is our dry season here; summer is our rainy season/tropical storm and hurricane season. I'm in Zone 9b coastal Fla. but we do have frosts and freezes in the winter at times. Some years I can leave plants outside all winter and just throw a blanket over them if we have a frost predicted because even if the overnight temps drop to 30º, as soon as the sun rises it begins to warm up. One year we had an extremely long, cold winter and it happened to be at a time when I was traveling a lot to stay with my mom when she was sick and I lost many, many plants to numerous nights of freezing temp's. I remember one winter when we had consecutive nights in the 20's with a lot of ice!! Yikes ... that's not normal for this part of the state. This past winter was so mild we didn't even get a single frost. I'd like it to be that way every winter.

My oldest hoya is a KQ. I moved it to a bigger pot earlier in the year.
Lin I'm so glad you're getting some rain. Winter is usually our dry season too, with a few exceptions. We do get ice storms and snowstorms every once in awhile. We had record snowfall at the end of March, about 5-6" It caught people and plants off guard. It's terrible you lost your plants during a cold spell.

Here are some of my hoyas. :)

Hoya australis ssp. australis rooted cutting



Hoya fungii


Veined leaf Kerrii


Compacta, australis ssp. tenuipes, and KQ

Thanks Lin

Really looking forward to watching my new cuttings grow. Such interesting and all unique.
I received H. Subclava, H. davidcummingii , H. archboldiana, H. lobbii, H. sp. Chanin Thout, H. pubicalyx, H. macgillivrayi, H. wayetti, H. erythrina.
The leaves are amazing.
Rick

Those are nice varieties Rick. I think I have erythrina.

Wow Rick, sounds like you got a nice variety of Hoyas! Look forward to seeing your photos!

I got interested in Hoyas when I joined DG in 2006 and at one time I had quite a few, mostly the more common Exotic Angel Plants from Home Depot and Walmart garden centers which I ended up with multiples of! I've downsized greatly with all types of plants the past few years but still have many that I grew from cuttings received in trades and a co-op from those times on DG:

H. aucta - which apparently is now considered H. verticillata
H. australis
H. cummingiana
H. obovata
H. kerrii
H. carnosa
H. memoria
H. polyneura - This one is an Exotic Angel plant that desperately needs re-potting and has never has done well in my care.
H. finlaysonii - From a trade on DG @ six years ago, it's been a very slow grower, almost dying completely at one point but I managed to take a cutting and got it going again yet it still doesn't look all that great and has only bloomed once in the years I've had it.

Oh yeah, and I recently won a raffle here on ATP and got from HRQ Hoyas, pretty little H. heuschkeliana, H. nummularioides and H. curtisii (another that struggles under my care.)
I used to have large plants of both heuschkeliana and nummularioides but lost them to a winter freeze so I'm so happy to have these little ones to grow out again and the heuschkeliana even has a bloom!

Cameron and others, I have these in a humidity chamber right now (I mention, as I remember a photo of yours Cameron). Should I have them in this or is this just for unrooted cuttings?
I do not have my heat mat on, just in good light (not full sun).
Rick

You could keep them in the humidity chamber until they start outgrowing it, then wean them off slowly so they can get used to lower humidity in your home. Mine do fine indoors during winter, I just have to watch for mealies and spider mites.

Thank you, Cameron. I have dealt with spider mites, but not with Mealies to date. I am not sure how I will handle these as most of the products sold in the U.S. are not available in Canada such as the Bayer products many use.
Rick

I've never had a problem with spider mites but mealybugs ... yes. It seems they are worse at times when it's hot, humid and very little air movement. Most of the time for mealybugs, I use regular old rubbing alcohol (70% Isopropyl Alcohol) and take either a Q-tip (if I find just a couple of bugs) or a cotton ball ... soak it in the alcohol and wipe the bottoms of the leaves and stems and all the little nooks and crannies ... anywhere you see those white cottony looking critters. I've heard some folks say they put rubbing alcohol into a spray bottle with liquid dish detergent and spray their plants but I'd advise doing that in a shady area so as not to get leaf burn.

Rick, can you get DE (Diatomateous Earth) http://www.bing.com/images/sea... anywhere in BC? It works for all sorts of insects!

Thanks for that tip Lin. I found a few mealies on my KQ but I spray them with neem and that seemed to get rid of them. I hope they don't come back? I'll use alcohol if they do return. I have compacta which I've heard is a mealybug magnet, so far I haven't found any on it. Last year I found a few spidermites on my plumerias.

Lin, Yes I can get diatomaceous earth and I can get Neem Oil. It is just some sprays and definitely no Systemic pesticides for sale anymore here.
I have dealt with those crazy Spider mites on my Adeniums, Plumies when I had them and sometimes on my Tropical Hibiscus's.
Thanks for everyone's input and assistance.
Rick

I can now appreciate a bit more this Hoya carnosa 'Krimson Queen'...finally seeing krimson variegation again!
Last year it was just green with cream edges or all cream colored leaves:

Tarev my KQ does the same thing. I rarely see pink or white leaves on it. Your KQ looks so healthy.

Thanks Cameron! I wonder what triggers the crimson colors! Whatever it is I love it I have not seen this one bloom yet..here's hoping this year will be good!

I wish I knew what triggered the crimson leaves? I'm hoping mine start developing pretty leaves like yours.