A Visit with Hoya sp. Perak Teddy Bear

[@lucythecat529]

Beautiful pics of the blooms! Your persistence paid off! Congratulations on getting it to bloom successfully!

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Thank you Lucy!

[@Laurablushing]

I appreciate your videos and website so much!!! Your experience and knowledge has been so helpful and interesting to me. Thank you so much!!

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

You're very welcome Laura!

[@mauricioaltamiranog6837]

ohhhh simplemente hermosa hoya ....muchas felicidades Doug

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Muchas gracias Mauricio!

[@pieter1108]

Great video Doug. Somehow I expected this Hoya to be named after Ted Green by his wife, but this makes more sense.. Beautiful plant!

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Thank you Pieter! That is funny about Ted Green, I just can't see anyone calling him Teddy Bear, but you never know...

[@SHARONSHORTOrchidsandGarden]

Wishing you the best results with the Teddy bear. Happy growing.

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Thank you Sharon and happy growing to you as well!

[@judymckerrow6720]

Your a great plant parent Doug, thank you for showing us your beautiful Hoya. You may have said at one time but,how many do you currently own?💚🙃

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Thanks Judy, I have never counted my Hoyas, but I do not own nearly as many as some people do. I would guess that the number of species is less than 75, but I propagate a lot so there are many small pots of the same thing so if I added all of the little pots up there would probably be about 150 or so. Any more than that and I just can't give them the attention that they deserve.

[@do7005]

Great idea putting the trellis outside of the pot.

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Thanks!

[@ScaryFear]

Wow lots of work but it has paid off. Great job.

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Thank you Scary!

[@orchidsbythelake]

If root rot is the issue... how about semi-hydro? And any time soon you would be sending us your hoyas for sale list?

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Usually a plant that is sensitive to root rot does even worse in S-H. The list is not likely to go out until around May 15th for two reasons: I have a 2 week vacation from work to deal the orders, and I need to get those plants outside to take all of these cuttings because of all of the mess from dripping sap. I may offer up some Hoya papaschonii seeds and put a few plants on eBay starting in late April.

[@orchidsbythelake]

Doug Chamberlain got it! Thank you sir!

[@newmanmansell760]

unique and Interesting variety😌🙏💞

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

It just had its name changed; now it is called Hoya peninsularis.

[@annacoffin2942]

Stunning 💗

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Thanks Anna 💗!

[@lucyeloisa7165]

Oh great I just got this one. I hope it grows. I don’t have any good humidity.

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

This is a very tough Hoya to grow; I do not do well with this one at all. High humidity and do not over water are most important. Good luck!

[@lucyeloisa7165]

@@DougChamberlainVTHoyas Thank you Doug!

[@riawhetstone3725]

Thank you for sharing your experience with this Hoya! Definitely a beauty, in both foliage & flowers😍 I try to avoid diva hoyas, especially when it’s the watering that they are tricky with😅 I have started using self watering trays because watering can get overwhelming sometimes. Really felt risky since hoyas need to dry out, but it’s been a few months now & they seem surprisingly okay with it so far 🤞🏼

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Yes, I have too many Diva Hoyas😅, Some of them will die if you just look at them wrong! When I eventually scale back my plants those will be the first to go. It is nice to have plants that can just live on the windowsill with a weekly watering and then forget them. Keep me apprised of your self watering trays, as it sounds like it could be the way to go with lots of plants in small pots; that is what is killing me right now.

[@riawhetstone3725]

Haha, yes! I have no problem admiring some hoya from afar. I just discovered my hoyas on the self watering tray need to be rearranged every month or so because the roots try to grow into the capillary mat they are sitting on😳 I top water/fertilize them when the reservoir tray is completely dry. They are also in terra-cotta 😅 But I don’t wait for them to get super root bound before repotting them, so there’s minimal damage when the time comes. I really thought it wouldn’t work because of how airy their mix is, but the tray was empty in under a week!

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

@@riawhetstone3725 I think you may have discovered a new way to grow Hoyas. I think that the terra-cotta would work especially well with a capillary mat, which would stop the mix from getting overly dried out. I like it a lot, and may give it a go myself at some point. Thanks for giving more details!

[@riawhetstone3725]

No biggie😊 I’m glad you found the information useful & hope it’ll make things easier for you should you decide to go that route. It’s really annoying when they are overwatered once & then rot or not watered enough & then the new growth dies off 🤦🏻‍♀️ I was like “That’s it! You’re watering yourselves!” 😅

[@cherylanne6549]

This is a beautiful hoya. I could never have one that only needs to be watered every 3 weeks. I would love it to death.

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

That is my biggest problem; I can't help myself when it comes to watering, and it is like you say 'we love our plants to death'.

[@gardendecorplanet5348]

Doug I love you hoyas, I just stared with the hoyas 3 months ago and I crazy about them. I keep watching your video to learn about them, I live in Florida and I want to propagate, so I love cutting; is it any ways that I can buy cutting from you?. I tried you website but I don't see any for sale. Just for curiosity if selling let me know. Thanks

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Send me an email at [e-mail] and I will add you to my notification list.

[@gardendecorplanet5348]

Thanks

[@botanicustv4934]

Lovely video thanks for sharing.. could I ask some advice?? I have Hoya meredithii and it seems to be struggling its in a warm humid bathroom with as much light as I can give. It has dropped many leaves and only has a couple left worried it’s going to give up. I know you have vids on this I’ve watched. Does this Hoya bounce back in spring or can you offer any advice please??

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

My advice is probably not going to be what you want to hear, but your problem sounds like the roots are compromised; probably the plant has suffered root rot at some point over the winter. I would pull the plant out of its pot and check for unhealthy roots, and if confirmed take a cutting and re-root the plant. I have literally had to do this dozens of times over the years including 2 Hoyas just recently, so it happens to everyone. Leaving the plant with bad roots can keep it from growing for a couple of years and the freshly rooted cutting will soon grow.

[@botanicustv4934]

Doug Chamberlain thank you for taking the time to reply. The stems are firm and still have green in if I slightly scratch under the surface, and the roots I can see seem to not be mushy. I purchased it as a mature plant in December from Thailand. Perhaps I’m guilty of over watering I’m fairly new to Hoya but also struggle to find any care information besides yours on this plant. Maybe not meaning to I’m killing it with kindness. Does this plant prefer to be very dry before watering? What seems to happen is the leaves that have fallen for some darker marks on then slowly died back and eventually fell off. What’s left is about 6 leaves which seem ok at the moment no discolouration.

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

@@botanicustv4934 Plants from Thailand take a considerable amount of time to adjust that is for sure. Hoya meredithii is like most Hoyas and likes to have the top inch or so of soil dry out before watering again. Don't give up on it, as it is a Hoya that will show little if any growth until late spring/early summer. It is capable of good growth with lots of humidity and warmth, but achieving that in the regular house is not easy.

[@ronminerosenberg]

Hi! I'm just curious can Hoya imperialis handle direct sun for 1-2 hours in the afternoon? And also what media do you use for your Hoya imperialis? Because I just bought some.

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Hoya imperialis is not particularly picky when it comes to soil - just use a good quality peat-based potting soil and add a little extra perlite into the mix. It would love 1-2 hours of direct sun in the afternoon.

[@ronminerosenberg]

Thanks! This helped me alot!

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

@@ronminerosenberg Glad I could help!

[@peggyp3682]

Hi, Doug. What if you mounted this plant on something instead of putting it in a pot?

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

It would probably love it Peggy given enough humidity, but keeping mounted Hoyas happy in my environment is very challenging. I can't seem to keep up with the watering and constant misting. If I had a year round greenhouse, or lived in South Florida, I would love to keep mounted specimens.

[@peggyp3682]

@@DougChamberlainVTHoyas I only thought about mounting because you keep nearly everything in a grow tent with high humidity. I keep some of mine in aquariums. 😁

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

@@peggyp3682 Aquariums are a great option!

[@ELSIE434]

Hi Dough,its Elsie from Jeffreysbay South Africa. How can I send you a pic of Hoya leave wich I want you to identify if posseble

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

Send it to [e-mail]

[@gustavo31313131]

Do you have any advise for Hoya rotundiflora please?

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

It has been a few years since I've grown rotundiflora, but I don't remember it being particularly difficult. Just use a chunky-peat based potting soil, keep it warm, humid, water when almost dry, and it should do well for you

[@gustavo31313131]

@@DougChamberlainVTHoyas Thank you so much Doug

[@StaceyFeltham]

Mine tried to give me new growth and I think I didnt water it timely because the new stem died. Luckily it's still a strong singular leaf 😂😂😂

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

I still struggle with this Hoya to this day. It is really quite tricky!

[@walle5667]

Do you still bother with this guy? I did purchase a small plant a week ago and will see how it goes. It was a very good price so I thought why not. The leaves do look spectacular, but I will not get too disappointed if it won't work out. I don't have the equipment you have. Just a sunny room and a good balcony :) I am currently blasting most of my hoya with full sun on my balcony and some guys that have been sitting dormant for the past 6 months or so have finally started doing stuff. So my magic potion will be the full sun treatment until further notice. I am done with these finnicky plants. If they fry, they fry, if they survive, good. It's about time something happens with them 😅

[@DougChamberlainVTHoyas]

I kept this plant for a number of years but finally parted ways with it last year. It was always an extremely poor grower being particularly susceptible to root rot. Who knows though, I got rid of it before spraying everything with sulfur to get rid of the flat mite infestation, and maybe it would have helped this one. I wish you much better luck with yours than I had with mine!!