Hi Kelly I cant help much with growing sunrise,I brought a small cutting this past fall.
My muliflora got a lot of black spots on her leaves early fall while it was still outside.The cause was warm days and cool nights.As soon as I noticed it I started spaying with cinnamon oil.It has stopped the spread. I think its a type of fungus. Is your plant near a cool window?
Good luck with saving your hoya.

Cindy

Kelly I had this problem with my Hoya obscura during its first year and it seemed to be related to a poor root system. I took a cutting and rerooted it and then growth improved.
The spots on the leaves do sound like fungus although sometimes a scab like growth also forms which is a less common fungal disease. I did use the cinnamon and water paste on a fungal infection that was actively spreading and it worked great. Often times fungal diseases are systemic and topical applications don't do much to help because the fungi have invaded the internal portion of the plant. A systemic fungicide will often clear this type of infection up.

If you take a cutting and reroot and there is still the spotting you might try cutting again and in the end disposing of the cutting if problems persist.

Mike

Thanks for your help guys. I'm afraid the plant isn't really long enough to take a cutting - it's that bad. I will try this systemic fungicide. My plant is near a cool window, which probably doesn't help although it did come looking this way. Same vendor sent green lacunosa when I ordered 'Tove'. Buyer beware with hoya vendors...anyway I will try as many of your suggestions as I can. I may have to re-order Sunrise from someone else. I have a weak spot for lacunosa's, obscura, Sunrise. I forget what they are called as a group...

Kelly if you do decide to order I would like to recommend a plant for you to try if you like Hoya obscura. Paul Shirley has a Hoya species listed as Hoya coloura and it is very interesting. The plant is more vigorous than my Hoya obscura and overall it has a more robust growth habit. There are some plants like Hoya obscura but with very long peduncles that may be another unidentified species although the name Hoya obscura var. longipedunculata is also seen. Who knows maybe Hoya coloura will turn out to have some unique characteristic like like peduncles.

A photo from the web of Hoya obscura longipedunculata
http://www.flickr.com/photos/42168599@N03/3887811726/

Of all the species in this group(Otostemma)that I have I find one of the newest to my collection to be quite interesting. I got a nice cutting of Hoya pusilla this fall and it's medium sized,broad and fleshy leaves and pendant growth habit make for a very attractive plant. The blooms often blush pink when the plant is grown in brighter light levels. The cutting I got had a peduncle but it fell off during the rooting process so I have not seen the blooms for myself yet. This species might be a good substitute for Cv Sunrise if you can't find it.

http://www.dischidia.com/Hoya%20Pages/hoya_pusilla.htm

Mike

Here is a link that might be useful: Hoya coloura plant

Hi All,

Mike's photo does look much like obscura to me.

Klyde,

Am I missing something? I thought 'Tove' WAS a green variety of Lacunosa (w/ what I refer to as the 'dents' or indentations like in Krinkle 8). Lacunosa is a favorite of mine, so that's why I ask.

Hi P.G.

'Tove' has red leaves when young that mature to a deep green (at least mine does). The flowers tend to have a pinkish cast to them. My regular Lacunosa has green leaves always and the flowers are yellowish, although they can get a bit pinkish in the sun. Not as much as 'Tove' though. Hope this helps. It is very pretty...

Thank you for the great leads Mike. I will surely look this plant (s) up as it is time to start thinking about which direction to expand the 'family'.

Otostemma! That's the term I was looking for. Funny, I don't know much about the groups, but I find I almost always end up with plants that are in that group. I have looked at pulsilla repeatedly. Well I'll look again. I've not heard of this coloura...sounds good.

Cheers
Kelly

Kelly:

I have been growing 'Sunrise' for a few years now. I always notice this plant being unhappy in the winter. I think it takes after the Lacunosa in the fact that it gets upset when moved and has some leaves yellow and drop. I have purchased this plant twice now and have 2 pots of it. This plant has to be grown in the winter rather then kept... What I mean by this is that 'Sunrise' doesn't seem to require relatively good growing conditions in the summer as well as the winter to prevent decline. A lot of my plants in no artifical light with Northern exposure and with lowering the water intake do not flourish in the winter but they do not decline either. With that same treatment 'Sunrise' has declined each winter for me. Whereas when I keep 'Sunrise' in my Southern exposure window on a regular "summertime" watering schedule in the winter she seems to be very happy. That is just based on my observation growing in VA.

-David

Thanks for letting my know of your experience with this plant David. I believe I have had this cutting for 2 years now - 2 of them died and the third has not grown one iota. A slow decline is what I would say my experience has been. Good to know that you have not had a stellar experience either. I will certainly look into this coloura Mike speaks of (don't tell him, but is that guy a treasure trove of info or what? :) I have Sunrise in a West-facing window, but this window can get chilly at night. Now I am in the PNW, so we aren't talking freezing here too often, but we are cool and wet...

Thanks for your advice
Kelly