Hi Denise,

Yes, seems mighty quiet. Sorry to hear that problem of '..who shall remain nameless' still exists. Oh well, kinda sad.

Your plants are looking great! I've suffered some Hoya losses w/ the erratic & ever fluctuating temps in my kitchen. But some things are doing well, just not really the Hoyas right now.

Ditto what you said abt COT (Euph milii), I was happy when this started blooming in January, & hasn't stopped since, even tho' it's just a small cutting.

On this particular shot, I had noticed that the stem of blooming old bract reddens w/ age like the one on the right, kind of pretty.

Hi Denise, Karen

That is some beautiful Hoyas Denise. With all those beautiful leaves, no need to worry about blooms :)
Karen, I too love Crown of thorns. Yours looks very healthy.
It is pretty quiet in Tn here also. I do have some great new growth on my Macrophylla Varigate since putting it in the aquarium. It loves moisture!! It grew like 7-8 new leaves in the past month.

Here is Pachylada in bloom with several umbels. I think there is 7 all together with 2 open right now.

This is my Episcia, the only other thing blooming at the moment. I can't wait for sping!!!

Is "the one who shall remain nameless" Carol Noel?

BR, yes Carol is the one. It's ridiculous...

PG, I especially love the white flowering CofT. Your's looks very happy & healthy. It must not dislike the extreme conditions your plants have had to endure. I hope you're now able to use the elevators...

Teisa, I like your Episcia - I've been contimplating getting one again, though I'm not very good with true tropicals. I've grown them in the past and LOVE their beautiful foliage, but they don't do well for me for very long...

Denise in Omaha

Beautiful lush looking Hoyas; I also love the Crown of Thorns and the Episcia - I used to grow those in another life! Here is a photo of H. pauciflora, which has its second bloom in six years. I guess I wouldn't call it a prolific bloomer.

Doug

Nice pictures, everyone.

Things have been busy in real life, and a few of my Hoyas are showing new growth as well. I think they're sensing Spring is literally right around the corner. I did get a new lacunosa labeled Snow Caps at Wal-Mart a few days ago. I have a couple pictures of it under a thread I started.

Snow is falling here like mad and it's supposed to change over to sleet and freezing rain sometime this afternoon or evening. Not feeling very Spring-like right now, but I'm hanging on. :-).

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Denise: Nice leaves on the Merillii, and the red tint on the obscura is just lovely. Mine has that rosy color too, and it makes the plant look so much more interesting. A lot of my hoyas are starting to wake up from their long winter sleep, just like yours. It's so nice to finally have something exciting going on with the plants. This winter has been a rough one for my hoyas, I've lost 6 or 7 of the cuttings I bought last fall. Lesson learned - don't buy cuttings after august! But it's hard not to buy any when a "wishlist hoya" suddenly is within your grasp. lol

Teisa: Wow, that pachyclada really does love you, doesn't it? That is just spectacular!! Very, very nice! My own pachyclada seems to hate me. At the moment it is looking a little like it will shrivel up and die. Hope it doesn't, though ...

Doug: What a cute flower! I ordered a puciflora cutting last august, but sadly it arrived with mealies (first mealie I ever saw on a hoya, and hopefully the last) and in the process of trying to kill off the mealies I almost killed the cutting too - I guess it didn't like all the evil hatred I sent in the mealies direction ... *sigh* I just checked on it and it's still hanging in there, but just barely. Keeping my fingers crossed I'll get to see that cute flower one day. Does it have a scent?

This post was edited by Klea on Mon, Mar 18, 13 at 20:50

Doug, I love the pauciflora flower, too. Does it not have a cluster of flowers, or was this an early or late flower from a cluster? Is it fragrant at all?

Denise in Omaha

Klea, pauciflora has one of the most beautiful scents that I have experienced on a Hoya. It is kind of like Lilac, and quite strong. Denise, its blooms are solitary, one bud on a peduncle sort of like retusa or patella. Here is another photo showing my fingers to give you an idea of size.
Doug

Lilac - my favorite scent! Takes me back to my childhood as we had a huge lilac bush that literally overgrew onto our front porch. One more question - is the center actually black, or is that a photographic illusion?

Denise in Omaha

The coronas are very dark red on this plant, and do indeed seem to photograph almost black! I should also say that this hoya seems to need to be subjected to very cool temps for extended periods of time, followed by a gradual warming trend to bloom. At least that has been my experience. I have just noticed other buds on the plant, which I am truly excited about.

@ Denise

I wasn't here for any of the various dramas, but I do think the atmosphere toward vendors is too strict. Even when they aren't banned, it makes them too gunshy to speak freely, and that's a shame since they have lots to contribute. We just have to go elsewhere when we want to talk to them I guess.

I never can tell what causes my Hoyas to drop their new growth - I can't tell if they're being sensitive or I'm being a dolt. Maybe someday I'll have enough confidence to try and diagnose what has gone wrong, but for now I just try to take it all in stride... After all, some knocking about is inevitable, both by nature and dopey human caretakers.

You know, now that you brought up the whole red leaves going away thing.... I've noticed that my lacunosas show the full drama of their unique coloring during the winter. The Sno Caps gets more variegated, the reds come out in the Ruby Sue and Royal Flush... then in summer they all go fairly green and are much harder to tell apart. They are under artificial light the whole time, with just a north window behind them. Do you guys see this pattern in your lacunosas too?

@ Teisa

That pachy is rocking out! Nice growing!

@ Doug

Thanks so much for sharing the pictures of your pauciflora. It's so pretty the way those pink freckles show through the white. I have so much fun growing this plant, but it hasn't bloomed for me yet. I am so excited after hearing about the fragrance! My cystiantha is blooming right now, and I have to say that is one of my favorite scents I've smelled in a while. Kind of like a sugary lemondrop except with a more lemongrassy lemon.