I am so glad you asked this question Mary, I have been trying to find out the same thing about this hoya. I have read that it likes moisture so I have been thinking about putting it in a self watering pot. My concern is that mine is very small, currently in a 2.5 inch pot and the inner pot of the self water pot I made is 4 inches. I don't want to over pot it.

I did this with my lamingtoniae about a month ago and it seems happier than it was in a regular pot.
Tami

This is a tough one for me, too, Mary. It grew well for me, even flowered, then it suddenly dehydrated. I restarted it, salvaged two cuttings, both are still alive, one looks fat and happy and the other is still wrinkled from dehydration but hangs on. I've heard it can be a bit of a toughy. I hope you can find someone who can give you some great advice for this one, and I'll be watching, too!

Denise in Omaha

ladies you're not alone with this one. My first davidcummingii was planted in a 6" basket and grew to be a very nice 3-4ft long plant. Suddenly it went into a decline and I had to restart it. After having to do this at least 3 times over a 2-3 year period I almost gave up o n trying to grow this hoya. Year before last I decided to give it one more try growing in nothing but hydroton and thus far it is working. I think there's a very fine line between being too dry or to wet with this one and once that line gets crossed,it's down hill from there!!! Hydroton seems to be the way to go with this plant.

david

David,

Do you have it potted traditionally with the Hydroton, or is it in S/H?

I have a cutting that has rooted, and I'm thinking I'm going to leave it in s/h.

Renee

Renee,

it's in nothing but hydroton. I saved a few of those clear containers like the Chinese restaraunts use to put soup in,cut a few slits in them about and inch and a half from the bottom so some water will stay in the reservoir. So far this has worked for me in growing davidcummingii. This is the longest that i've grown this plant without it going into a decline for one reason or another!!!! I also grow my H. rotundiflora,H.lasiantha and H.praetorii like this as well as i've found it easier to keep them going like thise. When I had them in soil they would all grow well for a while then start heading down hill. Having as many hoyas as I do it's hard to give each one it's own specific needs so I treat them all the same and knock on wood i haven't had any issues in doing so except with just a few and of course the ones I mentioned above would be those. By growing them in hydroton I know that there's no chance of them being over or underwatered which I suspect was the issue that I was having with them to begin with.

david

I try hard not to think too hard about this whole davidcummingii thing, just like the whole sigillatis thing. So far mine is still in the "majority group" and lives in a chunky mix, mostly drying out between waterings. It grows really well for me, so I hope it keeps it up. >_>

I even try to avoid THINKING about the possibility that it could go south, when I'm in the same room as it. Like it can read my mind and will get discouraged.

I finally found Hydroton locally and will try it. Thanks for the input!
~ Mary

I have this one in my standard mix as well, that being potting soil, medium orchid bark, and perlite. I have found this Hoya to be incredibly slow but my plant has several five or six inch long growths now after about four years from a rooted cutting. If slow growth is all I experience with this one I will be happy. I do water well at least once a week but I don't worry if this one dries out, in fact with its thick leaves I believe it is best suited to drying out a bit.
I believe this species was found in a mountain environment so it probably experiences regular moisture. Maybe the trick to growing this one is to allow for large amounts of air space in the potting mix so the roots are never suffocated.

Mike

Mike that is a trick I think works also, air on roots. Lately using clear containers allows me to see that if I leave " gaps" and not tamp down the soil mix about the same as yours, the gaps fill in with roots. As if they are trying to find moisture in the air pockets. I tried it with this one but even tho it is not dead, growth is not happening either. Maybe I am impatient, not afraid to admit that either! I will try to get a shot of one of the experiments I have going shortly. You cannot see through the cup very well that I have davidcummingii in yet. I can be a close looker too! ~ Mary

1st one is "david" and I think i need to be more patient. You can barely see the roots in the air pocket in the cupcake papers container he is in! Heheh...nervous laugh!

2nd is a labeled macgillivrayii broken off from the main piece that is very sickly and being nursed. See how the roots are almost like tap roots? This is all new to me so I am in beginners awe! This is a small votive holder.

3rd is the main H.Mac. This is in a clear glass container with soil and under that is deorative glass vase beads. One main tapper going down to the bottom for air and moisture.

4th is a sp.Vietnam EPC 183 from Jack a month old. The only place that roots filled in the fastest was in the air gap I left. Hope you enjoyed a beginners journey under the soil! ~ Mary