beautiful plants! what mix do you have them growing in? i have all of my plants in a 50/50 mix of potting soil and perlite but i feel it holds moisture just a little too long, i would like to switch to something else before winter when it will hold moisture even longer.

Nice Chris, EPC 183 is a monster sized leaf early on.
~ Mary

Great job, Chris...please tell us the ingredients in your mix...it looks terrific! Fondly, Patrick

Is that Diatomite I see in your potting mix? I truly love that stuff and I would say it is my favourite thing to add to keep the mix open and airy yet while still holding moisture.
Your plants look fantastic and that mounted Hoya serpens is especially appealing. I love to grow the smaller Hoyas mounted because they look so natural that way.

Mike

Thanks guys!

No diatomite. I like to keep my mix as cheap as possible, and diatomite is expensive here. I do use Turface, though, which has similar properties. My mix is 4 parts perlite, 3 parts fir bark, and 2 parts Turface. The perlite and Turface are sifted to remove fines. The lack of any fine material makes this mix extremely porous which is why I am able to start these cuttings in one gallon pots. I already see roots at the drainage holes of most of the pots, so they are definitely taking advantage of all the space.

{{gwi:35868}}

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-Chris

Looking good. Especially love the serpens mounted, I have some of it mounted also, doing well.

In fact all the Hoyas I mounted last spring are doing good, I'm kind of surprised.

Renee

Thanks Renee. I've been experimenting with growing various epiphytes mounted with locally collected live moss. It seems to work pretty well so far, but the moss isn't always as healthy as I'd like. I've only been using it around 8-10 months on the oldest ones, so time will tell how well it works in the long run.

-Chris

Apparently the floor dry they use to soak up oil spills in garages is also just small grade Diatomite, check Zappa Auto Parts or other suppliers for pricing. I get mine from a hydroponics store and it's expensive but I will have to go investigate the auto parts stores. A friends husband told us that little secret as he works in auto shops and his wife is a Hoya/plant grower.

The great thing about the mix you are using is that it will remain viable for a fairly long period without needing to be changed. All that air space means a vigorous healthy root system. I want to switch out some of my potting mixes for one like this as some of my Hoyas clearly do not like some of my experimental mixes.

Mike

i must say that im in love with your joy and serpens! i cant wait until i can either order a few plants or do a trade to get some more hoyas that ive had my eye on!

omg mike thank you for mentioning the oil spill stuff!!! my husband is a manager of a gas station (i used to work there too) and they get big bags of stuff to use when there is a oil or gas spill... i think ill have to have him grab me some!

Sure just be sure that it is not something else. Pour some water on it and if it sounds like Rice Krispies then it's Diatomite.

Mike

Oh, I forgot about Floor Dry. I got some at Napa Auto Parts and have used it with other plants. It works pretty much the same as Turface, but I like the color of Turface a bit more, so I stick with that. Price is similar as well. It's a great alternative, though. The stuff I've seen at hydro shops is much larger which may be good or bad depending on what you're looking for.

I use mixes similar to the one above (some with bark, some without, some with granite, some with perlite, but all similar in size and water retention) for just about all my potted plants (except orchids), and I have yet to find one that doesn't like it.

Amber, some oil absorbents are very durable and others turn to mush pretty quickly. It depends on how much they were heated during production. I know that Napa's Floor Dry (part# 8822) holds up very well in potting mixes. But be careful with others. Some people soak a sample in water overnight to see how it holds up before using it. Oh, and I know you weren't asking, but I'd love to do some trading as well. I have to be patient though and let my plants grow more. :(

-Chris

Chris do you find that you need to fertilize more often with this mix?
Tami

I always fertilize my plants at every watering, so I can't really say how they'd do with longer intervals between fertilizing. For me it's easier just to throw some fertilizer in my watering can than to try to remember when I last fertilized them. I imagine the bark and Turface would hold some nutrients for a while, but I couldn't say how long.

-Chris

do you think you could do just a fir bark and perlite mix? what qualities does the turface add to the mix? im only asking because i was looking online and my only option is having turface shipped to me (which cant be cheap!).

Turface is a very porous material that holds a lot of water internally so you might have to water more often without it. Have you checked the Turface website for distributors in your state? That's how I found mine.

Turface MVP

Another option is the Floor Dry from Napa Auto Parts that was mentioned above. It's white instead of tan colored, but is otherwise very similar to Turface.

Lava rock and pumice also hold a fair amount of moisture, but lava rock usually comes in big chunks and pumice is difficult to find away from the west coast. One product I've heard of some people using is Dry Stall (not to be confused with Stall Dry), a pumice product sold for horses which is an appropriate size for growing. I've tried emailing them to see if it's available locally, but have never gotten a response. Maybe a phone call is necessary.

Dry Stall

-Chris

@ Chris

This is a great thread! It's really fun to see the progress from where they started to how far they've come, in just 2.5 months time! Anyone who bellyaches about growing in a snowy state should be directed to this thread.

Your label strategy is really nice. Do you just print them out and laminate the paper afterward?

I agree that cv. Joy is an astounding grower. I like the way you've looped it around the pot. I haven't thought to do this with such a large leafed plant before, but you can get away with it, with such a nice mix. It looks fantastic.

I have to say that's the prettiest shot of the not macgregorii I've seen. It's growing very ornamentally for you - you must be giving it really good light.

You know, the 1424 is my favorite rigida and the 1669 is so different that at first I wasn't sure what I thought of it. I had expected more sharp pointy leaves. But now I really adore those voluminous rolling leaves. You're right, they look very strange exploding outward from a young plant.

Be sure to show us pictures if you make your own trellises. Knowing you, I'm sure they're going to put us all to shame. ;) Okay, well, at least me.

@ Mike

"if it sounds like Rice Krispies then it's Diatomite."

lol... just lol.

Thanks, gg!
"Your label strategy is really nice. Do you just print them out and laminate the paper afterward? "

I'm not sure which labels you're referring to. The ones in the first shot were just typed in my photo editor when I realized I couldn't read the original labels in my photo. The labels in my pots are written on blank plastic labels that I bought on eBay. "I have to say that's the prettiest shot of the not macgregorii I've seen. It's growing very ornamentally for you - you must be giving it really good light."

Thank you. It gets some protection from the polycarbonate and shade cloth on my greenhouse, but still gets quite a bit of natural light. I sometimes wonder if some Hoyas would do better outside for the summer. More light and air movement, but less humidity. I don't know. As long as they grow well and flower in the greenhouse it's probably not worth the effort to move them around. "Be sure to show us pictures if you make your own trellises. Knowing you, I'm sure they're going to put us all to shame. ;) Okay, well, at least me."

Ha, don't count on it. I'm thinking of going to Home Depot and looking for some aluminum wire, or whatever strikes me, and seeing what I can come up with. I need to hurry though. My H. cv. Joy is starting to wind itself around one of its neighbors. I'll post a pic if the trellises are a success.

-Chris

Hehe Yeah, I was talking about the photo editor ones. That's funny. :P

Probably different Hoyas would prosper in each situation. I think yours grow plenty vigorously - I don't think you have to worry about the bother of moving them back and forth either. Maybe it would be fun to experiment with one or two that originate in climates with stronger sun and less humidity.