Oh yes, and on the non-Hoya side of things, I have a Begonia 'Maid Marion' that is attempt 4... and I will just shoot myself in the head if it dies on me again. Also a variegated Episcia 'Pink Smoke' that I tipped over with another flat and almost had a meltdown over.

Why is it always ME that creates the most damage and not THE CAT (although Zeno did try to grab the end of one of my new cuttings from David and run off with it, but that's another story for another future thread).

Well, first things first---We NEED to see a picture of this heart thumping Hoya sp. 22 Khao Yai...I looked for it on the internet and couldn't find a photo...

Second of all---I've noticed that, in my house anyway, the very hoya I happen to be most emotionally invested in at the moment is the one most likely to fall, blow, or be levitated off its shelf and crash to the floor...I don't know why this is, but it's true...

And finally, for me, it would probably be my newly rooted H. motoskei cutting....I know it's common, but I love the thick round leaves with random polka dots and the felty, fuzzy undersurface of the leaves...plus, it came with a peduncle..also, my H. sp. Tanna Island, which I've had for 3-4 years...This summer it's gone berserk, to the point that I've totally lost control, and long octopus-like tantacles have broken free from the bamboo hoop and are shooting off for yards all around it, catching in my hair, other plants, the deck railing, etc...I finally found, for the first time ever, a tiny peduncle on one of the longer "arms"...hooray!! And lastly (for the moment), my H. pachyclada---again, because I love to pet its fat smooth leaves...and it's currently putting out a plump green finger of new growth from the base of the plant, and I like to look at that too...

Ah yes, I share your love for the nice felty leaves and plants that go berserk. Don't you feel loved when they do that? Everyone raves about sp. Tanna Island. I want one!

I think they changed Flickr b/c now I can't embed pictures while at work, but there's a link to sp. Khao Yai below. It looks about the same now except that all the little leaf nodes are filling in nicely.

dmichael claims it is indistinguishable from ssp. 24 Nakorn Sri Thumarat and suspects it to be a clone of rigida, which I could see. I have rigida IML 1424 from Joni which is also quite striking, but I think the Khao Yai is particularly alluring to me b/c of its dark greeny-purple veiny rolling leaves. Plus, I have an affinity for Hoyas that strike out confidently with thick meandering vines.

Here is a link that might be useful: sp. Khao Yai pictured here

GG, lovely! It does shoot those vines out, doesn't it?!

Carolyn

here's a pic of a leaf from each of 4 hoyas that I grow which I believe to all be the same species or at least very closely related.
#1. H. rigida
#2. H. sp 22 Khao Yai
#3. H. sp 24 Nakorn Sri Thumarat
#4. H. sp Thai #3

Two of the 4 have bloomed so far and even the flowers look like those of hoya rigida by all accounts.. The sp 24 leaf has not matured yet but will turn just as dark green as the others are.

GG,

Looks like (from your view) that you're living down in the Old Market? I love the cobblestone streets down there. I live in old mid-town Omaha, so it's just a hop-skip-jump from where you are. Have you spent much time down in the Old Market on Saturdays? There's a guy down there that sells stuff who used to be my "succulent guru" many years ago - you can't miss him... He dresses in drag and does NOT make a pretty woman! But OMG he knows SO much about succs!! And then there's a very nice guy from my cactus/succulent club who sells vegetables - Tom. He works at the university and I've gotten tons of Dischidia cuttings from him.

Anyway, looks like you have some nice big windows there. What direction is your exposure?

Now, as for my can't-live-without species, ones I would be crushed if they were destroyed, I'd have to say macrophylla, fungii, and one of my newest ones - globulosa. They're fabulous, take-my-breath-away Hoyas. Others that have warmed their way into my heart as permenant favorites are macgillivrayii, onychoides and archboldiana, all from the same complex I believe. Gorgeous plants with spectacular flowers (if you can get them to bloom!)

Denise in Omaha

Hmmmm . . . the plant I love the most . . . The one I cry about when ANYTHING on it turns ANY shade of yellow . . . my pretty little obscura. Got it from Hawaii, last year. It's got to be my favorite hoya . . . the leaves and flowers are so cute!!!!

Carolyn

Carolyn,

Was it an established plant or a cutting? Obscura is one that grows like a WEED once it gets going. Mine got so terribly potbound in a 5" pot that I moved it up to a 12" pot. It's settled in to that one and is now a remarkably huge plant. I love it too!

Denise in Omaha

Denise, it was an established plant . . . Two plants in one pot, actually. It was doing great, until my parrot knocked it off the shelf a month or so ago . . .now, it's trying to get settled back in. :)

Carolyn

Thanks for the photo of your heart-throb hoya GG...it IS very handsome, and does remind me of rigida, which I also have from Joni and also love...if you were to visit my collection, the rigida is probably the hoya that would first grab your attention--just SO glossy and vein-y and mottled and wonderful...

I was going to ask whether you think yours is related to rigida, but then dmichael kindly posted the leaf comparisons...it sure looks like they're all part of the same complex, if not variations of the same plant...

David. Thanks so much for sharing the leaf comparison picture. I really enjoyed the similarities and secretly plotting to collect them all. I once thought about starting the thread "Of what hoya would you like to find other similar plants?" and now you've simplified things for me.^_~

Denise. Yes, that shot was taken in the corporate apartment where I'd been staying, which is above Old Chicago in the Old Market. (That window faced South)

Now, of course, I've moved and I live off of Farnam at the crest of the hill between Old Market and midtown. I'm operating with western, eastern, and northern exposures in my new place. I've got to get a new light meter - I broke mine leaving it on top of the radiator lol.

I haven't spent many weekends in Omaha yet, but I have been down there on a few Saturdays and I'll be down there every Saturday now. I'll keep a lookout for those two. The guru sells succulents at the farmer's market or something else?

I just unpacked a couple of lovely generous globulosa cuttings from David last night and I'm so excited that it's one of your favorite. Also excited to photograph my new additions as soon as I can find where my camera is hiding in the chaos.

Sberg. That particular rigida is super cool. The leaves are so hard and pointy they're like daggers. How old is yours? I can't wait till mine grows up and I can build a defensive perimeter with it.

Okay, I forgot my most favoritest plant EVER! When I first got H. sipitanguensis, I was sooooooooooooooo disappointed. It was one plant, with two short woody vines and about 10 leaves. About 6 leaves fell off in the first two weeks. It was ugly and sad, and soon to be a goner . . .

In the early spring, it started growing . . . and it hasn't stopped! I wrapped each vine twice, now and it's COVERED in leaves. I LOVE IT!!!! I baby this plant. And to think . . . I almost threw it away . . .

Carolyn

I don't know if I have a favorite, I guess I just like them all. I know that my Hoya lambii is high on the list but many others are small and have not flowered yet so it is hard to judge them against each other.

I do love the leaves on my ILM 1029 Kapit Borneo but it has not been a fast grower.

Hoya polystachya is my most beautiful Hoya to date and it has become quite large since the spring.

My Hoya tsangii is beginning to grow into a beautiful plant and that one is a favorite because it is so delicate looking. Here it is as a cutting, I really should take some updated photos.

Hoya parvifolia is definitely a favorite but I don't have a photo of that one yet, it's just starting to fill out and has been kinda slow.

I also have a soft spot for the more unusual smaller species and my latest Hoya crush is on a new collection that is thought to be the type of Hoya pusilla vs what everyone has labeled as this species. Check out the link for the photos, I nearly screamed when I saw this plant! I feel the same about Hoya sp YLK EPC 229 that is displayed on the Epiphytica home page. Too bad these newly collected species are so expensive, maybe some day. LOL

Mike

Here is a link that might be useful: Hoya pusilla

LOL Mike---no one can accuse you of not having passion for your plants....as I get older I find fewer and fewer things make me nearly scream, but sometimes a hoya does...

The flowers are amazing--delicate and translucent, but oddly weird---I keep thinking of a cluster of newt eyes...a concept that I find quite attractive :-D....

GG--My rigida came early this year, but it's grown nearly a foot since then and has probably a dozen leaves...they DO look like daggers, but they feel like patent leather (yummmm)...

SR

Newt eyes, yeah I can see that. LOL
I admit it I'm a total Hoya freak. :)

Mike

Hoya pusilla is tripping me out in a good way! I thought frog eggs, but I like newt eyes even more! I have to wonder who is more of the freak, though... Mike screaming over a sexy new plant or sberg finding clusters of newt eyes attractive. ^_~

I know one thing for sure, though. From now on whenever I see a really neat new Hoya I'll hear a tiny Mike shrieking in my head.

ACKKKK....I can't get the apodagis link to work! Help - I MUST see this pusilla! Went to the www.apodagis.com and went through every hoya page, but I must be missing it...

Thanks in advance for the help!
Kelly

Kelly I just took a look and it seems to have been taken down, was with the other Hoya pusilla on page 4.

Mike

Mike,
I was able to find it! It definitely was taken down from the site, but when I searched "apodagis true pusilla" and clicked on the "cached" link - it brings it up! YIKES - I love it, too! Defintely can see reptile eyes...
Kelly

Kelly, wanna post a link to what you found? I can't find it!!!

Carolyn

GW isn't accepting the link, try copying and pasting the below or doing what I did above from Yahoo search,

http://74.6.239.185/search/srpcache?ei=UTF-8&p=apodagis+true+pusilla&fr=yfp-t-892&u=http://cc.bingj.com/cache.aspx?q=apodagis+true+pusilla&d=4979129934283729&mkt=en-US&setlang=en-US&w=17d3c49f,2d4a9fca&icp=1&.intl=us&sig=Z3tK8PpfjaUcWgBg7lCAIg--

Thanks, Kelly! Wow, that is a cool plant! The flowers look like fish eyes to me . . . weird. ;)

Carolyn