Depends. If the stem is starting to rot, then I will trim off the funky stuff and try again. If it's just being a slow poke, I wait. And then wait some more. I've had a couple not do anything for half a year, and then all of the sudden throw tons of shoots. Did you try using rooting hormone?

ETA: I've never been into the water rooting method, but I had a nice cutting of "Noelle" that was slowly losing the battle, so I popped it in a vase of water instead of throwing it away, and literally a week later, it had roots. Transferred back into some mix, and voila, I now have a viable cutting.

Light for more then 12 hours a day. Bottom heat while the lights are on. No heat when light are off ( mimic natural temp variation in night and day) humidity 70 to 90%Ventilation to minimize mold and damping off( stem rot).

Okay, thanks. What about plants that the same thing is happening to? Can you cut the roots off and about a 1/4 inch of the stem and start over the same way you would a cutting?

You can..prob with some leaf loss or yellowing,especially with the older lower leaves, if there a lot of leaves on it.In that case just make multiple cuttings!

I am having the same trouble. My lobbii still has not rooted, australis "Mrs G" is taking its sweet time, and nothing yet that I can tell on a few others. And then, my davidcummingiana which I thought would be the toughest is putting out new growth already, go figure.

Most are on the leave it alone for now plan, lobbii is now under my fluorescent and about to be bagged, curtissii I transferred yet again, this time to New Zealand long fiber spahgnum. I do tend to fuss over my rooting cuttings, and use clear containers for most so I can see what is up. If the cutting looks healthy I leave it alone, if it is looking frazzled I start experimenting.

Quick question about propagation, is it required that you make the bottommost set of nodes (where the leaves used to be but you have cut off) the part you dip in rooting hormone? Or if you can take any part of the stem where you have cut and cover that in rooting hormone will roots sprout? Just wondering if the node is the only place roots will emerge on the plant when you submerge it in medium or if they will emerge all along the stem when planted below the surface.

Roots typically grow from the node, however I have seen roots growing out of the cut end where there was not a node, and less commonly in between. My general preference is to put as long a piece of healthy stem into a pot as I can to encourage rooting and to anchor the plant. If the cutting is smaller, I sometimes use half of a paperclip to anchor it in the medium. I also use a rooting hormone, most of the time at least.

I root one of two ways:

Take a cutting directly above two leaf nodes:

Check to make sure the area I am rooting is not too short or too long (my rule of thumb: one inch for short internodes, like lacunosa, with bottommost leaves removed, 2 inches for longer internodes). If too long, I cut back to between 2-2.5 inches, too short, I remove lower leaves on cutting:

Place in pot, and wait!

Generally, with my first method, roots tend to grow en masse just underneath the first set of leaves, but they do grow all along the stem exposed to the potting media.

I have had greater success with my second method.

I plan out my cutting:

Make my cutting (this time, right UNDER a set of leaves):

Remove the bottom two leaves on my cutting:

Place in pot, and wait!

With this method, roots grow en masse from right where the first set of leaves above the potting medium AND en masse from the area where I removed the bottom two leaves on the cutting, which is an inch or two below the soil line. Like the first method, roots do grow all along the part of the cutting in the potting medium, but not as concentrated as they grow right under the leaf nodes.

This method works very well for top heavy growers, like rigida, latifolia, and nervosa, providing a second large root system for more stability. It also works well for those with small internode space, like lacunosa, khroniana, heuschkeliana, chinghuensis and lithophytica, providing you with extra length to insert into your potting medium.

I have also noticed with my second method, many times (60ish%), a new stem will shoot up from the area under the potting media, where I removed the leaves.

I have mostly stopped using rooting hormone, partly out of sheer laziness, and partly because my confidence with rooting has spiked, and I am now completely comfortable rooting most hoyas without it. If I am having a particularly rough time with rooting something (not gonna badmouth any of my hoyas,*cough*, lobbii and loherii, *cough*), I will use rooting hormone in conjuction with bottom heat and a humidity dome.

Hope this helps!

Oh, if you use rooting hormone:

Take care not to get any rooting hormone on leaves or petioles.

Wow thank you thank you! This is exactly what I needed. I planted three cuttings I ordered online, two of which I used your second method and one of which I used the first method because the bottomost set of leaves had a peduncle! Definitely didn't want to chop that guy off.

I live in Colorado where we have next to no humidity in the air, but the room I have the cuttings in I have a humidifier set to 60%. These cuttings are pubicalyx RHP, should I cover them with a bag or are they pretty quick to root? Thanks again

Pubicalyx is quite simple to root! That being said, if they start looking super unhappy (most cuttings will start looking slightly wrinkly), bag them!

Pubicalyx will root quickly in water often in 1 week. I've just made several cuttings like that.

I've rooted tons of Hoya since this post, I do not use the water method unless with Pubicalyx or Carnosa. This is my most recent water-rooted Pubicalyx, photo is of the mother plant/Susan's plant flowering :)

I love that flower!! Which pubicalyx is that, klnco?

Am guessing Royal Hawaii Purple? Really is stunning!

That is on my wish list, Beautiful

adding that to my whishlist, it is beautiful