Philadelphia Flower Show: not a lot of Hoyas

10 years ago

Today was the first day, and I went. First time for me at this show, and even though I knew it was big, I was still surprised at how huge it was! Trying to look at every plant carefully was probably a mistake - my brain was shutting down after a few hours.

Cacti and succulents were very well represented, disproportionately perhaps - both in the exhibitions and among vendors for sale. I am not much of a C&S person, but if you are, consider going if you are in this part of the country.

There was a big number of orchids of all kinds, shapes and sizes - totally amazing.

Hoya display was underwhelming compared to some of these other plant families. It was a table (pictured) with 7-8 large (not huge) to mid-sized plants, plus one or two others elsewhere in the exhibit. NONE were in bud or bloom, which surprised me a lot. I did not think to look for peduncles, and none jumped at me readily. These plants may have all been purely foliage plants and may have never bloomed, which is a shame, I think.

There were a couple Dischidias though - not the most interesting representatives of the family, but one was in bloom.

Among the plants for sale, only ONE vendor had ONE kind of Hoya: small pots of carnosa, Krimson Princess I think. Pathetic, but very representative of the general level of Hoya popularity in the US. When I asked the nice vendor lady if they or anyone else there had other Hoya species for sale, she told me she did not know others existed. :-)

Part of me wants to have a Hoya Society in here to promote and raise awareness and whatnot, but then I think, hey, I have a marginal hobby, which makes for interesting conversations - why not keep it that way! :-)

Featured Answer

greentoe357
Original Author

10 years ago

Finally, here's a sigillatis for you. They are not normally this red, but this one must be under a lot of light. Looks very nice, I think.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (11)

greentoe357
Original Author
10 years ago
But a few of these Hoyas were quite spectacular though. Here is a macrophylla. The photo doesn't do it justice. Think steaks growing on a vine - same size, same heft and seems like same thickness, too. Looked very cool.
greentoe357
Original Author
10 years ago
This kerii was also a site to see. I did not know their leaves can get this big and thick.
Related Professionals
Panama City Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Wareham Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Anderson Landscape Contractors · Pelham Landscape Contractors · Salem Landscape Contractors · Surprise Landscape Contractors · Matthews Landscape Contractors · Conroe Landscape Contractors · Indianapolis Landscape Contractors · Medford Landscape Contractors · Overland Park Landscape Contractors · Pikesville Landscape Contractors · Quincy Landscape Contractors · Suitland Landscape Contractors · La Vista Driveway Installation & Maintenance
Denise
10 years ago
Very nice. We have our local C&S show in June each year, and I'm the only one who enters Hoyas and Dischidias in the show. They have a class under the family Asclepiadaceae. They almost look out of place in a cactus show, but they are, technically, succulents since they are epiphytic.

I'm trying to figure out what kind won the blue ribbon. Did you happen to notice? Maybe a pubicalyx? The one next to it with the white ribbon looks almost identical in the photo...

Denise in Omaha
vermonthoyas
10 years ago
Greentoe, Thank you for posting the pictures from the Philadelphia Flower Show. I really enjoyed looking at them. There might not have been very many represented, but I liked how they were displayed. The macrophylla was particularly eye catching with the cool wire form that it was growing on. It seems like most times when I try to make sharp bends like that with a Hoya vine, it dies back and re-sprouts at the bend.

Doug
greentoe357
Original Author
10 years ago
Sorry, Denise, I didn't snap a picture of the blue ribbon plant or remember its name.

Doug, I thought the triangular wire must be a little harsh on the macrophylla and looked jarring and unnatural. The trellis did have a sort of architectural feel to it though, a bolder look than a round wire or a bamboo loop would create.
greentoe357
Original Author
10 years ago
Oh, and here's an obovata for you. It was also very impressive.
puglvr1
10 years ago
Thanks for posting the great pictures greentoe!! Enjoyed looking at them :o)
teisa
10 years ago
Oh wow GT, I bet you were in amazement! I wold have been. Those are some very impressive Hoyas! I love the H. Macrophylla. And totally agree with Doug, that mine doesn't seem all that trainable! It grows large but I have many vines and shoots everywhere!

And of course, my new love H. Signillatis! That was a beauty! Thank you for sharing with us your trip! I was thrilled to see the pictures!!
goddess9
10 years ago
I just went to the Flower Show today, and I was definitely a little underwhelmed with the presence of Hoyas at the show, for sale or for show. There was H. carnosa in a display and those 4 Hoyas for show. I didn't see any Hoyas for sale, but I tried to get my plants and go after I was done with the show, LOL.

Anyone can submit their plant for judging, so I guess people in my area just need to start entering them! :)

I didn't see the sigilatis or the obovata. I saw a motoskei instead.
greentoe357
Original Author
10 years ago
Yes, I think one of those was a motoskei. But looks like they halved the hoya display. When I was there, there wasn't just 4. there were about 8 hoyas on display - most of them on the table in my first picture, one or two were elsewhere. I only took individual pics of the most impressive ones, There was a curtisii which looked exactly like a big box H. curtisii would look. And I didn't photograph a plain carnosa - it was a healthy shiny plant, but you know, it's a carnosa. :-)

The only type of Hoya for sale I saw was H. carnosa Tricolor aka "Krimson Queen" - 3' or 4' pots for $4 or $5, with discounts if you buy any 3 plants in those small pots.