Hi K&C! It depends on what you already have, but here are some that are on his list that I couldn't live without now that I have them...

amoena
any of those from the finlaysonii group!
archboldiana
deykeae (oo-la-la)
inconspicua
lambii (worth every penny)
latifolia (if you like large succulent leaves)
lobbii (an easy bloomer)
mitrata (very un-Hoya-like and cool!)
onychoides
pentaphlebia (just got one and LOVE the leaves!)
purpureo-fusca
sigillatis
thompsonii (sp?)
villosa

Sorry, girl! That's NOT gonna narrow it down for you much!! LOL!

Denise in Omaha

Ha! I only have one that you listed, the lobbii, and all the others are already on my wish list! lol We must think alike, you and I!

Hmmm, if this helps, I'd get something I couldn't easily get from someone else, like, say Joni at SRQ Hoyas. Since her plants are rooted (unless you get cuttings, obviously) I feel ahead of the game when I get plants vs. cuttings.

Me, personally? I want:

odetteae (very much!)
Dischidia hirsuta
ilagiarum

... aaaand that already puts me up to the $35 mark, doesn't it?

i agree with quinn, get whats not readily available somewhere else. Do be careful about ordering thin and dainty varieties as those dont travel well. But i do know this, you wont be disapointed!! yea sometimes they come looking like they've been through a war (most are grown out in the "wild") But they are always super healthy and eager to root this time of year. I love getting packages from Ted.

I guess it depends on your taste in Hoyas but these are some that I would recommend. I agree that some can be found at places like SRQ for a very good price and as rooted plants.

Hoya revolubilis
Hoya lucaredenasiana
Hoya loyceandrewsiana
Hoya meredithii
Hoya sp Kast
Hoya odetteae

Mike

I would have agreed with the rooted vs. unrooted a couple years ago. But I've made an observation over the last few years that has changed my opinion. I find that when I buy rooted plants from tropical areas, like Hawaii or even Florida, there's a very delicate and long adjustment period for them to get used to my VERY different environment. I've lost a lot of plants that came to me from those areas. Cuttings, on the other hand, root quickly and almost always start to grow immediately. It's like the cutting forgot where it came from and my VERY different environment makes no difference.

What I do find interesting, though, is that greenhouse grown plants from Florida, such as the EA plants and Gardino's plants, make the transition just fine.

I have a feeling there are no ill effects for people in the tropical areas when they get plants from the north. It seems like it would be easy for a plant to go from less-than-ideal conditions to it's dream climate!

Denise in Omaha

Great advice to go for the ones you can't get elsewhere. This is also what I always do.

What I recommend be on your list is 1. lucardenasiana. Not only is it very easy to root, but it grows generously right off the bat and your cutting will look JUST as beautiful as the picture in his catalog. This is probably the most pleased I've been with any plant I've purchased from TG. So that's $20.

Next, I'd put on 2. erythrina. This was on my first order to TG when I was still figuring things out and it still rooted easily. It is an extremely beautiful plant and, oddly, made prettier by the typical TG outdoor scarring.

If you already have erythrina, then I'd go for cv. Christine or latifolia (I really love my var. concolor and you feel like you're getting your money's worth with a sturdy giant thing like this ^_~) or odettea (also roots easily and is very cute). So that's $10.

For the remaining $5, I'd choose either bilobata, or montana! These are both cute plants that everyone should have.

I should say at this point that an equally recommended route would be to go for megalantha for $30 straight up. I did not find this one difficult to root and it is difficult to get elsewhere. It grows quite well, too, if you keep it cool and humid. Make sure you get the one collected on Taveuni. It is more difficult to root according to the Swedes, but it's worth it!

==========

Now, if it were me, (which I believe was the real question?) what I would be ordering is:

1. sp. Mindanao OR ilagiarum OR kloppenburgii
2. soligamiana OR sp. Germany OR D. rosea
3. D. acutifolia

... I didn't even have to look, because I made a list the other night. I just can't narrow it down. ^_^

So many fantastic Hoyas at his site....

I like the looks of Hoya buotii, Hoya calycina, Hoya sigillatis, and Hoya species USDA 354242.
I'm also a big fan of "Borneo Red" - sp. 93027.

Josh

This is easy:

1. sp. Kast $10
2. soligamiana $10
3. parvifolia $10
4. memoria $5

Beautiful plants!!! In fact, I ordered all of these from Ted, last year!

Carolyn

Josh,

I don't suppose your Grandpa Ted is up to adopting an "older child"? I figure your dad and I a pretty close to the same age and could be brother and sister! Then you could call me Auntie Denise! LOL!!

Can I coax you into telling us a little about Ted? I have found him funny and charming and a witty guy. Does your dad have other siblings? Are any of them interested in our hobby? How could they NOT be?? I bet he's thrilled to death his grandson is!

Denise in Omaha

Thanks for all the recommendations and ideas, guys. I'm SUPER excited! This will be my first order for cuttings, and I'm pretty sure I've already decided on lucardenasiana- it's beautiful! I'm narrowing down my other choices now, but I have to say, sp. Kast is up there in the top few! lol

Grandpa Ted...he really is a character...

He's the most widely traveled man I know, and he impresses me continually with his activity.
I always laugh when he visits. This is the guy who told me that all teenagers should be drowned at birth ;-)
I must have been a teen at the time. At another family dinner, maybe a Thanksgiving dinner,
he saw a lip-ring in my brother's lip and said, "Yeesh, you miss one therapy session..."

Ted has two sons, but I don't think my uncle is interested in plants, sadly.

Josh