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quinnfyre

August updates

quinnfyre
13 years ago

Just thought I'd kick out an update as to how things are going. I now have new growth peeping out from sp. Square leaf cutting no. 1! Cutting no. 2 is starting to perk up ever so slightly, so it may make it after all. Pubicalyx 'Chimera' has put out a couple new leaves, and the newest one is almost jet black. But, it is showing signs of wanting to drop the rest of its older leaves. Not the absolute worst thing in the world, but I hate it when I have negative progress. And speaking of negative progress, parviflora has taken a fairly rapid downward turn. It is dropping leaves left and right. I have it in a bag to keep the humidity up and to help it recover. I hope that helps. Erythrostemma 'Cotton Candy' is also worrying me somewhat. The leaves are getting softer and it has dropped some leaves as well. Patella (white form) is also in a bag, but this is preemptive. It's so small, that I would rather it have some help to start out.

On the up side, finlaysonii is putting out a new leaf! And villosa has decided to start growing. I feel like it must like fluorescent light, because one week after setting it under a 23W CFL, it began growing. Cagayanensis started growing too (hooray!) but it is not under lights.

Fastest growers so far: sp. Tanna Island, buotii, benguetensis, lacunosa and lacunosa 'Royal Flush', calycina, obovata (variegated), retusa, speckled carnosa, and pubicalyx 'Pink Silver'. But my only bloomers were speckled lacunosa (a few times, then it dropped all peduncles) and wayetti, which may finally be done blooming for now.

I will try taking some pics in the next few days. How are all your hoyas doing? Anything particularly exciting or pleasing going on? I've been seeing some nice pics of blooms lately.

Comments (22)

  • wrynsmom
    13 years ago

    Wow! Your plants are either happy or sad . . .no in between! Glad most are lookin' good for ya. How's linearis doin' for ya? I took cuttings for myself, as well, and potted them in coco fiber (the mat kind). I just spritz water over it every day. It really seems to like it, so far. We'll see in a month if the cuttings are still alive. I figured I'd do a little experimenting and see what happened. :)

    Guess what! I'm expecting a box of cuttings, tomorrow, for PA! hahaha Woohoo!!!!! Want me to take pics and send them to you as soon as I open the box? I'm so curious!

    Post some pics, Quinn!!!!! Would love to see all your pretty plants' progress. (I love alliteration.)

    Carolyn

  • quinnfyre
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Oh, I have some in betweens. There's just nothing interesting to say about in betweens. Like, oh, heuschkeliana is looking nice but not really growing much. Krimson Queen grew some more. Variegated macrophylla grew a new leaf. You see what I mean? : )

    I won't know if linearis decides to take until it does. It hasn't dried out, so I'm guessing it's making the attempt at rooting. I can't remember how long it took last time for it to root in Hydroton. We shall see what it decides to do.

    I hope the cuttings are still good. I guess people have talked about cuttings being in the mail for twenty some days, so I guess 8 days isn't the worst. Still, it's a lot worse than the 2 days it was supposed to take. Bah.

    This will be my first time trying to take pics of the Mylar covered corner. It will probably look like a spaceship, ha : ) I'll give it a couple days, because a: it will be my day off (yay!) and b: the newly growing leaves might be bigger by then, and easier to photograph.

    What is blooming right now, and is not a hoya, but is really exciting: Restrepia striata. I'll try and get a pic of it. The blooms look very insectlike, really neat! I don't think they last super long though, compared to other orchids.

  • wrynsmom
    13 years ago

    Good point. ;) I don't know . . .in my case, if variegated macrophylla grew a new leaf, I'd be having a party!

    My big basket of linearis hates me! Seriously! But the little pot of misted cuttings are doing great. I think I may have figured out how to grow it, here! hahaha Woohoo!!!!!

    Days off are the best. On the one hand, I have every day off . . . and on the other, I haven't had a day off in over 10 years, and won't for another 10, at least! hahaha

    I can't wait to see Restrepia striata. Now, I'm just overly curious!

    Carolyn

  • quinnfyre
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Ok, as promised, some pics. Well, maybe a lot of pics. Hope no one minds (sorry, if there are any dial up people out there...)

    Restrepia striata:

    The corner covered in Mylar:

    Cute little baby villosa leaves:

    And a baby finlaysonii leaf:

    Not a hoya, but Scindapsis pictus 'Exotica'. This seems to grow one leaf per year. This is the first year that I might get a second leaf in the same year:

    {{gwi:101264}}

    Multiflora has buds:

    Chimera's new black leaf:

    More pics to come...

  • cpawl
    13 years ago

    Quinn,keep the photos coming.I love to see how other people grow there hoyas.
    This winter I plan to use Mylar to help with my lack of light.Your set up looks great.
    I was thinking about taking some pics tomorrow of a few hoyas that are blooming.

    Cindy

  • quinnfyre
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Buotii's looking good this year:

    Lacunosa's doing beautifully, but still no blooms yet:

    Sp. Tanna Island is still the fastest growing hoya I own, but no signs of blooming anytime soon:

    Calycina is gorgeous:

    Here's an unknown dischidia that I believe is sp. Green Diamond, as seen on Asiatica's website:

    One of those crazy colored subcalva leaves. First one this year that isn't a solid green. This is a different plant from the one that had the colorful leaf last year:

    Benguetensis grows fast, and looks beautiful! I'm so glad I got one of these:

    Cagayanensis is putting out some new growth. You can sort of see a bit of the shimmer I was talking about in this pic:

    Fitchii has amazing leaves!:

    And finally, my little Royal Flush cutting is doing quite well. It has been growing a lot:

    That's it, for now!

  • wrynsmom
    13 years ago

    Wow! Those are BEAUTIFUL! My lacunosa cuttings NEVER look that good. They get wilty before they decide to grow!

    Good growing!!!!

    Carolyn

  • quinnfyre
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    I start lacunosa in a terrarium, and water the leaves daily. And the soil stays moist at all times. They only come out of the terrarium when they're quite established. That has worked well for me. Also, that lacunosa pictured above never goes dry. Not even the surface. I feel the leaves and if they start feeling limp at all, I water it. It seems weird to water something that much, for me, but it really loves to stay moist and grows a lot for it. Speckled leaf is the exception. I've accidentally let that go dry before, and it didn't seem to react at all.

  • mdahms1979
    13 years ago

    Quinn despite the few you mentioned that you are having problems with the rest of your Hoyas look very happy and healthy.
    The Restrepia's bloom is cute although it looks to be upside down in the first photo. That Scindapsis pictus you have is another cool plant, you can even get the leaves to shingle like Hoya imbricata if you provide a flat surface for them to grow on. Is that a little Pleurothallis grobyi in the last pic?
    Thanks for the update, it's fun to see what others are growing.

    Mike

  • quinnfyre
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Nope, not upside down. That's the way it grows! This is the third bloom from it in the past few weeks. Pretty exciting!

    The little pleuro in the last pic is actually Pleurothallis ornata, and I moved it to the side because it was yellowing and dropping leaves, so I feel like maybe it got too much light? It seems to be stabilizing now, but we'll see. It has the weirdest flowers. Actually, I have a pic:

    I DO have a grobyi though. It hasn't flowered for me in a while, but it is quite the dense mat of leaves now. Unfortunately, it is in the case that has snail issues, so it can never leave that case. However, it looks great, and is probably doing the best out of all my orchids in there, so I guess that works out okay for it after all.

  • mdahms1979
    13 years ago

    Have you been shopping at Andy's? LOL
    That is a fairly uncommon Pleuro, congrats on blooming it. My little Pleuro brighamii has not bloomed for a good long time, maybe I should move it into my growing case because I am sure it will be happier there. Some of those tiny little orchid are just so cool.

    Mike

  • quinnfyre
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Ha! I got this one in person, at an orchid show. Andy is always there at this particular show, but I've never actually gotten to speak with him, as he is often surrounded by people. Grobyi is one I ordered from them a few years ago. Also from Andy's: Chaemangis/microterangis hariotiana (orchid show, last year), and Aerangis mystacidii. I did have an Angraecum didieri from them once, but it actually didn't like being in my orchid case, and died. I have another one now, from Oak Hill, that lives outside the cases hanging off my plant shelves, that is doing much better. Oh, and a Pleurothallis amparoana, which didn't like being moved to another case and also died. I found a new one at the same orchid show, but from a different vendor. I am dying to see it bloom; there's a reason why it is also affectionately known as the Fuzzy Toilet Bowl orchid ; )

    Also, I forgot to mention... that's fascinating to know about Scindapsis pictus! I have the more common version too, the one often called satin pothos.

  • mdahms1979
    13 years ago

    Oh my that Pleurothallis amparoana is adorable and yes I can easily imagine fuzzy slippers or urinals, too cute to be a bathroom fixture. LOL

    Mike

  • moonwolf_gw
    13 years ago

    Let's see....I have lacunosa blooming/in bud and limoniaca, mindorensis and verticillata in buds. All the rest of the gang are growing new leaves. I'm hoping to see buds on the rest of my plants soon.

    I am however, aquiring new cuttings to my collection! Not a hoya but a Ceropegia woodii (string of hearts)!

    Brad AKA Moonwolf

  • greedygh0st
    13 years ago

    Thanks a lot for the detailed lacunosa tips, Quinn. I've never been shiningly successful with these guys. Apparently I really need to break away from my terror of overwatering.

    I just love that Pleurothallis ornata and the mounting you have it on is especially beautiful. It looks like it should be on a wall scroll.

    Glad you photographed the villosa leaves, too! I was musing on them in another thread and I've been meaning to take a picture for days. I just love those little guys.

  • quinnfyre
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    I had to make myself go for it. I am an underwaterer by nature. I don't think I've ever killed anything by overwatering it, but underwatering? Whew. I'm not even going to think about how many. The nice thing is, lacunosa tells you when it wants water. Usually, the leaves are very firm. They almost feel fake, like plastic. When they start feeling flexible though, it wants water. This does not work with young leaves, which are always flexible; you gotta feel the established leaves.

    Yes, villosa is adorable! I really wish the new growth it came with decided to stick around. It made me think of fairy tales, perhaps Jack and the Beanstalk? It was a lovely vine. That big scar to the right of the new leaves is where it was : ( But hooray for new growth!

  • PRO
    Jan Sword-Rossman Realty 239-470-6061
    13 years ago

    All the plants look great!

  • greedygh0st
    13 years ago

    I've been groaning about the new growth of many of my recent additions dying off, too. Is there any way to prevent this? I'm not sure whether it's due to imperfect handling on my end or just transition stress. Sometimes it seems like they're going to keep it for a week and then the next thing I know, it's started to decline back to the node.

    lol You're right about the plastic feel. I was just rubbing lacunosa 'Ruby Sue' this morning and thinking the same thing. She's moist but maybe she needs even more water because her leaves definitely don't look as rigid as your 'Royal Flush.'

  • PRO
    SRQHoyas
    13 years ago

    GG,
    To prevent the 'dying back to the node' be sure the stem is NOT clipped facing downward. It will always die back if clipping this way.

    Joni

  • wrynsmom
    13 years ago

    I always get die back on the new growth when I receive a plant in the mail - clip or no clip. :)

    Carolyn

  • quinnfyre
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    I almost always lose new growth from a newly shipped plant as well. I just chalk it up to traveling stress. They usually recover in a week or two.

    I never thought neem smelled all that bad... until I decided to spray all my plants down as a preventative. Blech! Gag! In an enclosed space (bathroom) and even with the fan going, it is pungent. I'm flushing the soil of a bunch of them too, to keep the fertilizer salts down. Quite a process. I'm actually still in the middle of it, but I needed a small break.

    I did manage to get some pics of a couple harder to access hoyas in my collection. Wayetti took a break from blooming, so I decided it was safe to extricate it from its spot. There's a patch in the middle that is bleached almost yellow, so it's getting a lot of light. That's why it was blooming so much. I figured that was the case, but now I've actually gotten to see it. Variegated obovata is looking good. But it definitely seems like it will be a heavy plant.

    Ok, back to the stinky neem spraying process. Also, I think I will end up with RSI from pulling the trigger on that spray bottle so much... ah well... hoping to keep critters at bay for a while, at least.

  • moonwolf_gw
    13 years ago

    Here are the buds on my mindorensis and verticillata.

    Mindorensis

    Verticillata

    Brad AKA Moonwolf

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