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pirate_girl

Unadvertised Tip about Home Depot ('HD')

pirate_girl
12 years ago

Hi Folks,

For those who have limited Hoya buying options near them or Newbies getting some Hoyas at Home Depot, I've discovered a good thing & recently made use of it for the 2nd time in a couple of years. Time to share the wealth.

HD doesn't tell publicize this, but they guarantee their plants for one year. So if the plant fails, one can return it w/ receipt &/or original pot for an exchange (my usual) or a credit.

I recently did this w/a hanging pot of EA Hoya Chelsea which I really liked (it had bronzy tones on new growth). I had removed the drip tray & even swapped out their mix for mine, yet couldn't get the plant to settle in (did get a couple of cuttings tho'). So when I realized the hanging H Chelsea was dead, I thought I'd try an exchange.

I took back this 6-8" hanging pot which cost about $14 & exchanged it for 4 small pots of other stuff (3" pots, $2.99 each), 3 small pots of H. KP, EA calls it picta or rubra & 1 small pot of my beloved Balfour Aralia (my favorite plant of ALL TIME). These little ones are locally distributed I think, not EA & don't have mix issues, I'll just pot them in my mixes & resettle them. I'd even mislayed the receipt, but since I had the original pot, they could scan the Bar Code & also they can check one's credit card to check the purchase.

So when you lose that HD Hoya, 'cause of the infernal EA mix & you've tried everything you can think of to save it, pls. take the carcass back to HD (embarassing, even when bagged up, but I've done this), get an exchange & grow something else better!

Karen

Comments (20)

  • Denise
    12 years ago

    Hi Karen,

    I've heard this but have never tried to bring one back myself. I may start keeping my HD receipts. I bet Lowe's has the same policy...

    Denise in Omaha

  • Ament
    12 years ago

    I know Lowes does for all their other plants/trees. So why not for their potted house plants? :) We have a local Lowes. I'll have to stop there and ask... while there, see if they have any hoya. I bought a Chelsea and what was labeled as a Rubra but recently found out it isn't a Rubra, it's something else. Anyone able to tell me what these two are? Earth Angel is the company that sells them to Walmart.

    ~Tina

  • eileen44_gardener
    12 years ago

    Hi Tina... I hope if what I now suggest is incorrect, someone with more knowledge will correct me.. so as a newbie, I'm going out on a limb here... a week ago today I purchased a Rubra (tag was on it) at HD... it is an EA Hoya; so beautiful. It was confirmed on this forum that it is also known as "Krimson Princess"... "she" has beautiful variegated leaves.. cream w/green edges and some of the younger "vines"/stems are "pinkish"... so perhaps that is what you refer to when you say your Rubra is "something else". All hoya friends .. please jump in here and please confirm or correct.. Thanks. Eileen

  • pirate_girl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Hey there Denise,

    It's worth trying especially in this day & age w/ money being what it is. Besides, it just pissed me off to have killed what started out as a very nice looking bronze colored H. Chelsea. Those round leaves w/ their dents & in bronze yet, the likes of which I'd never seen before!

    Besides, the worst they can do is say no, right?

    Hi Tina,

    My experience w/ HD Hoyas is that what they call Rubra tends to be Krimson Princess (variegation on inner part of the leaf).

    Can you post any pix? We'd sure try to help you ID it (them), (guessing Exotic Angel is what you mean).

  • paul_
    12 years ago

    Hmmm, at the HD by me I have been told that they don't do the 1yr guarantee. Perhaps it was the worker who was there or a regional thing. Lowes on the other hand does have have that policy and I have made use of it more than once.

  • mdahms1979
    12 years ago

    This is where it pays to write out the whole name because it helps new growers know just what they are looking at.

    Hoya carnosa 'Chelsea'
    Hoya carnosa 'Krimson Princess'
    Hoya carnosa 'Krimson Queen'
    Hoya carnosa 'Rubra' or perhaps Hoya carnosa var.rubra

    These are all horticultural selections made of Hoya carnosa and they would have either been seed grown plants or mutations.

    Mike

  • RainforestGuy
    12 years ago

    Just a FYI. When you bring back any dead plants for replacement, it is the grower that must eat the cost of this. I do not believe that a nursery should guarantee any plant for a year. That's submental.
    So I guess we should all "rent" our Easter lilies from them as well since they are not expected to live any longer than a few weeks after they have flowered out. And I guess we'll just "rent" poinsettias as well. This does not set a good image for growers that supply these big box retailers. If this is the case why buy fertilizers or any pesticides, just buy the flowering plant in prime condition and return it after it dies. That's a good idea. And for those who subscribe to this sort of "destruction of the farm industry" practice, don't be surprised, one day, when all your food comes from China as well! Because the American consumer put the farming-floricutlural industry out of business.

  • Ament
    12 years ago

    Thank you everyone!

    Hoya carnosa "Krimson Princess" Gotcha

    Hoya carnosa "Chelsea"

    Now, I went out with hubby and found two other hoya, at Lowes. One is labeled Hoya "Stripes" and the second labeled Hoya carnosa. No further labeling on either of them. Yeah, Total newb here, So if anyone has pictures of these four lovelies and wants to share them. We could start another thread or continue in this one? Either works for me. :)

    Thanks goes to Brad aka Moonwolf for sparking my curiosity about Hoyas. LoL

    ~Tina

  • RainforestGuy
    12 years ago

    ALL the Hoya carnosa cultivars (with PP/PPA) have been artificially mutated using various chemicals (i.e. colchicine, IAA, NAA etc.) Others have been done and only recently (last ten years) been brought out to the public. Some are not worthy as they rarely or never flower.

  • pirate_girl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    RFG,

    Could you pls. define PP/PPA, otherwise it'a rather difficult to know what you're talking about. Am guessing most folks here don't know what the other initials stand for either.

    Perhaps you're trying to be helpful, but when you use initials & terminology new to this Board, it's tough to know what you're saying.

    Hiya Tina,

    Short answer, there's no Hoya 'stripes'; EA invented this name & the correct name is Hoya curtisii. Pls. search that for pix. The H. carnosa is harder to say it could be anything.

    Perhaps Tina if you search for the pix, you'll have an easier time matching to them than asking us to post pix which may or may not fit what you bought.

    The best suggestion I have is look for my old list called something like Pirate_Girl's list of correctly named Hoyas ( which should save you this effort if you buy EA Hoyas). Many folks have said it helped them in this area.

  • RainforestGuy
    12 years ago

    I need to check this list too!

    As for PP/PPA: Plant Patented, Plant Patent Applied for
    i.e. Krimson Princess, Mauna Lei/loa, Rubra, Picta, etc. all CULTIVAR names

    None of these occur naturally in the wild. All are artificially produced. Not from seeds.

  • mdahms1979
    12 years ago

    This is why you sometimes see a little sticker saying that propagation of these plants is prohibited by law, the process is patented.

    Chemicals like Colchicine (from the Autumn Crocus) are used to make plants with unusually high chromosome counts. You can end up with a diploid or even tetraploid and this is how artificial manipulation results in bigger more vigorous plants and bigger flowers. With selective breeding and artificial manipulation you get plants with much improved flower presentation and colour with the aim of improving over the natural form.

    Mike

  • Ament
    12 years ago

    Well, Since I'm not the one naming these hoya(Thank gods!) I'm grateful I'm not the one to rock this miserable boat. :)

    Anyway, I found Exotic Angels website and managed to find two of the four Hoya. The Rubra being a Hoya "Krimson Princess". The Stripes being a Hoya "curtisii".

    Pirate_Girl, I did go through *all* of the images that Exotic Angel has and did not find the other two hoya, Unfortunately.

    I did send an email to Exotic Angel questioning them about the care and information about Hoya "Chelsea" since it isn't listed on their website. :) I should have also asked about Hoya carnosa, since it too isn't listed on their site either.

    Now back to reading past posts and trying to soak up information. LoL :)

    ~Tina

  • puglvr1
    12 years ago

    Here you go...

    Here is a link that might be useful: PG' s List of EA Hoyas (with Corrected Names)

  • RainforestGuy
    12 years ago

    all the species name should be in lower case followed by "H." or "Hoya"
    i.e. H. polyneura
    H. carnosa v. Compacta
    H. sheperdii (lose the "h")
    H. curtisii
    H. carnosa Tricolor is only correctly named as "Krimson Queen" if the flowers are a deep mauve pink. Tricolor denotes the variegation with marginal variegations in pink, green and white.
    H. tsangii (I would still use DS-70 or at least keep it along with the tag since tsangii is not a properly named species.
    H. carnosa
    H. linearis
    H. lacunosa
    H. carnosa compacta regalis (this variety is the variegated compacta form)
    Rubra is not necessarily Krimson Princess, however H. carnosa Rubra has red new leaves and darker flowers (not pink) more deep mauve, buds appear blackish before opening. Krimson Princess has central variegated centers and new growth reddish-pink, fading to clear ivory-cream as it matures.
    Shooting star is Centrostemma multiflora, this should be taken out of hoya since their pollinia structure is so vastly different from hoya, if you lump this with hoyas, then dischidias should also be a part of hoyas
    Sulawesi is different than DS-70. Not sure what sualewesi you are referring to but tehse come from two locations and is different species.
    Be careful of what you call Rubra, Variegated leaf as there are several forms of variegated carnosa cultivars: variegation on the edge is called variegata (no pink) or tricolor (if it has pink), The name medio picta may also be found and this would denote Hoya carnosa Krimson Princess. But with darker colored pink-mauve flowers.
    Variegated wax leaf must have a central variegation (not marginal) to be considered Krimson Princess.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Hoya patented varieties

  • Ament
    12 years ago

    So much information! Whew!

    The Exotic Angel tag on the "Rubra" is why said it's a Rubra. Another who is interested in Hoyas informed me that it is/should be called a "Krimson Princess". I'll try to get photos of all 4 hoyas. However none are in bloom or even close to blooming yet. :(

    3 of the 4 hoya are in a southern exposure window, the 4th is in a northern window. According to the tag the 4th requires lower light, that's why I placed it in the northern window.

    I truly do appreciate all the information, even if I cannot figure it all out clearly due to the simple fact that the four hoya I have cannot be clearly identified until they bloom. :)

    ~Tina

  • eileen44_gardener
    12 years ago

    Tina... I'm with you.. it was a great read regarding all the double naming etc.; informative to say the least.. but the 2 hanging baskets from HD that I have, though they have the "correct" variegation to qualify them as KQ and KP (and the KP had a "Rubra" tag)... we'll just have to wait and see!... I love them nevertheless. The leaves are stunning! Eileen

  • Ament
    12 years ago

    Very true Eileen, I've been admiring mine. The one they call Stripes, Which according to everything else I've heard is curtisii, mine doesn't look like a curtisii. So I'll have to wait for this one to bloom and take a photo of it. I'll take one here this weekend too, prior to blooms, just keeping for growth records. :)

    ~Tina

  • arlee7
    6 years ago

    Hey Everyone!

    New to Houzz, signed up because anytime I googled anything hoya related, houzz would have awesome discussions. I'm in search of a hoya chelsea and a hindu rope hoya, both of which I've heard can be found at home depot. What I'm wondering is which home depots?? I live in the Bay area (northern california) and it seems like only the east coast HDs have hoyas. Any tips for your california girl?

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