Name:   Hoya species and varieties, aka wax plant or wax flower.

Type of Plant: There are over 520 species of Hoya, which are semi-succulent plants. They are epiphytic plants, meaning that they grow on other plants in the wild, such as on branches and crotches of trunks of trees.

Epiphytic plants make good house plants because they don’t need to stay constantly moist, do well in lower light levels and don’t need high fertility.Hoyas are popular houseplants native to Asia, Australia and are also found in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Fiji and Thailand.

Why I Love this Plant:  I love them (maybe not quite as much as my friend Ellen) because they remain attractive in the house all winter and love going out to summer camp in the warmer months.

I appreciate that there are so many varieties available with different sized, shapes and colors of leaves. This is another reason that this plant is favored by plant collectors, like my friend Ellen Zachos. 

Who couldn’t fall in love with this flower? This one is the bloom of Hoya caudata. Thanks to Ellen Zachos for this image.

A Word to the Wise:  Grow these in clay pots with good drainage holes, and use a well-draining, organic potting mix. Keep them in a bright location but not a hot, sunny window. (I find that mine are very happy in Eastern facing windows.)

Backstory: A special introduction since these “I Love This Plant” have been a regular feature on GardenLine, heard on WXTK for the past 22 years. It is with great fondness and a touch of sadness that I tell you that this is my last program on WXTK. After 22 years on newsradio 95 I am moving to another station.

When I talked with my friend Ellen Zachos, who has been a guest on this show several times, what plant I should feature on my last show, her response was immediate: “The Hoya, of course! The greatest houseplant of all time!”  So this morning I am indeed featuring Hoya species and varieties, also called wax plant or wax flower.

This is a photo of Hoya wayettii that was given to me to use here by Ellen Zachos.

I admit that right now I only have one Hoya. This one started variegated but has reverted to all green in parts. I still value it.

Hoya obovata – a plant grown by my friend Ellen Zachos, and this photo supplied by her.

I took a photo today of just part of the Hoya collection at Hyannis Country Garden. Any of these plants, when put in
a slightly larger clay pot with the appropriate well-drained potting soil, will become a larger, lovely and reliable houseplant.