The plants and garden are at home in my province, and i can't just normally drop by every afternoon after office hours. It takes at least 4-5 hours to go home, so the most normal routine for me is going home every other week. However, just recently i made it a point, no matter how tired I am during the weekdays, to go home every weeked. And that is to keep track of my hoyas blooming for the first time. Seeing them change morphology from opening till a few days before they drop is also very interesting.
This is Hoya pubicalyx that i watched opening from the first flower till all the flowers are open. It is a consolation to be doing just that, watch and shoot!
They normally open in the late afternoon, and starts emitting scents on the process. That is to attract insects for pollination, and the scent is even magnified at night luring the nocturnal insects like moths.
The flower buds take a longer time, from a few weeks to months from emergence to blooming. But even just the buds are consolation enough and very nice to photographs. This species is known to produce big almost round umbels, that really catch the fancy of both plain gardeners and addicts alike.
Look at that small insect nymph, it somehow take shelter on the safety of its pedicels (flower stalk). I just don't know if it is an enemy or just resting there. If it is a sucking insect, most probably it is an enemy.
Two plants adjacent to each other and flowering at the same time or simultaneously is a sight to behold. And the scent near them is a bit overpowering to the senses. The beauty of this species is the long number of days before they fell. For 7-8 days they are there expressing their beauty and lure passers-by!
What about you, aren't you a hoya addict yet? I warned you! It is very contagious.
Thank you for sharing images of this fascinating plant. I grew some many many years ago, including a black one! You may just have inspired me to start growing them again!
ReplyDeleteOh come on Valerie, join us in growing hoyas again! I am sure you already miss them. It's not yet late they will still reward you with lots of flowers.
Deletelovely flowers kind of complicated structures to some of them
ReplyDeleteBeautiful flowers, excellent captures.
ReplyDeleteNIce views of these lovely little flowers.
ReplyDeleteI didn't really know much about Hoyas until I started following your blog. They are fascinating. They seem to come in so many shapes and colors.
ReplyDeleteThanks Beth, i am glad i was instrumental in making you appreciate hoyas. Just less than 200 species are endemic to the Philippines.
DeleteCan totally see and understand why you are addicted.
ReplyDeleteWith an addiction like that, you need not apologise!
ReplyDeleteRed Buildings
Not a Hoya addict yet, but a plant addict I am! Fascinating flowers...
ReplyDeleteThese are lovely. Can't stop staring at these images!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful plant with such lovely blooms. I can see why you are addicted to them and would travel back to make sure you didn't miss the flowers.
ReplyDelete