Monday, January 13, 2014

Hoya is my Current Passion

I have been telling my friends in blogs and in FB that I am currently hooked on hoyas. It started last year and at the moment continues to go strong. When i realized that most of them are endemic here in the Philippines, the enthusiasm is even aggravated. I attend exhibits, garden shows, lectures, plant exchanges, and more, and even if i am not trying to buy every species for my collection, i realized they are already plenty.In the beginning, i chose only those with bright colors and easy to care for, then i looked for those with bigger umbels. I again realized that even those with small umbels are so beautiful, they are attractive on their own, specially when they are managed as hanging plants with profuse flowering. 

The trend with me might be different if i am staying at home, where they are maintained. My sister and nephew, and my 84 yrs old mother water them, care for them. I only see them occassionally on some weekends i have time for the province.  They are still small, so only a few of them flowers, and not simultaneously yet. 

I bought this one already as a mature mother plant. After a few weeks it showed an umbel, in time I am home for the Christmas holidays. I am so ecstatic. I watch it when i wake up, tend to the plant, and visit it many times during the day. I almost see the flower change size. For a hoya lover, even just the beginning of a new growth is wonderful enough, much more the blooming of the flowers! It took almost 2 weeks before the whole umbel bloom.

I realized it is more amazing if viewed through a photograph. My sister was thoroughly awed when she saw this picture and also that below. The minute hairs on the corolla are very visible, as well as the fine lines longitudinal to the lobes. The details of the corona are also obvious.

 Here i changed the white balance, and the color becomes more wonderful. Nobody will say they do not like this. It looks so spectacular.

 This color is more like the real thing, more near the truth. But it isn't the color that matters. It also depends on the size of the umbel. Yes it has a lot of flowers in an umbel, and it has a slight scent, but do you know the size of this umbel? I will tell you later.

 This is the whole umbel at another angle. Do you still love it?

And this is how it looked during its last day, 4 days specifically from opening, before the flowers drop. It still looks nice, do you agree?

But if i tell you that the umbel diameter is just 1.0 inch, would you still like it?

My sister actually laughed when she saw the photographs, because the actual flowers are difficult to see when with the mother plant. She wasn't able to see it unless i showed it to her, i actually waved off the leaves for her to see the flowers! Can you beat that? I now envision a hanging plant with many developing umbels, by that time, am sure my sister will appreciate it more fully. And by that time, i will also not have a second thought in appreciating this species, Hoya camphorifolia.

18 comments:

  1. Gorgeous! A tiny beauty but a beauty all the same.

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  2. really nice; thanks for sharing; have a nice Tuesday

    much love...

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  3. Well you already know that I've been loving your hoya macros on FB - great to see them here on the blog too. Such beautiful little flowers that are great macro subjects... no wonder your sister was in awe.

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  4. It's a great passion to have. The Hoya blooms are so fascinating. Maybe we all need to look closely to really appreciate them, but you can't mistake their beauty.

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  5. Beautiful!
    Happy Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day!
    Lea

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  6. Hoyas are lovely. They smell good too, as I remember. Happy Bloom Day.

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  7. I have seen hoya on blogs before and often thought I really want one – or perhaps two or three! Thanks for firing up on my interest, perhaps I can finally get myself one of these lovely plants that we over here in Britain have to keep as houseplants.
    Happy GBBD!

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  8. Andrea, I've had a hoya as an indoor plant for years. It provides beautiful variegated color, is super easy to grow, and is very forgiving. Mine finally bloomed once last year. Your photos are lovely.

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  9. We gardeners are strange folk, getting so excited about a tiny new flower or a special snowdrop that to everyone else looks the same as the species and can't understand what the fuss is about. Great macro shots, lovely to see the details.

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  10. Beautiful flowers and lovely macro shots. They are tiny and I like the color. Have a happy day!

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  11. Hoyas have such unique and beautiful flowers, no wonder you have a passion for them.

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  12. very pretty hoyas; you will miss them some times

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  13. That is one of the most interesting flowers. Very pretty and unique.
    Cher

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  14. They are beautiful little flowers, and I have them on my window sill too :-)

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  15. They are very pretty - I would not have guessed their size.

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  16. Never heard of these flowers until now! Thanks for sharing your passion!

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