Hoya Macrophylla: Best Grow & Care Guide

Hoya macrophylla is a succulent plant whose porcelain-like foliage is a beautiful add-on to your home decor, but you need to put a little effort into maintenance. 

Coming across Hoya macrophylla is not easy in the local market for its rarity.

However, once you get a hold of it, you can propagate and make a collection or share it among your friends and family. 

Overview of Hoya Macrophylla

As a native of the Borneo rainforest, Hoya macrophylla has taken over houses from Eastern Asia to Australia to the United States.

Hoya Macrophylla:  A Detailed Care Guide

Hoya macrophylla thrives in limestone areas naturally and loves sweet, alkaline soil, which makes it different than other houseplants.

If the information is still confusing and abstract, scroll down to know the descriptive need of Hoya macrophylla.

1. Sunlight & Temperature

Hoya macrophylla prefers to be under bright indirect light and can tolerate full sun if provided with partial shade with warm and optimum warmness.

East-facing windows ensure your plant is not under the reach of direct light, as scorching rays may burn the leaves and turn them yellow.

Also, these Hoya species make good outdoor hanging plants in the tropical zone.

But remember to bring them inside before frost hits and keep them under proper light to prevent leggy growth.

Also, cold drafts below 60ºF can hamper Hoyas’ growth, while below 35ºF will kill the plants.

So better to cover them with frost blankets and install grow lights in case of low light.

2. Watering & Humidity

Watering in Hoyas is the toughest task to succeed in as they do not like wet feet.

Allow the potting mix or soil to dry out completely before watering, and check at least an inch of topsoil and bottom soil from the drainage hole for any moisture.

But refrain from keeping long dryness, and low humidity as the plant might undergo underwatering, making the leaves bristle and wrinkle.

Also, do not overwater the plant, as it might suffer from root rot and turn yellow.

So it is better to install humidifiers or fill the tray under the pot with pebbles on hot days.

You can even shift the plants to the kitchen and bathroom as they have high moisture in the air.

3. Soil & Fertilization

Choose a soil with higher porousness that is well-draining and slightly acidic to alkaline with richness in organic matter.

You can opt for commercial potting mixes for Hoya macrophylla, like Hoya Potting Mix and Harris Potting Mix, formerly enriched with added fertilizers.

Meanwhile, you can also make a DIY recipe using perlite and orchid mix in a ratio of 1:1 or mixing peat moss with perlite in a 2:1 ratio.

When feeding, do not fertilize the plant generously as it may suffocate the plants and make the root black-brown, with brown leaf margins.

And during under-fertilization, the plant ceases its entire growth and turns the leaves pale and yellow.

So keep a regular check on your plant requirement and alternatively use orchid fertilizer to nourish Hoya.

4. Potting & Repotting

Choose a pot that makes your Hoya macrophylla slightly root-bound, as constricted roots encourage the plant to bloom.

With that said, an unglazed terracotta pot with enough drainage holes and a diameter no bigger than 6 inches can home the plant.

These Hoya plants can stay in the same pot for at least 2 to 3 years before repotting.

The thing to keep in mind while repotting is to choose 2 inches wider containers than the previous.

Wait for 3 to 4 days after watering to remove the Hoyas root and any loose dirt from the old pot.

Meanwhile, be careful and extra kind while removing the roots to prevent stress and shock to the plant.

Afterward, fill the pot with airy soil mix, replant the Hoyas, cover the roots lightly with sand, and water it just to make the soil moist.

Avoid repotting in the fall and winter as the wrong time leads to stress causing the leaves to droop and wilt and, lastly, the plant to die instead of flourishing.

5. Occasional Pruning

Pruning is not mandatory in Hoya macrophylla, given their sluggish pace of growth, until you wish to make them compact.

However, trimming the plant becomes a vital need once they start to have dead, yellow and damaged leaves due to the attack of pests and diseases. 

Infestation includes mealy bugs and aphids, showing signs like tufts of cotton under the leaves leading to the curling and yellowing of the leaves.

So, this is the time to isolate the plants and prune off the pest-attacked leaves.

You can also employ a cotton swab dipped in alcohol to rub on the leaves, spray insecticidal soap and apply neem oil.

Besides pests, root rot, mold, and fungus growth are common problems under high humidity and temperature.

You can control the spread by cutting off the damaged leaves with the help sterilized garden scissor or garden pruner and spraying copper-rich fungicide.

Try repotting the plant if the rot is beyond cure. 

You can also watch the video for reference!

Hoya Macrophylla: All About the Growth Rate

This Hoya is a slow-growing succulent vine that gathers nutrients from the air, rain, fog, and mist.

As soon as the vine reaches maturity, you can enjoy the clustered, star-shaped, pink-white inflorescence growing from the peduncle every summer.

The foliage of Hoya can spread up to 2 feet wide in maturity under good care. 

And the leaves can go up to 6 inches long with yellow, white, or pink variegation from the borders over the green with a waxy shine.

Moreover, Hoya macrophylla blooms with purple stalks with a height of 1 to 3 inches during the late spring and summer.

If you go around this Hoya at night, you may get a chance to smell the fragrance of the flowers, which spread like chocolate mixed with stinky socks. 

Toxicity of Hoya Macrophylla

According to California Poison Control System (CPCS), Hoya Plants, including Hoya macrophylla, are non-toxic to pets and humans. 

However, avoid your pets and children mistreating or chewing the plant. If they happen to consume the Hoya plant, they can suffer from upset stomachs or vomiting. 

So, contact the helplines below if you find anything wrong with you or your pet due to Hoya macrophylla. 

• AAPCC: (800) 222-1222
• ASPCA Poison Center : (800) 426-4435

Propagation Methods for Hoya Macrophylla

Propagating Hoya in the spring and summer is easy if you know the steps and media required to multiply it.

The major role-playing in propagation is the stems, which you can grow in water media, sphagnum moss, or perlite or perform air layering.

1. Propagation via Stem Cuttings

Start the process by cutting a stem with a sterilized handheld snipper, leaving at least three nodes and about two leaves at the top.

Water Propagation

The name suggests the propagation media, but use fresh distilled water.

Firstly, fill the glass or container with fresh mineral water and put the cutting inside the cup.

Then, keep the cutting in a warm location and change the water weekly to prevent rotting.

Lastly, slowly fill the glass or cup with a spoonful of soil every two days, and the root develops in about four weeks.

Sphagnum Moss Propagation

If you have sphagnum moss, you must moisten it, fill a pot and plant the cutting by dipping in the rooting hormone.

But do not create a soggy condition while watering in the entire period.

Cover the pot with plastic and check for about 30-45 days to see root development.

After the rooting, you can put the cuttings into the soil mix appropriate to the Hoya macrophylla. 

Perlite Propagation

Start by putting the perlite in a plastic container and watering it. Allow it to soak for a few minutes, and drain out the excess water, allowing the perlite to be slightly damp.

Put the cutting in the container properly, leaving the leaves uncovered.

Lastly, cover the container with plastic or keep it inside a big zipper-lock bag to trap moisture and maintain humidity.

Try to keep it in an area having a temperature of about 72ºF for a better result.

Transplant the cutting only after at least 2 cm of the root has formed, ensuring their chances of adaptability to the soil.

2. Propagation via Air Layering

In air layering, you need to put a healthy stem from the mother Hoya macrophylla into another pot without cutting it from the mother.

But make sure the pot is about 2 to 4 inches deep with enough drainage holes and mix into it.

Then, clip the vine down with the help of small rock or floral pins to hold the stem until the root forms.

And remember to mist it once every two days. When the roots have formed, cut them off from the mother plant with sterilized scissors.

3. Propagation via Seeds

Propagating seeds is simple yet time-consuming in Hoya macrophylla as you need to save or buy the seeds.

After collecting seeds, prepare a well-draining potting mix and fill a pot and place the seed over the soil.

Then, cover the seed lightly with the potting mix and water it lightly to keep the soil moist, not soggy.

Continue watering until germination appears, usually within 4 to 5 weeks of planting and wait for 3 to 4 years to get the first bloom. 

Hoya Macrophylla: Plant on Sale

After knowing all the care tips, you can look for different sites to buy Hoya macrophylla, known as Hoya latifolia.

Some of them are in the table below.