Hoya linearis | 2-Inch

Hoya linearis are very unique and I don't know of any plant quite like them. They are a bit hard to root so I recommend you don't buy cuttings. They are one of my favorite varieties of hoyas because of how cool they look when they are mature.

They can be hard to root and hard to make them happy, but once you figure it out, they reward you with fast growth and they can be really easy in the correct conditions. On the other hand, if you don't make them happy, they can go downhill really fast.

I often have large plants on my website so you may want to check out that listing.

Leaves

The leaves are hard to describe. They are long and thin, a little fuzzy, and seem a bit like succulents in the way the leaf seems like it is filled with water. Does that even make sense? A large, full, hanging basket is so pretty and so hard not to touch.

Flowers

It haven't gotten my plant to bloom yet but I've seen photos and they are pretty basic, white hoya flowers. What is really pretty is when it gets a whole bunch of blooms all at once and the hanging basket is full of flowers. 

Growth

Like most hoya, they take a while to root and get started growing, but once they do, they grow quite fast for me. I would say they get new leaves once every week or two after they are rooted.

Soil

I have experimented with different potting mediums over the years for hoyas and this one does fine in any of them once it is established. My favorite substrate currently is Lezchuza Pon or a DIY pon mix of 4 parts pumice from my local garden center, 2 parts lava rock, and 1 part zeolite.

Water 

Linearis are really hard to get started because the stems get mushy really easily. It's important to keep them moist (not wet or dry). Once they get established, they can be really easy and grow really fast. I like self-watering pots for them so they don't dry out and don't get too much water. They also like to be cooler (try never to let them get above 77 degrees) and they can dry out easily so keep them away from heating/cooling vents.

Light

The general advice is bright light with no direct sun - but that has never been helpful to me. If you are growing near a window,  keep them a few inches away from a south window or directly in a north window to start then move them around if they look like they could use more or less light. I can tell you that I grow mine with the top of the plant about 5-7 inches away from a Barrina T5 grow light for 14 hours a day. I do recommend a light meter so you can check the amount of light. Mine are generally at about 200-300 foot candles. You can tell it isn't getting enough light if it is leggy or slow growing.

Humidity and Temperature

These prefer less heat and humidity than many other hoyas. They like to stay under 77F so they do well in normal household conditions.

Fertilizer

I add Tezula Plants MSU Fertilizer to my watering can every time I water.

When to Repot

These tend to have a relatively small root system and prefer small pots and they take a long time to get root-bound. I would stick with the pot it's in as long as it's happy in it and isn't root-bound. When you do repot, only go up one inch in size. I use these 2-inch pots for all my small hoyas and these 3-inch pots for all my larger ones.

Pests

These can be susceptible to pests because of their soft leaves so I always make sure to keep up on my routine pest control to keep these happy.

For my routine pest control I currently rotate weekly between PureCrop1 (good for all-around killing pests on contact), Horticultural Oil (for flat mites), and AzaMax (liquid systemic that takes about three weeks to start working but will then protect your plant from anything that tries to eat it).

Propagating

Normally with hoyas, you don't need a node in the dirt and can have one node above the dirt and they will grow. However, with Linearis I propagate them like any other plant and put one node in the dirt with the leaves cut off and one node above the dirt with the leaves still on it, like you would do with any other plant, such as a pothos.

I plant them directly in a small pot full of substrate, stick the cutting in the mix, and keep it consistently moist. If you don't have already at least 60% humidity, you can do something like put it in a take-out container or Rubbermaid box to increase the humidity for a week or two then gradually get it used to regular household humidity once it has a few roots. 

Are hoyas toxic to pets?

Good news! They are non-toxic to cats and dogs.

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