Synonyms:

Asclepias carnosa
Cynanchum carnosum
Hoya carnosa var. gushanica
Hoya chinensis
Hoya compacta
Hoya crassifolia
Hoya intermedia
Hoya motoskei
Hoya rotundifolia
Hoya skinneriana
Schollia carnosa
Schollia chinensis
Schollia crassifolia
Stapelia chinensis

Habitat:

H. carnosa compacta is native to China South-Central, China Southeast, Hainan, Japan, Laos, Nansei-shoto and Taiwan

Description:

H. carnosa compacta is a slow growing, climbing succulent belonging to the Asclepiadaceae botanical family. The plant can reach up to 10 m in height and needs a support to develop. Leaves are ovate, bright green in color, glossy, lightly fleshy, and with a waxy surface. Shoots are smooth, pale grey in color and climb and writhe. Blooming occurs from late spring to early summer and blossom are borne in tufts. The plant produces umbels of 10 to 30 small scented flowers. They are star-shaped made of 5 petals, light pink on the outside and creamy yellow and red inside.

Cultivation:

This is a pretty plant, easy to cultivate. The best sun-exposure is full sunlight, and the plant does not like temperatures below 10 °C so it needs to be placed indoors. The soil should be mixed with pumice, clay and loam to allow the drainage and prevent the root rot, the plant is prone to it indeed. Remember to use perforating pot to drain excess water. Watering can be done regularly from May to September: during the vegetative period you can water the plant (every 7 days), checking that the soil is completely dry before watering again; in winter you should stop the watering to allow to the plant to enter dormancy. If you want a faster and lush growth you can fertilize the plant once a month during the growing season with the specifics fertilizers for cacti; stop fertilizing throughout the winter. If the pot starts to be too small for the plant you can repot the plant in a pot 2 cm wider. Repotting should be done early in the growing season with fresh new potting soil. Because the plant has a climbing habit it is necessary support pole for the development of the stem.

Propagation:

Propagation can be done by seed or by cutting. By seed is very simple to propagate the plant, it is enough to sow the seed in a sandy loam soil and keep it with high level of humidity. By cutting you can use leaf cuttings during the spring. Cut a leave and then let it dry; after a few days the cut surface will dry and a callus will form, then place the cutting in a mixture of sand, soil and pumice. To increase success of propagation you can cut two or more leaves at the same time. For cuttings is recommended temperatures around 20 °C. It is advisable to use rooting hormone at the base of the cut to energize root development.

Curiosity:

The name of these plants is a hymn to friendship: the botanist Robert Brown, who classified them during the eighteenth century, called Hoya in honor of his friend Thomas Hoy (and botanical lover).

Official Web Site:
www.giromagi.com

Italian Blog:
www.giromagicactus.com

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