How to Grow and Care for Hoya Plants

Hoyas are a popular and easy-to-grow houseplant that are native to Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Islands. The common name for Hoyas are “wax plants”; they are fast-growing plants that you can train to climb up an object like a vine or trail over the edge of a planter. They are beautiful in a hanging basket or just in a planter on your bookshelf.

These tropical plants are named after Thomas Hoy, an 18th-century botanist, and the Scottish botanist Robert Brown brought them into the western world. They feature beautiful deep green vining foliage, and, if you’re lucky, pink and burgundy star-shaped flowers.

Related: Learn to Care for Pilea Plants, Parlor Palms, Calathea, Fiddle Leaf Figs, Golden Pothos, Snake Plants, Rubber Trees, Christmas Cactus, Orchids, and String of Pearls Plants.

How Often Should I Water Hoya Plants?

Your Hoya plant does not like to sit in soggy water, so after you give it a good drink, let it dry out most of the way before watering again. You can check the moisture level by sticking your finger into the plant at the soil line and once the top few inches of soil feel dry you can water again.

If you don’t allow the plant to fully dry out, it can develop root rot if the soil is too wet and that can kill the plant.

Containers with drainage holes are essential to keep Hoyas happy as they will allow excess water to drain out the bottom, so make sure to dump out any excess water left in the saucer after watering.

How Much Sunlight Do Hoya Plants Need?

Hoyas love bright indirect sunlight, so keep them near a sunny area but out of direct sunlight, as that can lead to vines with leaf burn with scorched or discolored leaves.

While Hoyas can survive in lower light situations, low-light Hoyas tend to grow leggier than those grown near bright light. If the Hoya is placed in an area where the light is too low, the leaves will begin to brown and the plant will stop growing.

Should I Fertilize My Hoya Plant?

For optimal growth, you can use an all-purpose fertilizer on your Hoya during the growing season (spring and summer) when it is starting to grow new leaves. You can feed the plant less in the winter while the plant’s growth slows, but overall the fertilizer should increase the health and beauty of your plant.

Temperature and Humidity for Hoya Plants

The Hoya prefers temperatures between 68°-75°, so generally it will be pretty happy indoors. Keep Hoya away from vents or cold drafts to reduce temperature shock, and if your plants are in an area that drops below 68° they will go into a dormant state and not flower. On the other hand, higher temperatures above 75° may cause the leaves to start to yellow and drop off, so it’s important to try and keep your Hoya in the right temperature zone.

If growing outdoors, the hardiness varies by species and some varieties can live in USDA zones 8-11, but all should be brought in once temperatures drop down below 50°.

As a tropical plant, the Hoya enjoys high humidity around 60%, so you can use a humidifier nearby (especially if your air is dry) or you can put some pebbles and water in a tray and simply place your pot on top. Just add water to right below the top of the pebbles and the pot will sit on top of the stones and the water in the tray will evaporate, creating humidity around the plant. Because of the higher humidity, a bathroom can also be a good spot for Hoyas provided there is enough light there.

Pruning Hoya Plants

Hoyas don’t usually require much pruning, but to keep the plant looking tidy you can always cut off any damaged leaves as needed with a sharp pair of sterilized scissors.

Make sure to not cut any tendrils the plant sends out though as it will fill those with leaves eventually over time.

Repotting Hoya Plants

When choosing soil for your Hoya plant, you’ll want soil that has good drainage to avoid root rot, so you can use either a cactus or succulent potting mix or a general well-draining potting mix with some perlite or orchid bark mixed in (at a 1:1 ratio) for even better water flow. Because they are epiphytes like orchids (meaning they are a plant that grows on the surface of another plant), they especially don’t want a soggy soil situation.

It’s a good idea to replant your Hoya in a slightly bigger pot with fresh soil every 3 years or so in the spring (at the beginning of the growing season) to ensure that the roots have room to keep growing. If you ever see roots growing out the bottom of your pot’s drainage holes, then it’s definitely time to move it to a slightly larger container as soon as spring hits.

Propagating Hoya Plants

For propagation, you can easily use stem cuttings to propagate your Hoya by cutting stems with at least one leaf node and placing the stem into some water or moist soil. Roots will develop over the next few weeks and then you can replant the cutting into a pot with well-draining soil and water as needed as it continues to fully establish its roots.

How Do I Get My Hoya Plant to Bloom?

To encourage Hoya blooms (also called “porcelain flowers”) in the growing season, you’ll want to keep the plant near bright indirect light as Hoyas require a lot of light to bloom. In order to bloom, plants have to have reached maturity, which can take about 3-5 years.

You’ll also want to make sure that when you water your plant, you are doing deep waterings (the water is reaching the roots of your plant) to make sure the roots have enough moisture to produce its cluster of blooms. Don’t forget to fertilize in spring and summer as well with a fertilizer that includes phosphorus and nitrogen as that will encourage the flowers to form.

You’ll also want to use the tips in our humidity section (humidifier near by or base with pebbles and water) to keep the humidity above 40% and coax blooms from your plant.

You can also pinch back the stems right before early spring hits and that can encourage blooms to develop as well.

Planters should not be moved once flower buds appear or it may drop the buds before they bloom.

Different Varieties of Hoya Plants

Hoyas have a vast variety of species and cultivars to choose from, but here are a few of the most popular varieties:

• Krimson Queen: These Hoyas feature pale pink leaves that fade to a beautiful cream color.
• Hoya Obovata: This variety has rounded dark green leaves with silvery speckling.
• Hoya Kerrii: Heart-shaped leaves and sweet fragrant flowers are the pride of this Hoya plant.
• Hoya Australis: Spade-shaped leaves shoot in a more upward fashion on this plant and the leaves are soft to the touch.
• Hoya Compacta: Also called a Hindu Rope Plant due to its curled and twisted leaves that resemble a rope.
• Hoya Carnosa: Also referred to as a Krinkle 8, this plant is a cultivar with 8 dimples on each foliage.
• Hoya Lacunosa: This plant has lance-shaped leaves that are small and bright green with clusters of fuzzy white flowers.

Diagnosing Common Problems

• Leaf Drop or Black Leaves: Hoyas can experience these issues when they are getting too waterlogged from overwatering or being in too cool of a temperature in the winter months. Try letting the plant dry out almost completely before watering again if you suspect overwatering (and make sure it has well-draining soil and a saucer to empty extra water into) or move it to a warmer area of your house between 68°-75° if cooler temperatures are the issue.
• Pests: If your plant is invaded by mealybugs, spider mites, or aphids, keep some neem oil or some insecticidal soap on hand to combat pests.
• Plant Not Flowering: If your mature Hoya isn’t flowering during the growing season, usually lack of light is the first thing to blame. Make sure to move it to an area with bright yet indirect light and check the other items in our flower growth tips to encourage your plant to bloom.
• Wrinkled Leaves: Leaves that appear wrinkled are usually a sign of underwatering so give your plant a drink and check the water levels often so you aren’t waiting until the plant has been dry for a while before watering again.