Got a box of plants from Dee today. She had saved a Hoya villosa for me since late fall/early winter. It's a very pretty plant!! Big, dark green, shiny leaves the veins are slightly distinct. I have a feeling that it's much like fungii - when you're looking at it with the sun behind it, I bet it's a masterpiece! I also got a Hoya cv. 'Ruthie', which is an eriostemma. She swears up and down that I can probably grow it. She says Carol calls it a "slutty" Hoya - it grows and flowers profusely. I guess we'll see... I haven't had any success so far with eriostemmas. The photos I've seen of the flowers are absolutely spectacular, so I HOPE I can grow it! Check 'em out:

http://www.bigislandgrowers.com/AHcomp/AHruth1.php

Stunning, huh?


I did some plant cleanup yesterday afternoon. It got cold last night (is supposed to again tonight) so couldn't leave any out on the porch. I did leave the ones that were already out (the Jades and a couple others) and covered them lightly. Anyway, my Aloe plicata is looking fabulous. I've got some Haworthias in around the base that look great, too. I really should do this with all my Haworthias that want to falter in winter months. It's like the ideal condition for them, it seems. I think what happens is the large plant they're growing with pulls the moisture down and away from the Haworthia so that it's less likely to get root rot. They get fat and happy and healthy looking. The large plant also provides some shade, but I think they get more sun than they would were I growing them alone. So in reality, I think Haworthias like more sun than we give them credit for. I'll have to post some photo examples when I get a chance...