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Hoya Pachyclada (Useful Information)

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The Hoya Pachyclada is a member of the Apocynaceae family. It is native to Thailand, Southeast Asia part, where many parts maybe found. It is the vining epiphyte with the succulent-like leaves.

Also, it’s well-known for its stunning flowers and attractive green leaves. Like other species, it produces small fragrant blossom clusters. This make this plant to be among the unique plants that produce gorgeous foliage and blooms. That said, you do need to take proper care of it to make it healthy.

Hoya Pachyclada
Hoya Pachyclada via Wikimedia

Hoya Pachyclada plant care

1. Light Requirements

The Hoya Pachyclada love plenty of light. Nevertheless, it can tolerate 2-3 hours of direct sunlight in the morning. Anything more than that or with more intensity, such as the afternoon sun or during the peak of summer, is too much for the plant. And it will cause the plant’s leaves to scorch.

So, it is best to provide your Hoya Pachyclada with indirect, filtered, or dappled light. This makes a spot near an east-facing window ideal.

It offer this plant many hours of sunlight though nothing overly harsh. Alternatively, positioning it in the south and west -facing windows needs more protection due to the intense afternoon rays.

Also, you want to be careful with too little light. While the plant has no problem with medium to low light, dark or dim areas will prevent it from growing. It will also make the plant be leggy and foam smaller leaves. Of course, it prevents blooming as well.

2. Temperature

The Hoya Pachyclada is native to Southeast Asia, more specifically Thailand. This makes it accustomed to moderate to warm conditions. The region is also well-known for its humidity.

As a result, the plant thrives when the temperature is kept between 70 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. And, it will not have a challenge even if when things get more than 95 ° F since that take place often in Thailand and also other Southeast Asia parts, particularly during the summertime.

3. Humidity

Similarly, Thailand’s high humidity also means the plants prefer indoor air moisture to stay at 60% or higher. Dry summers and cold winters are known for bringing the level of humidity even lower.

Therefore, you need to be cautious of these changes. A simple way to know precisely what humidity is on any day is to get a digital hygrometer. It will tell you the humidity in a specific room at that moment.

This lets you make the necessary adjustments if needed. If humidity is too low, the simplest solution is using a humidifier.

Although it costs a bit more and there’s some maintenance involved. Alternatively, you can mist the plant a few times a week or put it in the water tray above the pebbles.

Hoya Pachyclada 2
Hoya Pachyclada via Wikimedia

How Frequent to Water the Hoya Pachyclada

Water is the most challenging part of caring for Hoya Pachyclada. The plant does best with moist soil, but it is likewise susceptible to overwatering. So, you need to find a balance between the two and, you need to keep things consistent in this middle ground.

The plant has succulent-like leaves, which means it can store water. This also means it can tolerate dry spells. But it require regular watering in the growth periods to attain optimum development. Or else, the plant will be slightly stunted in leaf production and size.

The best way to keep the plant happy is to allow the soil to dry to about halfway (50%) between watering. This lets the plant have enough water while avoiding too much moisture, putting the plant’s roots at risk of rotting. Since the plant stores moisture in its leaves, it gives you a little bit more leeway on the dry side.

When watering, take the plant outside with a large sink in the backyard. This lets the soil soak by putting the hose on a surface and running gently.

When moisture begins dripping at the bottom from the drainage holes, stop the hose to allow excess water drain completely. This can take about 10-15 minutes.

Soil for Hoya Pachyclada

The ideal soil for Hoya Pachyclada is well-draining. Light and airy soil help allow the plant’s epiphytic roots to get more oxygen.

In the native habitat, this plant clings to the trees and gets water and nutrients from the air. Because of this they does not require soil to grow in. Thus, this is an option if you wish.

Although most growers like to keep the plant in containers, using a chunky and well-draining medium is ideal. Here, are some of the potting mixes, which work with Hoya Pachyclada.

  • Use the orchid potting mix. Typically, you can add bark or charcoal to make it chunkier for enhanced aeration.
  • You can prefer the combination of perlite, pine bark, and peat moss.
  • Houseplant potting mixture combined with the right amount of perlite given you have the potting mixture at home and you want to use that
  • Consistent potting soil with compost and coco coir if you want something more eco-friendly.

Fertilizer

The plant is supposed to be fertilizer during the growing period. Typically, this is between spring and summer. You can stop feeding in the fall and winter since the plant takes a breather from all its growing.

You can use a balanced liquid formulation diluted to half strength once a month. However, other growers who like to go higher on nitrogen encourage more vegetative growth.

If you decide to go with the latter, you can get a 2-1-2 or 3-1-2 blend instead. Also, suppose you find that the plant is not producing as much blooms or encouraging it to flower more.

In that case, you will switch to the 5-10-5 formulation that has average nitrogen that ensure less focus on the leaf development and more phosphorus that ensure better flowering.

Flowering

As with other hoya plants, Pachyclada care is not complete unless you talk about its flowers. These are beautiful to look at despite being small in size.

They make up for their lack of size with their gorgeous colors and growth as a cluster. They collectively look like popcorn or cauliflower florets if you don’t look closely. But, the more closely you look, you will see small some flowers, which grow in one group.

According to the Hoya Pachyclada valiety you have, the middle can be pink, white, or yellow. For the most part, there are about 10 to 30 per cluster. They look great because of their formation, and they appear during the spring and summer.

Pruning

While the Hoya Pachyclada is a vining plant, it does not get as messy as other hoya varieties. Therefore, it needs little pruning in addition to trimming for length and shape.

Likewise, be cautious when pruning because the flowers grow from the old spurs. Typically, trimming the old flower stems can reduce the flowering chances or decrease the blooms it produces.

As an alternative, you need to keep these together so that similar spurs can keep the producing flowers every year. Since the plant is a slow grower, it takes a while to grow a foot in length. So, you can focus on removing dead, discolored, or damaged leaves in the meantime.

Hoya Pachyclada Propagation

Hoya Pachyclada is best propagated from stem cuttings. You can choose between rooting it in water or soil. Both provide reasonable success rates, so your preference and expertise are up to you.

Stem cuttings use growing new plants from the stems of the plants. And, they allow you to get a clone of the other plant.

This is not the case if you get a new plant or start from seed. The latter also means a longer wait time with lower success rates due to germination. The best time to propagate the plant is during spring to early summer, as it will quickly root and grow soon after.

How to repot Hoya Pachyclada

Thanks to its epiphytic roots and slow growth, repotting is another low maintenance and lower priority task for the Hoya Pachyclada.

The only time you need to repot is when its roots are sticking out of the drainage holes at the bottom of the container. This often takes three or more years, depending on your plant’s care and living environment.

When the plant grows, you will see the vines spilling over the sides. Once you see some parts of the pot. Therefore, the décor on a pot is not too essential. Instead, it is a good idea to use a well-aerated container. A terracotta pot works well because of its porous nature.

You can likewise use a pot that has holes on the side. Or, if you want to DIY it, use a plastic container and drill some holes on the sides yourself. This will allow more air to circulate to the soil and reach the roots.

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Conclusion

Hoya Pachyclada is a vining epiphyte native to Thailand. Many loved it because of its oval leaves that soft point. The plant will produce doming clusters of white, star-shaped flowers that look like a bridal veil.