Buying a hoya plant for your house is a great idea. These are very popular tropical houseplants that many people enjoy.
You’ve likely seen how beautiful these plants are. Perhaps your friends own some and you admire them when they’re blooming.
If you’ve had a hoya plant for a little while, you might be wondering if something is wrong with it if it isn’t blooming. What does it mean when a hoya plant isn’t flowering?
Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about this topic. It should help you to get to the bottom of the situation.
Not All Hoyas Bloom
Before going further, it’s important to understand that there are some major differences between hoya varieties. There are more than a hundred known types of hoyas out there.
Hoya plants are generally similar in certain ways, but they also have substantial differences. For example, not all hoyas are capable of producing blooms.
Some hoyas might produce blooms that aren’t recognizable as normal flowers. Others might not produce blooms at all.
When buying hoyas, it’s important to look up information. You want to know the type of hoya plant you’re looking at.
This makes it easy to ensure that you’re buying a hoya that is capable of flowering. If you don’t do this, you might buy a plant that will simply produce foliage.
When Do Hoyas Normally Bloom?
If a hoya plant is capable of blooming, it’s usually going to bloom during the spring and summer months. There might be some variations of exactly when the hoyas will bloom based on the species.
Even so, you can expect to see the plants bloom in the spring and summer. This doesn’t mean that all hoyas will bloom, though.
As mentioned above, some hoyas don’t bloom at all. Other types of hoyas are known to bloom rather easily.
There’s more to consider about this topic. Before assuming that you’re making mistakes, it’s best to consider all of the possibilities.
Some Hoyas Won’t Bloom the First Year
There are hoyas out there that won’t bloom during the first year. Some types of hoyas need to mature before they’ll be capable of blooming.
It might even be the case that it’ll take several years for hoyas to bloom normally. This isn’t always the case, but it can be if you have specific types of hoyas.
This just reinforces the fact that you need to look up information on a case-by-case basis. You can’t just rely on general information about hoyas.
Since there are different types of hoyas, it’s best to look up the situation for the type of hoya you own. Or if you’re looking into buying a hoya plant, you can look up the species to learn what it is and isn’t capable of.
You can avoid buying plants that won’t bloom until they mature if you’re impatient. Otherwise, you can simply care for the plant and enjoy seeing it bloom when the time is right.
How to Get a Hoya to Bloom
There are certain things that you can do to try to coax hoyas to bloom. Of course, you need to have the right type of hoya plant to be able to do this.
Assuming that you have the right type of plant, you can do things that will help the plant bloom. Below, you’ll read about different things that you should try to see if you can get the plant to bloom for you.
Ensure That the Plant Gets Enough Sunlight
Sunlight is important for the growth of the plant. If a plant doesn’t have sufficient sunlight it isn’t going to flower.
To get your plant to flower you must provide it with ideal sunlight conditions. This means exposing the plant to bright or medium sunlight.
Direct sunlight is too harsh for hoyas. You want to put the plant in a sunny window and filter the light through sheer curtains.
This will protect the plant from being scorched. It’s far more likely that the plant will flower if it’s getting plenty of sunlight during the day.
Water the Plant Properly
Watering the plant thoroughly is imperative. You don’t want to water it too much, though.
Hoyas should only be watered when the potting soil has dried out almost completely. So you should always touch the soil with your fingers to see if it’s time to water the plant.
When watering these plants, you want to water them deeply. Water the plant until the water starts coming out of the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot.
Remember to use distilled water and not tap water. Tap water contains harmful chemicals such as chlorine and fluoride.
You can get rid of these chemicals by leaving water out in the sun for 24 hours. It causes the chemicals to evaporate into the air.
Fertilize the Plant
Fertilizing the plant can also encourage flowering. You should only fertilize these plants between spring and autumn.
Start fertilizing in the early days of spring and stop once autumn begins. You’re only meant to fertilize hoyas once or twice per month.
Using liquid fertilizer is going to be the best choice. You can use a liquid fertilizer that is well-balanced and meant for houseplants.
If you use this once per month, it’ll help the hoya plant to have enough nutrients to flower. It should make a difference.
Repot the Plant When Necessary
Sometimes hoyas won’t bloom because they’ve grown too large for their pots. A hoya might become rootbound if it’s kept in a small pot.
When the pot is full of roots, it’s time to get a new pot. Buy a new pot that is one inch larger than the old one.
Fill the new pot with an appropriate potting mix. Orchid potting mix works well for these plants.
Once the plant is in its new pot, it’ll be easier for it to grow. You should check your hoya plant to see if it needs to be put in a new pot yearly.
Watch Out for Pests
Pests can stress plants and keep them from growing. They might even kill the plants if they harm them too much.
Many pests such as aphids are known to bother hoyas. You want to look out for them and deal with them as soon as you see them.
Some people choose to protect their plants using natural products. Neem oil works very well for this.
Final Thoughts
Learning about how to make hoyas flower should help you out. However, you can’t make hoyas flower if they aren’t capable of doing so.
Remember that some hoyas don’t flower. There are also hoyas that only flower once they’ve reached a certain level of maturity.
If you want to enjoy hoya flowers right away, be sure to buy a type of hoya that can flower in the first year with proper care. Then ensure that you give the plant enough sunlight and water.
Fertilizing the plant can help and so will giving it good soil. You should be able to keep the plant looking nice when you’re a proactive plant owner.
Eventually, the plant will flower. You should see the hoyas flower during the spring and summer if you do things right.
If you have any friends who are struggling with hoyas, let them know what you learned today. It just might help them to turn things around.
Growing up with a mom who filled her home (inside and out) with all sorts of plants, Lisa got her start in gardening at a young age. Living now on her own with a home and yard full of plants (including an indoor greenhouse), she shares all the gardening tips she’s gained over the years.