Hello all. I was given this plant from a local nursery about 2 weeks ago. In that time this plant is becoming more and more damaged and I have no clue what exactly is going on. I was told by the nursery worker it was fungal probably, but she was not willing to take any blame for selling a defective plant, which I wasn't looking to blame, just get answers to try and save it. I have rope Hoyas, a crimson queen and a wax plant, none of which show any signs of anything at all wrong. I know that whatever this is didn't come from my house and to prevent it spreading, the kerrii is hanging outside now. Any help/treatment ideas I'd appreciate. I did repot it (no root rot, they all looked healthy), it has been treated with a weak worm castings fertilizer, and watered correctly. Every single day a new leaf or 3 pop up with these markings. The bottom picture was taken from right before it was bought and the first picture is what started it all...middle picture is what I'm dealing with now. All leaves have black on the back of them. The plant was about to bloom and all but one pod fell apart with even the slightest movement of the plant.

Hi Cranberries85,

You don't say where you live (what part of the country), whether your plants stay outside year round, or whether they are grown as indoor plants and taken outdoors only during the warm months but it does appear that your Sweetheart Hoya (Hoya kerrii) is experiencing some sort of bacterial/fungal issue, especially the leaves showing the larger roundish halo like spots.

Wet soil along with and high humidity and little air circulation can cause fungal infections to appear. I live in Florida where we've been having a lot of rain lately and with all the moisture and our normal high humidity, some of my plants are struggling.

You can usually find organic fungicide sprays in your local garden center but an easy and natural fungicide is ground cinnamon powder. I keep a container of cinnamon in my gardening supplies for use on hoyas and orchids but a fungicidal spray may be needed for a major issue.

Try to provide as much air circulation around your plants as possible; lack of air circulation and having plants crowded together, along with high soil moisture and humidity can be a prime cause of fungal infections in plants. If your plants are located indoors, a ceiling fan on low will help to circulate the air. Hoya kerrii has succulent-like leaves and depending on the type of potting medium you use, the soil may be water retentive, so be very careful that you aren't over watering.

I've only had the plant 2 weeks at most and only watered once. It sadly came from the nursery like this, as I spotted a ton of leaves with black splotches on the back. I live in the Hampton roads area of Virginia and we have had a lot of rain and our summers are always humid.

I currently have the plant outside as I didn't want to risk infection to my other plants inside.

I will try the cinnamon when I get home. Repot it with black gold succulent soil and have only watered it once. Sadly the potting soil it was in was the wrong kind when I got it, which I think it where the problems originated from.

Thank you for your help, I appreciate it!!

I know Kerrie's love very dry& humid so if you can put here somewhere it doesn't get water but get plenty of lights and humidity then do so. Maybe new leaves will be okay. It does looks like some kind of fungus and I think that's from over watering.

CoraBarner said: Maybe new leaves will be okay. It does looks like some kind of fungus and I think that's from over watering.

I'm hoping so, but whatever it is, is spreading so fast it's a tad comical. I'm treating it with a fungicide but I'm guessing with the fungus, being repotted, and just the general stress of moving it to a new environment, I don't think I'll see new leaves for a while.

As long as it lives I'll be happy. I had to cut a lot of dead/rotting stems and areas off when I first got it. It was in rough shape, more so than I originally thought.

Oh well, live and learn. Just couldn't pass this beauty up, they only wanted $35 and I jumped at the price.

Fingers crossed it heals!!

If it were my plant, I'd remove from the soil, rinse the roots completely, trim the very tips of the largest roots and any other damaged with very sharp trimmers, replant in fresh compost and a little bit of sand, (add a little bonemeal) let it dry completely between watering and not return to that nursery. Let the plant tell you what it needs. We are all "plant people". Plants do "talk to us". Not verbally of course, but plant people understand what Im saying.

Hello Cranberries85, to me it looks like your media is holding too much water, so it is manifesting on the leaves with edema. If humidity levels are too high plus the media is too wet, then it will surely affect the leaves of your plant at tissue level. Container looks too deep too, so it is making dry out time longer.

So try to add some more pumice or perlite to your perlite, and provide more air flow around it. If you do not wish to change the media, consider much longer watering intervals, but do spritz the vine of your plant.

My growing environment is different than yours, over here, my Hoya kerri variegata likes our high temps in the 90F and higher range, but our humidity is very low. The media I use is some bark mix with pumice and clay rocks, making it quite coarse and well draining. Positioned in shade, it enjoys spritzing the vine and watering, since very our hot temps and very low humidity dries it out very fast.

Did your Hoya end up recovering?

Hello! I have the same problem, are your hoya recover? thanks

Hi natydali,

Unfortunately member Cranberries85 has not remained active on this site. This is the one and only post he/she ever made so there is no way of knowing whether the plant recovered.

How is your Sweetheart Hoya (Hoya kerrii) potted; what size is the pot and what type of soil is being used? In nature, Hoyas grow as Epiphytes (without soil), where they grow in the crooks of trees and climb high into the tree canopy.

Good air circulation at root level is very important when Hoyas are grown as potted plants. It's best to use a small pot that has drainage holes in the bottom and a very porous, well draining soil.

For my Hoyas, I use potting soil with lots of orchid bark mixed in (I prefer the one that has charcoal and perlite included) and I also mix in additional perlite. It's a very light, airy mix which offers great aeration at root level and aids in proper drainage.

I'm sure other Hoya growers will be along soon with tips and advice that may be of help to you.

Hi natydali, looking at the marks on the leaves, I would just observe some more. Sometimes, the leaves just get marks, for whatever reason, maybe a sudden change in temps, or was water accidentally sprayed on it and took time to dry out...etc. Also consider timing when you water, I prefer to water them early in the day so that there is time for excess water to drain out properly, and I alway run the ceiling fans or open up the window weather permitting.

If those marks do not spread, then that is okay, it will be just like its battle scars. As already mentioned by Lin, always provide good air circulation. They are tropical succulents, and the leaves and its very thick vine hold moisture, so it can take a few days no watering, but not too long, especially if ambient conditions are getting way too warm already.

Good luck! Take more photos as it goes.

Thanks Lin and Tarev! I bought it 10 days ago in a plant shop. When I saw your answers, I remember than the friday nigh I forgot my kerrii out. It stayed all nigh without roof. We are in autumn but it is not cold yet, at night about 10 celsius degrees. Black spots may have appeared from the cold, but it has white spots (I have removed them with a napkin) as if it were powdery mildew and on the stems of the leaves it have small black dots. Today I will buy systemic fungicide, have you used any?

In the last pic you can see the white spots. I don't change the soil yet, it looks soft and without bugs or insects. The hoya came from a producer in Brazil, but they don't answer my questions I think the pot is a little big, but is dry (I have not watered it)

Your Hoya kerrii probably suffered a bit of stress during travel from Brazil to your home and the repotting into the large hanging basket, as well as experiencing brief temperatures outside of 10ºc, likely added to the stress.

If the tiny white spots on the leaves washed off easily, it's nothing to be concerned about; it may have been dust or debris that fell on the plant while outside. Water that contains salts and minerals will also leave lime deposits (in the form of white spots) on plant leaves.

The lowest optimum temperatures for Hoya kerrii is approximately 16ºc - 18ºC and I think the black spots at the base of the leaves on your plant is due to experiencing the change in temperature but as long as the plant didn't remain outside too long, it will be okay.

I usually try to use milder remedies first, like alcohol with a few drops of dish soap liquid mix. I apply it with cotton swabs. Your plant is small anyways, so you can easily dab away some of those white stuff, and observe.

I am a bit wary with your media. It looks too rich and dense. My Hoya kerrii variegata is grown like I am growing an orchid, so the media has many clay rocks, some bark mix, chunky lava rock, but never in soil. Having seen just how succulent the leaves and vine were, I was very careful with the media. Here is mine just to give you an idea, positioned by our west facing window and north facing sliding doors, glass is tinted, and if it does get too sunny in the afternoon I can always close the sheer white curtain to protect it. Light levels are getting stronger, hotter and longer in duration in the afternoon, so got to protect it from the heat coming thru the glass windows.


The coldest I have ever allowed my plant to experience is 50F (10C). And it was also struggling when it gets too much dry heat here when we start hitting 95F to triple digits. It is happiest now indoors, by a breezy window, with temps just in the 68F to 80F range. There is also a ceiling fan in this area, so if I cannot open the windows when it goes way too hot outside during summer, I just use the ceiling fan to increase ventilation around it.

Since your plant came from Brazil and you did say it also experienced a brief outdoor cold spell, then it may just be still trying to get its bearings, so be patient. I hope you can add some more gritty material to your media mix though, it looks too dense.

Hi I'm new to this website. I wonder if someone can help me identify this black spots on the leafs. It happened yesterday and it started with just 1 spot now it has like 9 of them. Should I be worried? Thank you

It depends, sometimes, it may just naturally dry off but it will remain as a scar on the leaf.
Sometimes it may indicate, it is getting overwatered, or a combined poor air circulation around so fungal issues as shown manifests on the plant. It may or may not eventually drop the leaf. But as long as the vine is doing okay is staying firm, no soggy part, then just be patient, it may still try to give you new leaves later on.

Patience will be your friend and make sure your improve watering habits...maybe your media is staying too wet, so give a bit more interval and try to open up windows or run your ceiling fans to provide better air circulation around.

No fertilizers at this point.

That will be my general suggestion, not knowing anything as to how long you had the plant, your watering habits, type of media, light orientation etc.

@tarev Thanks for your reply! 😊I live in the uk. I have this plant around 6-7 years. I bought it in Ikea when it's just a leaf. It started to grow more leafs since last year (I was so happy). I use normal potting mix and I water it every 10 +/- days depending on weather. I always touch the soil before I water it. I placed the plant near the window sill and it receives around 4-5 hours morning sun. The windows are always open. I just took another pic just now and it seems it's getting some browning/yellowish patches ☹️ Thank you for help.

Typically, I would suggest make your media grittier, but since it has adapted to your current media, just try to be more prudent in watering...That is only what you can do right now and hopefully the spots will just naturally dry out. I use bamboo skewer to test the soil, if I stick it in and if it comes out still damp, continue to delay watering. But keep those windows open. If temps are not too cold, it will like that. They are happier at ranges up to 85F here (29C).

@tarev thank you again. I will try that 😊