I had difficulties, too, with Hoyas until I realized that they enjoyed the windowsill inside of my shower.

Oh the Hoya!

Well, I've never had a Hoya till now and wasn't at all familiar with its preferences or its habits but Anne had mentioned that it would make a nice hanging houseplant. I was in a hurry to get them all planted and just put the Hoya in a regular pot thinking I'd re pot it in the fall. In the meantime we've had really nice coolish weather for a month now, by coolish I mean 60s at night and barely 80s during the day, so I left the Hoya on a shaded shelf on my back deck thinking it would enjoy the bright light in this nice weather, but would still be sheltered and out of the direct sun.

I forgot about the west wind that sometimes knocks me right off my feet.
I also forgot about the Hoya there on the shelf. For several days, I forgot.

When I next walked around talking to the plants telling them how great they were doing and how happy I was to have them, I looked at the Hoya. Oops. The leaves were browning and burnt and only those close to the soil were still green. Oops and ouch and darn it. I was afraid it was already dead. So I whispered to it while I gently took away the outer browned leaves and checked the soil and carried it inside where it belongs. It's looking happy now, though it hasn't shown any new growth signs. Still there is no more browning of leaves and sometimes I sing to it but it's getting a bit more attention so maybe . . . I can only hope. I rarely ever kill a plant and I'm determined to make this little Hoya guy happy, so it will be just fine.

OldGardener, I'm hoping the shelf in the window above my kitchen sink will work much like the shower.

I bet you it will. Mine is slow putting on new leaves (seems to do it in fits and spurts) but after many years, it hangs most of the way down the wall. After 5 years or so, it finally decided to bloom and I was ecstatic. The hoya must have been mis-tagged, though, because instead of being delightfully perfumed as advertised, the flowers smelled similar to damp, musty, old socks. Oh well, the foliage is nice

I am so glad to know about the 'slow' part. I've fretted over this Hoya, it's like a challenge now. I'll probably over attend it and it will do nothing for me, but maybe -- knowing now that it is a bit slow to respond -- we'll get used to each other. One can always hope.

The other plants just took off like wild horses, not a problem. The clematis hasn't decided yet, but it looks OK, so I am very happy with all of them. A couple of zone changes didn't seem to bother them a bit.

Sharon, all the rooted cuttings like the one I sent you was over a year old and some have even bloomed still in those tiny pots. Also remember they prefer "hugs" - do way better underpotted than overpotted.

Thanks Anne.