Is it correct to write my Shooting Star has an umbrel on its peduncle? That sounds weird. Anyway, it'd be my first flowering Hoya. Should I give it bloom booster to help it? Also, the plant's pretty leggy. Is there a way to increase bushiness? Could I notch a stem, for example. Thanks much.

@tarev grows Shooting Star Hoya (Hoya multiflora) with great success, perhaps she can offer advice on fertilizing and pruning stems for a bushier plant.

Hello Sproquita, I keep my Hoya shooting star's media always moist. Initially I was even making it sit in water. Then I moved it nearer our sliding door, so it is getting more bright light. It seems to like feeling the cool air especially right now, our mornings here hitting occasional 37F. It gets a little blast of that whenever I let my cats out in the mornings.

To be honest, I have not given my Hoya shooting star any fertilizer since I acquired it several years ago. Just letting it grow with moist media, and cooler air access. My understanding with hoyas, they are grown like orchids, they do not need too much. And my Hoya does not mind it seems. If you do intend to give it some, delay it to Spring.

I am always kept reminded how I saw this plant in my homeland a few years back in a mountain region with always cool humid air around, an area that is about 10 degrees cooler than my home city there in the lowlands.

I think our biggest challenge here in Cali is our very dry environment, so with this particular Hoya, it needs to be kept in a more moist media since the leaves are not succulent.

It is so nice to hear someone who takes into consideration the natural environment a plant comes from, @tarev. Knowing that stuff can be a key to success with the plant IMO

Thank you. Maybe I'll move it to a self-watering pot this Spring? Do you have any suggestions on how to get my plant to grow bushier?

From my observation, Hoya shooting star is the vining type, so it will not really go bushier, just keeps on making a long winding growth. You can use a self watering container, but make sure it is not too big. As with most Hoyas it does not like too big containers.

This is mine: right now it has two peduncles and both trying to make those umbels grow some more.



After each inflo blooms, it can easily throw away the umbel, and it may just grow a new batch on same peduncle several times. Sometimes it may just dry out the peduncle, but I do not worry, since it may just be redirecting new growth later to newer leaves and another peduncle.
This was how it looked like in early July 2019 when doing its intermittent blooms:


Closer look of older peduncle, just keeps on making buds as it likes. Eventually it wilted away, but it was a good journey of growth, kept producing blooms.

Very nice!

Wow! Your plant is stunning. I see from your pictures that the umbels on my Hoya will need to grow a great deal to flower.

Yes, at its current growing stage, it may be in bloom either in December or in January.

Most Hoya are epiphytic so bigger pots of soil and fertilizer are not in their best interest.

I gave a Hoya carnosa to my daughter (she thought it was her's because it hung in her nursery when she was little). It also hung in my bedroom when I was a teenager. It has never been repotted or fertilized and, except for occasional attacks of mealybugs, is still going great.

I'll see if I can find a photo.

Here is my Hoya carnosa just before I gave it to my daughter. Its about 60 years old.

Wow! 60 years old!

DaisyI said:Here is my Hoya carnosa just before I gave it to my daughter. Its about 60 years old.

Gorgeous plant. Better not let the potting soil and fertilizer manufacturers hear about this! Your regimen works, and I am adopting it.

Awesome plant! Thanks for sharing it.