Hoya Soil and Pot Types
I recently posted a video to our TikTok and Instagram showing how I mixed some potting substrate for my Hoya finlaysonii, since it had produced a new leaf and was acclimated to my home. We wanted to share this question, since it’s a great one! (Scroll down to view the video and soil recipe!)
Q. Would you suggest this mix regardless of the pot type? As in plastic vs terracotta?
A. The “right” combination of substrate and pot type depends on your growing conditions and watering habits! This mix is what I use for the majority of my Aroids and Hoyas, because in my home, it’s a very flexible substrate that drains well, remains airy, but also retains water nicely when I want it to, and rewets easily when I let it dry. I use it with porous pots for plants that prefer to dry more, and impermeable pots when I want the moisture to stay more consistent.
The actual volume of the substrate itself makes the most difference to me when I’m picking a pot type or material - to help facilitate even drying in large amounts of soil, my largest plants (like those in pots over 10 inches across) tend to be in terra cotta, while I put my smallest plants with the least substrate in glazed clay, plastic pots, or slip them into cache pots, which helps slow their otherwise rapid drying.
Pot size, regardless of material, also plays a role when I make adjustments to this substrate. I tend to mix in a higher proportion of chunky materials for my largest plants, and keep the texture finer for the smallest ones, sometimes even just adding a small amount of pumice, perlite, and horticultural charcoal to commercial potting soil.
It’s hard to be successful long-term with a plant that requires nearly daily watering, so I just make my pot and substrate choices based on how plants tend to dry in my home, and these are the ways I think about it and make those decisions. It probably looks different for different plant parents and different homes, but ultimately, it’s all an equation you have to balance, where you’re solving for a routine where the majority of your plants are ready for water at the same time!
Matthew’s Hoya Substrate Recipe
2 parts potting soil (I like Edna’s Best Potting Soil by E.B. Stone Organics)
1 part materials that won’t break down with time, and increase drainage (I use perlite, pumice, LECA, and horticultural charcoal)
1 part materials that retain moisture (I use sphagnum moss, coconut husk chips)
Links to the products mentioned are provided for convenience, in case you were curious to see what we use ourselves!
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