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Greenhouse
In May we started filling the greenhouse with new cuttings, and thought it might be a year or more before it was full.
I even let Bob put his orchid collection at one end. Wrong decision! The 1,000 square feet filled up and overflowed in
the blink of an eye. In order to free up bench space, Bob built an extension where we do the potting and store all the
supplies. Then we replaced the plastic on the old greenhouse and Bob moved his orchids over there. Now there is a little
room to expand. As the cuttings continue to flourish and grow into mature plants I am leaning on Bob to build a shade house
with racks for hanging them.
Last week we received our first semi-annual surprise inspection from the Hawaii Department of Agriculture, and passed with
flying colors.
The nights are turning colder (mid 60's), so the heating mats are being set up for the new cuttings. By January the
nighttime temperatures will occasionally drop into the upper 50's. With no general heating in the greenhouse we have to
place some of the cold-sensitive plants on mats.
Australia Trip
What an experience! What an education! Ten days with David and Iris Marie Liddle at their nursery in Northern Queensland,
Australia. There is just too much to tell in this newsletter, so here is a link to my trip report.
If you are interested in what I brought back from Liddle's, check the COMPLETE HOYA LIST. Most of the
ones labeled **NEW** are from there. It will be several months before any of them are big enough to propigate or sell.
Personal Notes
In case anyone cares, Bob and I are both 64 and supposed to be retired. We just have too much energy to sit around and read,
so … Aloha Hoya, Big Island Growers, The Water Doctor, another 6 acres, etc. It keeps us out of the bars at night.
Between the two of us we have three children (Jennifer, Mark, and Mark) and two grandchildren (Nicholas and Carter) and two
more on the way (November and May). Last issue featured the two dogs (Thelma and Louise), this month it is the two mousers
(Spooker and Boo).
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Winter Specials
H. callistophylla
H. camphorifolia
H. lacunosa ssp. lacunosa
All of these are offered at 50% off after an initial purchase of $20 or more.
Shipping remains the same.
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Miniatures
Dischidias and some of the small/wee hoyas are catching my attention, and I brought back quite a few of them from
Australia. I have D. livida and 3 clones of D. ovata (all very different)...H. lanceolata, the tiny clone of H. curtisii,
H. engleriana, and quite a few others. Sandy Cook also sent me a great selection of Dischidia. Some of them are so
delicate AND colorful...wish there were more information available about them. I'm also doing some experimenting growing
them on slabs of Tree Fern, tubes of moss etc....great for small spaces and the obsession to grow!
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Property
Our new 6 acres are starting to take shape. The 1,700 foot long road is cindered and drivable. A few plantings are in
(2 large bamboos - Guada chacoensis, 2 palms - Bismarckia nobilis, 27 coffee trees and a bunch of stuff like orange and
white Bird of Paradise).
We discovered that the big bulldozer cleared nice roads, but didn't do a very good job of
ripping holes in the rock for trees, so we had a hammer/backhoe come in a chisel 39 big pits.
In the process of developing a survey map, Bob made a list of all the trees on the property. The totals surprised us
(55 different kinds of fruit trees, 26 different palms, and 22 different broad-leaf trees). That doesn't count the
dozens of trees in the nursery waiting for the 39 new holes.
All those fruit trees are providing a cornucopia of riches this time of year. Too much to give away to friends and
neighbors, we load the old farm truck up with bananas, avocadoes, citrus, etc. and haul it down to the local food bank.
They love to see us coming.
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