Affectionately Known As Fitch

Day 4: Fitch has achieved status alongside Hoya bella as one of my favourite houseplants. Hoya fitchii (affectionately known as "Fitch," as you may have guessed) has put on an even more spectacular display of flowers since I sorted out his watering requirements and lighting needs (north window, drench the pot when the soil becomes dry and light). Hoyas are very individual. Some species bloom only in spring, summer or autumn respectively; others flower in two or three seasons, and still others like Fitch and Bella are "intermittent," meaning they bloom when they damn well feel like it, often surprising their caretakers with repeat appearances of blossom clusters only six weeks after old flowers have dropped. Fitch is just getting bigger and better with each emergence, and those coppery-yellow, waxy petals are stunning. Not all my hoyas are so cooperative. In fact, I have several I've never been able to bring into bloom, but their shortfall is more than balanced by my two "old reliables." Fitch is lightly fragrant, and sometimes while I'm sitting underneath his hanger working on a weaving project, the scent will catch me unawares. "What smells sweet in here?" I'll say, and sure enough, I'll find a cluster of yellow stars hiding on the window side.