Common Hoya
Sources last read 14 September 2026.
Not yet rated How forgiving it is has not been judged here yet.
Also called Common Wax Flower and Wax Vine.
Toxicity is partly unassessed
- Not assessed for cats. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
- Not assessed for dogs. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
- Not assessed for people. RHS publishes no harm statement for this plant. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
What the sources say about its care
- Light
- Full sunRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Water
- Well-drainedRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Humidity
No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.
Most foliage plants prefer more humidity than a heated room gives; succulents are named as an exceptionPenn State Extension · read 13 September 2026- Temperature
How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.
H1B — 10–15°C 10–15 °CRHS · read 13 September 2026- Soil
- Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or NeutralRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Toxic to cats
- Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Toxic to dogs
- Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Harmful to people
- No statement of harm to people is published for this plant; that absence is not evidence it is safe.RHS · read 13 September 2026
Routine care
- Watering
- Give bright filtered light and moderate to fairly high humidity; water generously in the growing season and keep just moist over winter.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Propagation
- Seed, stem cuttingsNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Increase by layering or from semi-hardwood cuttings.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Pests and diseases
- Can be troubled by scale insects, glasshouse whitefly and mealybugs. Diseases: usually none.RHS · read 13 September 2026
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Photographs
About the plant
Hoya australis, commonly known as waxflower or common hoya, is a species of flowering plant in the Apocynaceae or dogbane family and is native to northern and eastern Australia, Papuasia and Melanesia. It is a succulent vine or subshrub with fleshy or leathery, elliptic, oblong, egg-shaped or more or less round leaves, racemes of fleshy, cream-coloured and red flowers, and spindle-shaped follicles. It is a popular garden plant, noted for its fragrant flowers.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026
- Native range
- N. Borneo, Sulawesi, New Guinea to SW. PacificWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Southeast Asia, Indomalaya, Malesia and northern Australia.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Climate
- seasonally dry tropicalWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- Growth form
- epiphyteWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Herbaceous Perennial, Succulent, Vine; habit cascading, climbing, creepingNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Climbing, Trailing (evergreen)RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Size
- Height 156–396 inNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Height 1-1.5 metres; spread 1-1.5 metres after 2–5 yearsRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Flowering
- Flowers red/burgundy, whiteNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Flowers pink in summer and autumn; white in summer and autumnRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Uses
What sources record people using this plant for. A traditional or medicinal use listed here is a record of use, not advice to eat it or treat anything with it.
Not edibleNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Other Hoya
HoyaDry scorched spots after a move into a sunnier spot
- No photograph yetFung Wax FlowerSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
- No photograph yetHoya gracilisSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Lucky Heart PlantSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Miniature Wax PlantSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Pink SilverSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
More of the Apocynaceae family
Madagascar periwinkleBrown, papery patches on the leaves nearest the glass
OleanderBrown brittle margins with a green centre
String of heartsNew leaves arrive smaller and paler than the ones below
African Starfish FlowerSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
AllamandaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Black BellsSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Plants with similar care
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Aeonium undulatumSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
African Living RockSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
African Milk BarrelSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
African Milk TreeSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
African MilkbushSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Sources
- ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
- Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Wikipedia · read 13 September 2026
What this does not cover
The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.
Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.
If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.