How to Save a Dying Hoya Plant: 5 Steps to Follow

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Is your hoya plant not looking its best and hasn’t for a while? If so, unfortunately, chances are that it's dying - however, the good news is that it doesn’t mean you have to give up on her. With a little bit of extra care, you can prevent it from escalating further and save your hoya plant before it’s too late.

So, how to save a dying hoya plant? Let’s find out.

#1: Check for Root Rot Caused by Overwatering

Even if you pay special attention to your hoya plant, it is still very easy to overwater it—and while doing so once every blue moon shouldn’t have any serious effect on your plant, doing so regularly will, leading even to your hoya dying.

Rooting rot is characterized by a foul odor, brown or mushy roots, and yellow foliage, even if you water the plant properly.

So, how do you check for it? It’s very simple—remove the plant from its pot and examine the roots. If they are brown and emit a foul odor, you’re dealing with root rot.

What’s the next step? First, you should trim off all of the affected roots. If you notice any healthy stems, take them and use them later to propagate your hoya. Then, repot your plant into its new home, making sure that the soil in the new pot is well-draining - otherwise, you risk history repeating itself.

Finally, adjust your water practices. To avoid issues caused by improper watering, always let the soil dry out a bit before watering your hoya plants again - you can check the soil moisture with your finger. During winter, your plants need less water compared to the growing season, so remember to water them according to their needs.

#2 Change the Sun Conditions

Improper sunlight exposure can also contribute to your hoya plant dying - if there’s too little of it, your plant can stop growing, the leaves can turn yellow, or it might not flower at all. If, on the other hand, your hoya gets too much sunlight exposure, the plant might experience something called sun stress, leading to black spots appearing all over it.

How do you fix it? By changing its sun conditions. Ideally, your hoya plant should be placed at the south or west-facing window and receive only a few hours of direct sunlight (about 4 to 6). For the rest of the day, it should be put in indirect light.

#3 Adjust Humidity Levels

Hoya plants love humidity, so if your plant is dying, one factor contributing to it could be that the humidity around it is too low. When hoya’s humidity needs aren’t met, they can stop growing, produce fewer flowers or their leaves can curl and get brown spots.

How do you solve this issue? Well, there are a few things you can do. First of all, if you have a few plants, consider grouping them together, as that can increase the humidity level. You can also run a humidifier nearby, create a humidity tent, or use a pebble tray filled with water.

#4 Be Mindful of Pests

Pests are, unfortunately, one of the more common hoya leaves problems. Once hoya gets infested with insects, it can develop spots - when that happens, make sure to check under the leaves, as chances are you’ll find something there. Insects like spider mites, mealybugs, and aphids are especially common.

Whether you see or do not see something, use insecticidal soap or neem oil on your plants, as sometimes the insects are hardly visible to the eye. For a more severe infestation, you can opt for horticultural oils or systemic granules. Also, make sure to isolate the infested hoya plant from others - otherwise, you risk the infestation getting out of control and moving onto your other healthy plants.

If Everything Fails: Propagate the Healthy Stems

If, despite trying your best to save it, your hoya plant is not getting any better, propagating it might be the best option to keep at least part of it alive. Take clippings from the healthy stems, allow them to callous, and let them develop roots by placing them in either water, sphagnum moss, or perlite. Then, pot them once the time comes.

The Bottom Line

Seeing your hoya plant lose its spark might be sad, but for most, it’s not the end of the world, as there are still things you can do to save it. Some of those include checking for root rot, changing your watering habits, or looking out for pests to stop the infestation before it becomes a bigger problem.

With some extensive care, you can bring your hoya plant back to looking its best. And if that doesn’t happen, you can always propagate it from the healthy stems - that way, at least part of it will remain alive even if everything else fails.

How to Save a Dying Hoya Plant - FAQ

Why Is My Hoya Plant Dying?

There could be several reasons for your hoya plant dying, including overwater, underwatering, insects, wrong soil, low humidity or too much direct sunlight, among other things.

Why is my hoya dying after repotting?

Here are a few most common reasons why your hoya could be dying after repotting:

• Stress - Plants experience stress too, and repotting can be an especially stressful situation for the root system. The effects of it are usually temporary, however. This is also known as transplant shock.
• Accidental overwatering - After repotting a hoya plant, you should adjust the amount of water you use to water them - that’s because the soil, after repotting, tends to be looser and dries out faster, which can lead to hoya roots not being able to absorb all of it.
• Root damage - No matter how careful you are, roots can get damaged in the process of repotting, leading to the plant not being able to absorb all the nutrients it needs, which can, eventually, lead to it dying