I see a lot of comments along the lines of
"They're all the same"! "How can you tell the difference?" etc
so I wanted to take a pictures to show the variation in these cultivars of hoya lacunosa.
I will start off by saying in the photo, there are 7 types. Minara, Variegated (we should really give this classic variegated one it's own name to prevent confusion), Souma, Bruno (sometimes people call this tricolour), Queen Midori, Asami Reverse, and Agni. I own Verdela and Golden flame too but 7 is enough to show the variability.
As you can see, while there is wide variation just within each cultivar, they do have differences that separate each other.
Before I get into their differences (at least from what I notice), I want to say: Please DO NOT try to identify your variegated lacunosa from these descriptions, especially if you are not very familiar with them. I can almost always identify 'Minara', 'Souma', 'Bruno', 'Midori' and the Variegated (normal), but this is only after I have propped dozens of hoya lacunosa, bought and shipped out dozens of lacunosa, seen dozens of lacunosa in other growing conditions, and so on.
The ONLY time you should add a cultivar label when it didn't come with one is if you have ZERO doubt in your mind that it is what you think it is. (matches exactly, and doesn't match to anything else).
TRUST YOUR LABEL unless you have STRONG reason to doubt it. As I said earlier, there are many differences that arise from changes in growing conditions, that are hard to describe here.
Now their differences (well more like what sets them apart):
Minara: Bigger, thinner leaves, that are often wavy. I practically never see any waviness in other lacunosa. The green areas also often cut through the leaf in streaks light green.
Souma: Consistent leaf shape, from narrowish to almost round in high light. This is the most unmistakable cultivar at least in my opinion. Pastel colors, stems/leaves that retain pink color for a fairly long time under high light, and sometimes a less glabrous feel.
Plain variegated: very small leaves in general. the largest leaves are far smaller than souma. Shape is same as souma but the leaf is thicker, and doesn't sunstress as readily.
Bruno: This one is in a lot of nurseries now. It has round leaves that curve downwards while the edges curl towards each other (this is probably a bad description… but if you look at photos you'll see what I mean). The best thing about this cultivar is its consistent leaf size and that it branches far more readily. The variegation pattern is similar to minara, but again, the edges are not wavy.
by Sundadanio
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