Hoya peltata

Unrooted cutting of Hoya peltata.
Three to five nodes.

Hoya peltata is an unusual miniature Hoya species from Borneo, known for its tiny rounded foliage and distinctive peltate leaf attachment.

The leaves are remarkably small, generally only about 5–10 mm across, and range from broadly oval to almost perfectly round. They are thick and smooth, with very short petioles and tight spacing along slender stems.

One of the most interesting characteristics is hidden in the species name. “Peltata” refers to the peltate base of the leaf: instead of the petiole attaching exactly at the outer edge of the blade, it connects slightly inward from the margin. This small structural detail was one of the features used to distinguish Hoya peltata from similar miniature Bornean species.

The flowers are equally unusual. Rather than producing large multi-flowered umbels, Hoya peltata typically produces only one or two tiny flowers at a time on surprisingly long peduncles. The original botanical description records flowers only about 6 mm across in dark red-brown to violet tones.

Hoya peltata was formally described by Michele Rodda and Sri Rahayu in 2022. The species was based on a specimen collected in November 1953 near Nunukan, north of Tarakan in North Kalimantan, Indonesia. It was found growing epiphytically in low-elevation dipterocarp forest.

At the time of its description, the species was known only from that historical collection, making its true distribution and wild population size uncertain.

Botanical name: Hoya peltata Rodda & S.Rahayu
Native range: Borneo — North Kalimantan, Indonesia
Type locality: Nunukan area, north of Tarakan
Type specimen collected: 1953
First published: 2022
Notable features: Extremely small rounded leaves, distinctive peltate leaf bases, tight foliage, and tiny one- to two-flowered inflorescences

Please note that leaf size, shape, and spacing can vary as the plant grows and under different growing conditions.

A note about this plant: Species-level botanical and historical information above is based on the original published species description and current taxonomic records. We do not have original wild-collection or provenance documentation for our particular cultivated plant and cannot independently confirm or deny its connection to the documented North Kalimantan material.