Status ‘Annakey’ is the accepted and established name for a unique cultivar. It was first described in 2015 in pdf by C.Noel. The name was established effective August 15, 2024 with a print description by M.Randal and R.C.Conroy in the Stemma Journal Yearly Review 1 2022-2024 (Brickell et al., 2016, Art. 11, Art.27).
Hoya ‘Annakey’ may also be written as Hoya (nicholsoniae x erythrina) ‘Annakey’ .
Category Hoya ‘Annakey’ was selected from among a batch of F1 hybrids that resulted from the hand pollination of Hoya nicholsoniae F.Muell. x Hoya erythrina Rintz
Breeder Mike Bernardo (Hagerman, Idaho)
Grower, nominant, & Introducer Carol Noel, Aloha Hoya Nursery, currently located at Kula, Maui; formerly Kea’au, HI.
Originator Mike Bernardo made the cross, and together he and Noel made final selections as she grew them out.
Description See establishing description. Hoya ‘Annakey’ is reported as an early and easy blooming cultivar, and displays features from both parents. It is a strong climber which also twines. Withstands a wide range of temperatures and stresses in cultivation, but thrives in higher temperature and light. Foliage: Elliptic in shape with entire and slightly undulate margins. Moderate red to deep purple stress coloration appears in bright light on the new growth on the adaxial surface which tends to fade slowly from the margins. White blotched air-space variegation (commonly called splash in any form) also stresses in high light, appearing light purple, is scattered over the adaxial surface of the leaf. Carol Noel states that this increases in high light and has provided photographs of ‘Annakey’ with extensive blotching. Infloresence: Alike Hoya nicholsoniae, with the corolla ranging in color from strong greenish yellow to a vivid orange yellow. When the blooms are fully opened (reportedly during the daylight cycle) the lobes are reflexed and pubescent on the adaxial surface. The white to pale yellow corona is occasionally tipped in shades of pink from stress color.
Background
All seedlings from each cross (often multiples from a pod) that Bernardo considered worthy of consideration were sent to Noel for further evaluation in her greenhouse and grown to bloom stage. Selections and release to the public occurred with a written description in a downloadable pdf sales list dated 2015 and posted on Noel’s now archived webite.
The 2015 pdf was also linked to a post on the Hoya Creations Facebook Page. It was not clear at the time if the entire F1 pod (Hoya nicholsoniae x Hoya erythrina) had been selected, or only a particular seedling due to the numbering methodology and manner of the description. Noel’s 2015 list was not distributed in print at the time, and the name Hoya ‘Annakey’ was not established in 2015.
In 2024, Mike Bernardo examined available material along with Conroy and Randal and the assemblage on the market grown as Hoya ‘Annakey’ was considered. A standard is here selected as the top photo pictured in Randal, M & Conroy R.C. (August 15, 2024). New cultivars. Stemma Journal Yearly Review 2022-2024 (1),6. Credit to Carol Noel, and granted to each Stemma Journal and the ICRA for these purposes.
Of note, living material is held with the ICRA, and was published blooming in Stemma Journal as grown by Douglas Chamberlain of VermontHoyas.com on the same page cited above.
Associated numbers The pod was numbered as MB1291 (wherein MB stands for Mike Bernardo). This is not part of the cultivar name, and may be found associated with plants from the pod that are not Hoya ‘Annakey’. Epiphytica Garden of Ratchaburi, province in Thailand assigned ‘Annakey’ the catalog number EPC-1045. There may be other unknown catalog numbers as well.
Etymology Named for a close friend and hãnai mother (“heart mother”) of Carol Noel, named Anna. ” Anna was a Danish woman whom I visited every year until she died …She was lovely and lively, with an old world element.. and she dressed so well…played mean Scrabble!!!”
Availability widely available; exported to multiple continents through Thailand.
Notes & Sources
Brickell, C.D. & Alexander, C. & Cubey, Janet & David, John & Hoffmann, M.H.A. & Leslie, A.C. & Malécot, Valéry & Jin, Xiaobai. 2016. International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants.
Jian-Hang Zhang, Jin-Chu Zeng, Xiao-Mei Wang, Shui-Fei Chen, Dirk C. Albach, Hong-Qing Li. 2020 A revised classification of leaf variegation types. Flora, Volume 272, 151703. doi.org/10.1016/j.flora.2020.151703.
Pao, Shang-Hung & Liu, Jian-Wei & Yang, Jun-Yi & Chesson, Peter & Sheue, Chiou-Rong. 2020. Uncovering the mechanisms of novel foliar variegation patterns caused by structures and pigments. Taiwania. 65. 74-80. 10.6165/tai.2020.65.74.
Randal, M. & Conroy R.C. 2024. Checklist of cultivars produced by Mike Bernardo. Stemma Journal 6.1:13. https://stemmajournal.org (Download past volumes or view in-browser)
Randal, M & Conroy R.C. (August 15, 2024). New cultivars. Stemma Journal Yearly Review 2022-2024 (1),6.
Wanichkul, J. 2022. Epiphytica Price List. “Hybrid Hoya: cv.Annakey 25$ EPC-1045”.
Watthanasakulcharoen, P. 2022*. Hoya ‘Annakey’. Hoya cards III.
Date above is based on receipt of two copies from Thailand to permanent holdings in the library of the ICRA. This card has been added to the standards folder as a general resource, but does not impact the date of the name.