Hawaiian Hoodia™ Division
Grow Your Own Hoodia!
We are planning to offer fresh cuttings for future sale as a produce item in markets but for now the only way to be absolutely certain that the hoodia you are using is Real Hoodia Done Right™ – genuine, fresh, organic, sustainably sourced and cultivated, is to grow your own.
Supplies of hoodia plants and seeds from reputable suppliers have been scarce and it was difficult for most people to grow hoodia to a size that could be harvested. Most of the plants were lost to bacterial rot long before they could reach maturity.
Now we offer the world’s largest selection of high quality, Hawai`i-grown seeds, and certified nematode-free, organic plants at or near harvestable size. All of these are from cultivars that have improved resistance to rot and the excessive soil moisture levels that they often encounter in artificial cultivation. Under suitable growing conditions losses to rot now rarely occur.
If you have an indoor growing area or greenhouse suitable for growing cacti, some gardening experience and patience try growing your own hoodia! Aside from its use as an appetite suppressant, the plants make interesting ornamentals and some have beautiful, albeit sometimes smelly flowers. Some collectors of this group of plants call them “Orchids of the Desert”.
Hoodia is easiest to grow from seeds or transplants. Some varieties can also be grown from cuttings but this is more difficult and the plants grown from cuttings tend to be less vigorous.
How Our Plants and Seeds are Shipped
Our certified hoodia plants and seeds can be shipped to all locations in the United States except California, and internationally with the required permits. We now only ship hoodia seeds to California, no plants.
Large plants going to all destinations will be shipped bare root (without soil). Smaller specimens may be shipped in pots with artificial soil media.
All exports of hoodia plants and seeds must be inspected by the USDA and issued a CITES export permit from by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that we will obtain for the customer. Additional documents such as phytosanitary certificates and import permits may be required by the destination country. The fees for issuance of these documents must be paid by the customer when the order is placed. International shipments often require a lot of paperwork and multiple inspections. This may delay shipments.
Starting Hoodia From Seed
Shipping requirements and costs may be the main factor to consider when deciding to start hoodia from seeds or plants. We offer a greater variety of seeds than plants, and these can be mailed as First Class Mail at low cost, avoiding the expenses associated with packaging and shipping live plants by Priority Mail from our remote Hawaiian location. It usually takes 2-3 years to grow hoodia from seed to harvestable size. So if you don’t want to wait that long, we also offer a selection of plants of several species and varieties. Most of these are near or at harvestable size and can be planted or used upon receipt.
Processing and Shipment of Seeds. Our hoodia seeds are harvested, cleaned, dried and kept in frozen storage until they are needed to fill orders. Small samples of the seeds are usually removed for germination testing after freezing. Virtually all of our seed lots have had germination rates in excess of 80%. We ship our hoodia seeds in small plastic bags containing a packet of silica gel to maintain dryness.
Rehydration. Before planting, the seeds should be removed from the bag and exposed to the air for a day or so to rehydrate. If you are not going to plant them right away keep the seeds in the plastic bag with the silica gel packet in a refrigerator to prolong viability. Hoodia seeds will rapidly loose viability, especially when stored in humid conditions.
Soil Media. Use a fast draining media like commercial cactus potting mix, or regular potting soil mixed with sand or fine perlite. Garden soil should not be used as it may contain fungi and insect pests.
Planting. The seeds should be planted in small pots or flats at a very shallow depth, just under the soil surface. Keep the soil warm (preferably 80-100°F) and moist but not wet, which may promote rot and fungus. Under optimal conditions most of the seeds should germinate within one week but a few may be delayed, emerging in 2-3 weeks. Avoid starting the seedlings in full sun. In nature hoodia seedlings often begin growing under nurse plants that provide some shade or filtered sunlight. The seedlings will emerge from the soil and open with two small leaves, the only ones the plant will ever have. When the plants are about 2cm tall they should be transferred to larger pots and can be gradually moved to full sun.
Planting Bare Root Hoodia Plants
Our certified Hawaiian Hoodia™ plants may be shipped bare root or in pots with artificial soil media.
Our bare root plants are cleaned and dried before shipment and packaged with paper packaging to maintain dryness and prevent fungus. When your plants arrive, unpack them promptly (wearing suitable gloves to protect you from their sharp thorns) and move them into a well-lit, dry location out of full sun until they are planted. Most, if not all of the roots on these plants may be dried out or be lost. After planting they will usually grow back but this may be a slow process – be patient! Most larger plants will require support until rooted.
Bare rooted hoodia plants tend to be highly durable in shipment and can survive for months without planting if they are kept in bright light and warm, dry conditions. These are bare root hoodia seedlings that had been stored about six months after removal from soil for an experiment. They were then replanted and resumed normal growth.
 Bare Root Hoodia Seedlings |
Soil Media and Fertilizers. Hoodia are not fastidious about soil and fertilizer requirements. If you are planting your hoodia plants in containers, use a fast draining media like commercial cactus mix, or regular potting soil mixed with 20-30% sand or fine perlite. Sand is preferable since perlite adhering to the roots is hard to distinguish from mealy bugs. Diatomite (diatomaceous earth) may be mixed into the media. This may help to control root mealybugs and provides a source of silica.
Planting Depth. Spread out the remaining roots of the bare root plants in the planting media and cover the plant up to the top of the central stem by adding layers of gently compacted soil. The lower shoots and branches should not be under the soil. Avoid leaving air pockets that may provide habitat and improve access for mealybugs to the roots.
Watering New Plants. The newly planted bare root plants may be watered once after planting to settle the soil media. For the next 1-2 months keep the soil barely moist. Plants with few roots cannot take up much water and wet soil may promote rot and discourage rooting.
Growing Conditions
In general, you can successfully grow our improved hoodia cultivars under the same conditions that you would grow frost-sensitive cacti. There are some differences as explained below.
Growing Outdoors. Hoodia may be grown in the ground in locations with good drainage and hot, dry climates similar to southern Africa. In other locations it is best to grow them in containers so that they can be moved indoors during unfavorable weather. In Hawaii hoodia is prone to get fungal infections transmitted by rain during periods of prolonged cool, wet weather. They should be kept out of the rain and not be watered when these conditions are present.
The wild types of some species will reportedly tolerate light frosts but our Hawaiian bred cultivars may not be adapted to cold temperatures.
Temperature and Lighting. Hoodia are mostly from hot, arid desert areas so you will have the best luck growing them if you try to match those conditions, which may be difficult to maintain indoors. Except for small seedlings, full sun or bright indoor lighting is best. They will usually adapt to lower lighting but not grow well. Avoid abruptly transferring plants adapted to lower light levels to full sun. This may cause sun scald – a condition where exposed parts of the plant take on a bleached appearance, followed by scaring and sometimes death. Areas with sun scald are also highly susceptible to anthracnose fungus infections and should be excised from the plant. Our improved hoodia cultivars will tolerate humid conditions if kept warm and in areas with good air circulation.
Watering. Wild types of hoodia plants are highly susceptible to bacterial rot and fungal diseases especially when over watered, or watered during periods of dormancy. Our cultivars have been grown over multiple generations and were selected to be more tolerant of moist soil year round, and have improved bacterial rot resistance. However, they should not be considered “rot proof” and kept in cool, wet soil for prolonged periods of time. Some species such as Hoodia gordonii, may exhibit prolonged periods of winter dormancy and growth may stop. This may be an adaptation to the dry seasons in areas where they were endemic. Reduce or avoid watering of plants that are dormant. Hoodia can survive for several months with no water.
Fertilization. When they are actively growing hoodia are heavy feeders and should be fertilized at least monthly. We use packaged granular organic fertilizers to comply with certification and food safety requirements. Non-organic fertilizers labeled for use on vegetable gardens, and slow releasing fertilizers with micronutrients are also suitable. Additions of amendments like limestone or coral rock that may increase alkalinity should be avoided.
Pests
The hoodias are subject to several pests and diseases and most of these are only found only in certain growing areas. We will be publishing detailed information and photos of all of these in a future update of this website.
The most common pests and diseases of hoodia are of worldwide distribution. They have significantly different prevalence patterns and control measures depending on where the plants are grown – indoors or outdoors.
Mealybugs are by far, the most common pest of hoodia plants. Collectors of asclepiad plants like hoodia, aptly refer to them as “mealybug magnets”. There are many species of these insects but their biology and control methods are similar. They are usually covered by a waxy cotton-like material that may effectively repel water and water-based pesticides. They exude honeydew, a substance that ants may feed on and it may promote the growth of fungus. Mealybugs also transmit anthracnose fungus on hoodia through their feeding activities. Left uncontrolled, mealybugs spread rapidly on both the aerial parts and roots of the plants resulting in stunted growth and eventually death of the infested plants.
Mealybugs were reportedly serious pests of field grown plants in Africa. In our experience with growing hoodia at our facilities in Maryland and Hawaii, mealybugs were never a significant problem on plants grown outdoors. Apparently, natural predators are present outdoors that keep the populations of the bugs on the aerial parts of the plants in check.
The situation in our greenhouses at these same locations was entirely different, requiring constant efforts to just keep infestations at levels that would not jeopardize the plants or impede growth. Certified greenhouse space is scarce and costly to maintain in Hawaii necessitating growing the plants in close proximity to each other, which allows the bugs to spread rapidly from plant to plant. Few pesticides are effective for controlling mealybugs under these conditions and of these even fewer are certified for use on organic crops.
Mealy Bugs on Shoots and Branches. Mealybugs on the aerial, above ground parts of hoodia are easy to observe and can be controlled with use of neem oil emulsions, insect soaps or alcohol. These can be applied to the affected areas and the insects removed with a toothbrush. Mealybugs on larger areas can be removed by high pressure water spraying. Dusting with diatomite is also effective but it must be applied after each watering.
 Mealy bugs on Hoodia gordonii |
 Mealybugs on Hoodia officinalis |
Root Mealybugs. Mealybugs can also infest the roots of the plants and are hard to detect and more difficult to control. Plants with stunted growth, a withered appearance or pinkish color as in the photo below are often indicators of unseen root infestations. If uncontrolled, root mealybugs will usually kill the plants. Few, if any, insecticides approved for organic use are very effective against root mealybugs. Monthly applications of insect soaps as soil drenches may reduce but do not eliminate infestations. These are also costly and laborious to apply if large numbers of plants are involved. Moving infested plants from greenhouses outdoors does not seem to affect mealybugs on roots but may reduce or eliminate infestations on the aerial parts if predators are present.
 Mealybugs on Roots of Hoodia ruschii |
 Macro Photograph of Female Mealybug Feeding on Hoodia ruschii Root |
Thermal Control. We are currently testing insect soap drenches combined with a hot water treatment method developed by the University of Hawaii* that was originally for controlling mealybugs on rhapis palms. Soil temperatures in the Kalahari Desert areas where hoodia grows are probably much higher than those tolerable to the rhapis palms for which this technique was originally developed. Hoodia is resistant to higher temperatures than many other plants.
We have recently had excellent results using hot soil drenches or submersion of pots in hot water to control these pests. The temperature of the water used should be about 52°C (125°F). After applying the water or submersing the pot check the soil temperature with a meat thermometer to make certain this temperature is reached in the root zone of the pot. This low cost, simple technique can solve the root mealybug problem without the use of any pesticides!
*Hara A, Niino-DuPonte R, Jacobsen C. (2001). Root mealybugs of Quarantine Significance in Hawaii. Insect Pests. March 2001. IP-6. Cooperative Extension Service, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Relations, University of Hawaii, Manoa. https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/IP-6.pdf [Accessed 04 August 2020].
Diseases
Bacterial Rot. Prior to our development of resistant cultivars, rot mostly caused by Pectobacterium bacteria (previously named Erwnia) was the most common disease of hoodia plants in artificial cultivation, claiming over 95% of the plants that we planted. Now, after development of rot resistant cultivars, cases of bacterial rot are rarely found in our collections.
Bacterial rot usually starts in the roots or central stem of the plant and progresses rapidly upward through one or more shoots. In many cases the plant can be saved by removal of the affected parts. Sometimes the disease takes on a fulminant form that involves swarming of highly motile bacteria that spread rapidly through the vascular system of the plant releasing enzymes that dissolve the cell walls. This results in rapid liquefaction and collapse of the tissues, often involving the entire plant.
There are two seedlings of Hoodia gordonii of about the same size and age in the photo below. The normal plant is on the right; the plant on the left contracted fulminant rot and collapsed over about a two day period.
 Fulminant Bacterial Soft Rot on Hoodia gordonii |
Fungus. The most common diseases affecting our improved cultivars are fungal, primarily anthracnose (black spot) that occurs on all species of Hoodia and Hoodiopsis that we have grown outdoors in Hawaii. It is caused by various strains of fungi in the genus Collectotrichum. Anthracnose usually enters the plants around the thorns and can progress rapidly invading other surface tissues of plant. Areas where the infection has slowed or stopped may loose their black color leaving brown scarring.
 Anthracnose on Hoodia currorii |
Other less common fungal diseases such as hoodia bud rot and hoodia canker, apparently caused by Phomopsis species, are more invasive than anthracnose, penetrating deep into the plant tissues.
 Canker (Phomopsis spp.) on Hoodia parviflora Cultivar |
After years of observations we have concluded that these fungal pathogens of hoodia are transmitted by rain and proliferate during prolonged periods of cool, rainy weather. Plants grown in a greenhouse or other rain sheltered areas at the same location and under otherwise identical conditions rarely develop visible fungal infections. The common anthracnose infections on plants grown outdoors usually stop spreading on the plants and may eventually heal when they are brought into rain-free areas. Anthracnose infections are also spread by spider mites and mealybug bites and may appear on the apical buds and other infested areas of plants, especially those grown indoors.
We have tested many fungicides and found none to be effective in controlling anthracnose, bud rot or canker. Attempts to develop resistant varieties have also failed, leading us to largely discontinue growing hoodia outdoors in Hawaii. Anthracnose infections were not observed on hoodia plants kept outdoors at our Maryland facility during the humid and often rainy summer months. While the fungus that causes anthracnose is of worldwide distribution, the strains that affect hoodia may be present only in certain regions.
This section was last updated on February 27, 2021.