Author Topic: Hostas (Read 5458 times)

patches · « **on:** Apr 18, 2007, 04:32:36 AM »

Here are some of the Hostas I started in the basement last fall. They are really taking off right now and this is wonderful because I still don't know if I've lost any of mine to the freezing temperatures we got last week. :-\ It's just going to be a wait and see thing!

I'm praying that they all make it, because I really can't remember if I took starts from all the ones in my beds.

Dianna · « **Reply #1 on:** Apr 18, 2007, 07:40:15 PM »

Patti, are there any hosta that like full sun? You have some beautiful starts, there!

I have always loved the look of hosta's foliage, but have read that they like shade. Since our trees are not very big yet, I haven't been able to grow them. We have a full sun yard...

Patty S · « **Reply #2 on:** Apr 18, 2007, 07:46:37 PM »

Nice looking starters you have there... you started them last fall?

How is it that they've been in starter containers all this time & they aren't spindly?

Bonnie · « **Reply #3 on:** Apr 19, 2007, 08:32:42 PM »

Now I'm confused, but that's not unusual.

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Patti, are there any hosta that like full sun? You have some beautiful starts, there!

Who started the hosta. Was it Patti or Patches? I guess it doesn't matter they are looking good anyway.

Bonnie

Patty S · « **Reply #4 on:** Apr 20, 2007, 01:00:56 AM »

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Who started the hosta. Was it Patti or Patches?

Yes!

Bonnie, some of us know "Patches" as "Patti" (cuz that's her real name). She & I share many, many, many of the same likes & dislikes, hobbies & attitudes... and the same

Other people have gotten us mixed up too, so about a year ago we decided that we're "cyber twins"... whose weird Mother liked the name so well that she gave us the same one... with different spellings! (We've never known Mom to be of "sound mind", but that's probably our fault, cuz she was in labor for exactly 2 years!)

(Yup, one of us is LOTS older.

...and it aint me, but Mom likes me best!)

In a former cyber circle we were known as "The Trouble Twins", because we demonstrated a sibling rivalry of sorts; fighting & teasing & poking fun at each other when the opportuniy presented itself. In real life, we've become very good friends & we really don't fight... (much!)
Patti ->

<- Patty

So you see, you're not really confused.... are you?!

Bonnie started it!

Bonnie · « **Reply #5 on:** Apr 20, 2007, 02:12:53 PM »

Well thanks for clearing that up, and the plants still look great.

Bonnie

Tina · « **Reply #6 on:** Apr 20, 2007, 11:23:31 PM »

Even in the shade here, Hostas fry in our heat and drying winds. I've only ever been able to keep a couple of spindly ones. Those are looking good Patti.

Patty S · « **Reply #7 on:** Apr 21, 2007, 10:26:40 AM »

I remembered the plant in the upper left corner of the first pic when I was out in the garden yesterday.
I've been wondering what this is...

Is it a Hosta?

Last year a friend of mine gave me some plant starts, but I didn't get them in right away. I remembered that she said one of them was a Hosta & needed to be in the shade, but I must have gotten them mixed up, cuz this 1 is in my Lily bed, in full sun. (It didn't come up last year...I thought I'd lost it when I fooled around & didn't get those starts in the ground until June.) I was told last week that I have Coral Bells coming up in the little bit of shade I have here. (I have no idea if they're supposed to be in shade or not, but I have a hunch that I got the 2 plants mixed up.)

So, do they make flowers? I looked at a couple of pages on Google Image & didn't see any.

patches · « **Reply #8 on:** Apr 21, 2007, 07:40:16 PM »

Dianna, some of the Hostas which have done pretty well for me in full sun are 'Sun Power', Auguest Moon' and 'Francee'; however, the scorching temperatures we got last year year for several weeks took a toll on everything. Some other Hostas I have that seem to tolerate a lot of sun are 'Allan P. McConnell', "Krossa Regal', Blue Angel', 'Halcyon', "Fragrant Bouquet' and "Sum and Substance'. A word of caution, any Hosta that is planted in full sun will not look near as good as it would in dappled sun or morning sun.

You may see the leaf edges and the tips turning brown and the color of the Hosta will not be as vibrant as it would be if it was planted with some shade. On the other hand, Hostas will not thrive if they are planted in deep shade.

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How is it that they've been in starter containers all this time & they aren't spindly?

Patty, they haven't been in starter containers the whole time. The larger ones were planted directly into a larger pot to start with and the medium ones and the miniature ones were moverd up to suitable pots as needed. I've found this allows the roots ample room to develop and this seems to keep all the energy from going directly to the leaves. I also use cool lights on the Hostas and limit the amount of light they receive during the winter. This appears to help keep them from getting splindly. Also, I do not feed them during the winter months.

Hey, Patty, it sure looks like a Hosta to me! I don't believe it's the same variety as the one in the upper left corner of my first picture because mine has leaves that are kind of wavy instead of straight. Hostas will send up a stem and get some beautiful flowers in the summer.

Patty S · « **Reply #9 on:** Apr 21, 2007, 08:07:43 PM »

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I don't believe it's the same variety as the one in the upper left corner of my first picture because mine has leaves that are kind of wavy instead of straight

Ya, but it's the same color, & that's what I remembered! I think I'll leave them where they are, if "dappled shade" is OK for them. Here, it's all or nothing with the sun & shade... either all/extreme sun, or nothing/total shade (& very little of that), but where they are now, at the edge of the Lily bed, they'll be shaded a lot by a cinquifoil bush except for early morning.

That's quite an operation you have going in your basement!

I'm wondering how big Hostas get... can I just pot mine up, so I can control their sunlight better? I still don't know about the flowers... if they make flowers, do they last very long? (Got pics?)

patches · « **Reply #10 on:** Apr 22, 2007, 04:30:59 AM »

Geesh, Patty, I wouldn't pot them up. I would plant them where they get morning sun and they should do just fine there. Actually, hostas come in all sizes depending on the variety and some hostas can get extremely large. 'Sum & Substance' is probably the largest hosta cultivar and it can grow to be about 6' wide and over 3' feet high with the flowers reaching over 4'. On the other hand, there are now so many miniature hostas which can be very small. Hosta 'venusta' grows to only 3-6" high and 8-12' wide. I first saw them at the Missouri Bontanical Garden and they are adorable!

Patty, here is a picture of the hosta flower. Mine usually bloom around June or July.

Tonya · « **Reply #11 on:** Apr 23, 2007, 10:12:28 AM »

I thought I had killed my .75 cent hostas off in the fall, I put the containers away and didn't water them at all. Well, lo and behold- they started sprouting back about a month ago and are now looking great!! I will try to get some pics later. I have Hosta Elegans, Shade Fanfare and....ummm...one more. Can't remember the name right now, but will check the tag when I get pics!

Patti- Yours are gorgeous!! Great job!

patches · « **Reply #12 on:** Apr 23, 2007, 12:36:07 PM »

Thanks, Tonya! I was really pleased with the way they turned out!

Actually, there was a time when I wasn't even interested in hostas, :-\ but as my trees have grown so has my keen interest in hostas and a lot of other shade loving plants.

Penny · « **Reply #13 on:** May 18, 2007, 12:51:39 PM »

Beautiful hosta''s !

Patty S · « **Reply #14 on:** May 26, 2007, 02:53:34 AM »

Hey! BG & I stopped in at the home of one of the ladies from my garden club today, to see her gardens, & I saw my plant there... in full sun! When I saw it, I remembered that she was the one who gave me that starts last year & I asked her about it. She said it's called Variegated Solomon's Seal... AKA, Striped Fragrant Bellworts. The foliage does look quite similar to her Hostas (in the shade), & the little cream colored bell shaped flowers, with a bit of green on the tip, will be on a thin, droopy stem, much like Lily of the Valley.

I'll be moving them to a place where they'll get more sun. I have more of that than I do shade, anyway.

How are your Hostas coming along, Patti?

patches · « **Reply #15 on:** Jun 13, 2007, 02:50:54 AM »

Patty, I think my hostas are doing pretty well, except for a few that the squirrels or chipmunks dug up.

I'm using some of the ones I started last fall in a foundation planting at the back of the house. This is a bed where I always put my impatiens, but now if this works I'll have a bed that will come up every year without me having to do very much to it.

Plus, I won't have to spend money on annuals for that bed every year.

I used some of the hostas in my shade garden because I took out some that had grown larger than I wanted and planted those on the other side of the path going to my shed. I'll try to take some pictures tomorrow. I'm also going to use a few in the shady part of my new perennial bed at the rear of my yard. Actually, I've been pretty busy with my yard this spring and seem to be getting a lot more done than I have in the past .

Bonnie · « **Reply #16 on:** Jun 14, 2007, 01:34:41 PM »

I have never had Hostas. I might have to try some next year. They are beautiful.

Bonnie

patches · « **Reply #17 on:** Jun 15, 2007, 01:21:05 AM »

Actually, Bonnie, I never cared much for hostas either,

but as my tress grew bigger and my yard became more shaded, I learned to love them.

Besides they now have so many different varieties with each one having its own unique characteristics, so they can quickly become very addicting.

duh · « **Reply #18 on:** Jun 15, 2007, 01:21:10 PM »

I was slow to appreciate them. Wanting the big showy flowers first lol. But it is nice to have something that will handle the shade give color and texture all growing season and even bloom for a short while. And all it requires is scratching in a good amount of compost once and year and keeping the water coming.

Dianna · « **Reply #19 on:** Jun 18, 2007, 01:32:45 PM »

This is a beautiful hosta that Michelle's (my heart daughter) grandfather planted. It is so lush and thick. Simply gorgeous!

sunsoaker · « **Reply #20 on:** Jun 18, 2007, 08:33:09 PM »

Quote from: Dianna on Jun 18, 2007, 01:32:45 PM

This is a beautiful hosta that Michelle's (my heart daughter) grandfather planted. It is so lush and thick. Simply gorgeous!

Hmmm, I like this look. You think this would work under one of the crape myrtles I have? Believe it or not, they are the only trees in my yard... What variety of hosta is that one Dianna, do you know?

Dianna · « **Reply #21 on:** Jun 18, 2007, 09:03:10 PM »

Barb, I haven't a clue as to the variety, and when I asked Chelle's grandpa, he didn't either...

If your crape myrtles are large enough to provide shade, I don't see why you couldn't put a hosta ring around them. I can't wait until our trees finally grow up...

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Author Topic: Hostas (Read 5458 times)