My first hosta purchases (2) ~ handmade home

This is part 2 of a post I started last time regarding hostas. If you recall, I was discussing some of the hostas that I purchased in 1986, many of which have yet to be divided. My first hosta was a gift from a friend's garden which I divided time and again over the years. Pictured above, I love this plant for special uses such as outlining this small annual bed (those by the way are camelot foxgloves). I can't recall the name just now, but this cultivar is extremely common and probably for good reason... it does well, even in a fair amount of sun. The picture below is basically the same view once the foxgloves started blooming...

Another of my earlier hosta purchases from 1986 was Gold Standard. This has been divided frequently in the past. It's pictured below at the front. I have found that since I stopped dividing my Gold Standards several years ago, I am getting numerous plants with reversions. Gold Standard is one of the most important new hostas of all time... it changed the hosta world. Beware of mass marketing of the plant these days, as virus X has become a problem with this cultivar in some places. Watch for any uncharacteristic green blotches that appear on your newly purchased plant of Gold Standard. I would recommend buying hostas from a reputable source these days with the advent of virus X. It is also a good reason to be very careful when accepting gift hosta divisions from friends, if you intend to develop any sort of collection in the future... take a close look at the parent plant and compare it with what that cultivar should look like. There are examples of hostas being marketed as a new sport, when in fact they were affected by virus.

I'll quickly point out a few other of my 20-25 year old purchases. Below is a large Francis Williams which has never been divided... it is now having reversions, but I've decided to allow it to do its thing and remain undivided. It's pictured under the apple tree at the back of this photo. The reversions are a rather non-descript shade of gold...

There is one of my oldies that I'm removing reversions from because I absolutely love this hosta called Great Expectations. Everytime I see a well grown specimen of this, I am newly impressed. I have been using the reversions as they are a lovely blue.... I assume from the sieboldiana clan. The following photo shows Great Expectations with reversions in the spring before I remove them. The reversions are the blue leaves to the front of the photo...

Here are photos of Great Expectations early in the season, frequently divided to remove the reversions... these plants will expand considerably as the season goes on.

Another of my hostas purchased in the late 90's, whose texture is quite interesting is Inniswood, a sport of Sun Glow registered in 1993. This earned the Savory Shield award as best new hosta after being displayed at the AHS 1986 convention at Inniswood Botanical Garden in Ohio. The photo below shows it in a fair amount of sun which causes it to appear lighter than often pictured by other sources. This plant displays a good substance and holds well through the season.

Another really "good doer" that has been with me for many years is Sagae which was previously called Fluctuans Variegata. Sagae is from Japan and has been around for a long time. It is a large plant and will eventually reach a width of 70". It was the 2000 American Hosta Growers Association 'Hosta of the Year'. I can't recall ever seeing any slug damage on this plant in my gardens. There have been a number of registered sports from Sagae, including one of my newer favorites, Liberty, which I will show later in this post.

Another view of Sagae from two seasons ago is pictured below... it is the plant just above center in the photo... as you can see, it makes an impressive show...

I'll now change directions a bit and point out a few hosta cultivars that are either relatively new or in some cases newer to my gardens. I'll start with Liberty and then move to June, a Halcyon mutation registered in 1991 and the 2001 "Hosta of the Year". There is apparently confusion as to the "true" form of June. The plant is sometimes offered as June Type I or II and so on according to 'The Hostapedia'. Additionally the plant can look amazingly different depending on light conditions and age and month of the year. Never the less, it is one of the finest hostas available. 'The Hostapedia' relates that of "well over 7200 cultivars, only 5% make any impact on landscaping and are a noteworthy source of seedlings and sports. June is on of those select cultivars." Here are photos from my gardens of Liberty, followed by June and related plants... I think the substance is one of the most attractive aspects of these hostas.

The previously mentioned Sagae sport called Liberty first introduced for sale in 2002

Hosta June

June Fever is a sport of June made available in 2004, needs sun to retain bright center through the season

Touch of Class is a chemically induced sport of June from 1995 with double the leaf substance... a gorgeous plant

Remember Me, registered in 2001, is another June seedling named in remembrance of
Sandy DeBoer, an employee of Walters Gardens who died of breast cancer.
The spring color on this plant is amazing!

Just unfurling in spring, Dawn's Early Light will definitely light up your garden. First made available in 2001, it has excellent texture and pie crust edge. The color becomes calmer as the season progresses

Here's a large grower introduced for sale in 2004 by Plant Delights Nursery. Olga Petryszyn's introduction
called Brother Stefan has everything I like in a hosta

The 2006 Hosta of the Year is Stained Glass... this is a real winner in my opinion... love it!

I could go on showing individual cultivars for a very long time... there are many others that work well in my gardens. As I said earlier though, my main interest in hostas is how they look as part of the landscape. I'll close this post with photos showing just that.... some that I may have posted in the past, and a few new photos as well.

I also want to refer again to 'The Hostapedia' which is the encyclopedia of hostas by Mark Zilis. It contains over 7400 descriptions of hostas with 1897 color photos. It is the definitive work on hostas and a must for collectors but very worthwhile for a gardener like myself. The only negative is that it's a huge book and weighs "a ton"! If you're not familiar with it and love hostas, you need to check it out! Take care, Larry