look back through the prior posts.. to about October.. and you should see a bunch of seed questions...

try the search function .... its been covered a LOT .... if the search engine works ..

try the FAQ's .. it should be covered there ...

and try the hosta library .... might even be covered there ....

i will be more than happy to answer more specific questions ..

its easy as pie ... and welcome to the forum ....

ken

Welcome Steph, I started seeds at this time last year , it was my first time growing them. They were in tiny pots on the south side window sills. They grew very slowly , & were small until I put them out in the spring. They took off during the summer. Now this year I have started a few in Sept and some this month. I learned a lot on the seed growers forum too. Google Hosta seed growers forum & the Hosta Library if you want to check it out. I am no expert but I do know its not too early. I think its loads of fun growing the seeds & makes the winter more tolerable ! Happy growing ! ~Dot

Dear Steph,
Everthing stated above will work out just fine, but...
What is your understanding of "fairly good sized plant" ?
You have to wait at least 3 years before your newly grown pips are large enough to leave an impression in your new hosta beds.
Manfred

Last year I started seeds in March, in covered trays. The seedlings spent the summer outdoors, and as they grew were slowly replanted into dixie cups, 1 plant per cup. Since Oct have been growing indoors under 14h/day fluorescents (on a timer). I edged the shelves with wood plinths, lined them with plastic and bottom water with a little all-round soluble fertilizer. They're doing great - many have bloomed, starting in December.

As your seedlings rise, watch for fungus and mold. It's important to use damp off or a similar product when you water, to keep that at bay.

Good luck!

This is my 3rd year of planting hosta seeds in the house during winter, and I've always had good luck with it. I plant a 48 cell flat of seeds, bottom water them and put a clear plastic dome/cover on them. Then I put the flat under grow lights with the lights positioned immediately above the flat. If using a window sill and pots, I'd put a large clear plastic bag over each pot for the sake of high humidity. I'd put some small holes on the plastic bag with a paper punch to give them some fresh air as well.

I agree with Manfred that it takes quite a long time to grow hostas from seed to a mature plant size, but there are benefits I like from it and it's fun. The two benefits are naturally cost savings, and mainly... I can find a lot of varieties I'd likely not ever see in a nursery.

Of course the best way to get hosta plants is to acquire divisions from anyone willing to share them. If they tell you no... then you may need a flashlight to sneak in and steal them in the night!

jim

If they tell you no... then you may need a flashlight to sneak in and steal them in the night!

Not such a hot idea Jimbo, do unto others as you'd have done to you, it's a much better idea to see if they might want to SWAP some plants.

I'm starting mine when I get back from vacation - probably about the last week of February. That will be about three weeks behind when I started last year. Last year I chose February after hearing Olga Petryszyn (hosta hybridizer of Blue Hawaii, Niagra Falls, Key West and many more) speak on hybridizing. She mentioned that she likes to start her seed in Feburary so she does not have to spend a lot of time moving plants to the next size container as they grow. It worked for me last year and I'm all for any idea that saves time and energy!

Sorry has taken me so long to get back here, but we are in the middle of some major home repair/ remodeling, I am gonna wait until all of this is done, before I get started on something else. When I said fairly good sized plants, I was jus meaning I was wantin something that was you were gonna be able to tell was there, to help me visualize the layout of my garden better, I understand these are gonna take years to develop into fully grown plants, that are gonna really make a dramatic difference, but I am just experimenting, so we will see what happens, I hope to start them in about 2 weeks, I will try an keep everyone posted,,,thanks steph

Come on pietertje... since when is it not allowed in life to make a joke? Please don't presume that I'm a plant thief just because I jest about it. I think plant lovers are by nature very honest people. I once stopped at a beautiful Southern Illinois highway rest stop and a maintenance man was working on a HUGE bed of big hosta plants. I told him I'm surprised that people haven't dug those up and stolen them. He told me that in his ten years there, he'd never seen it happen even once!

Your post gave me a chuckle Jim, (if neighbor says no to giving divisions... taking a flashlight at night and sneaking over to steal some). I knew you were kidding. You were kidding were'nt you Jim : O : )