Lainey,

Great looking hosta!

I thought I was thrilled before I was getting PUDC, but now I am ecstatic. I don't think I saw a nicer picture of that hosta while surfing the web. Superb!

Stay cool,
Susan

beautiful photos of fantastic plants. Great growing!

Alexa

Wow are they ever pretty. Are they all in pots? Please, tell me your secret to growing them in pots. I haven't tried it yet, but looking at yours, makes me want to try.

Looks great. I get sad every time I see a PUDC. I lost mine.

Sally,

Two of them are in pots. The PUDC and the Thunderbolt are potted. The secret to growing them in pots I learned from another hosta person here at the forum named Highjack.

First you get a really big pot. Bigger than you think you'll need. I usually use 20 -30 inch pots. They are cheap at Home Depot. Then I fill the pot a little with pine mulch. The medium sized is what I use but some people use the fine cut. Then I put in the hosta and finish filling up the pot to the crown. I firm it in and top with broken-up year-old cow pies. I'm sure dry horse hockey or rabbit do do, or goose poop, or whatever vegetarian animal poop you can think of will do as long as its thoroughly dried out. Some people use alfalfa pellets instead and they get good results.

Then I water every single day. I never miss unless it's raining hard. I water until water comes out of the bottom of the pot. So make sure you have good holes in the pot.

That's all there is to it. Pine mulch and poop provide the perfect medium and food for hostas. Given enough water and shelter from blazing sun, they'll grow like crazy.

Lainey

Wow, Lainey!! GOOD JOB!!! Keep up the good work--it pays off, obviously!!

"I'm sure dry horse hockey or rabbit do do, or goose poop, or whatever vegetarian animal poop you can think of will do as long as its thoroughly dried out."
Botanybabe

If you only put the poop in the bottom of the pot and the root don't touch for a period of time, maybe a month it will not matter and I'm not sure it matters period.

Lainey uses caution and gets good results but I truly don't think that much caution matters. The only problem with dog, cat poo etc is if we touch it, get the water on us etc. I don't know how long pathogens from cats, etc are viable but they are not a problem in compost so long term they arenÂt a problem in a pot.

Bottom line is we donÂt have to use dog/cat poo so caution is called for.

BTW, Lainey please donÂt take this as directed to you, IÂm speaking to the general question.

WOW! Pineapple upside down cake has been on my wish list for awhile..now I remember why! I just purchased Blue Umbrellas last week but am questioning if it might have been mismarked as such. Mine is edged in creamy yellow. Is this normal for a young plant? Great photos! Dee

Wow!! Guess I need to search some vegetarian animals and save their poop. Do you suppose my neighbor would think it was odd if I asked......?

Kidding aside...I have long been a proponent of cow, rabbit, sheep and, if you know someone....chicken .."stuff".
Linda C

Horse manure that is too fresh will damage the plants due to too much nitrogen....Just something to keep in mind.

Dave

Do you suppose tht the manure that you can buy bagged in the store would be too much to plant them in, maybe just add it to the top?

Sally, I'd just add it on top, because that way when you water, the manure tea, just percolates down through the planting medium to the roots. I've found that really works for me with all perennials, even daylilies. Here in southern Indiana there are lots of horse farms and they are generous with their old dry horse poo. Of course I like cow poo better because it doesn't smell as bad.

Lainey

Great growing Lainey and nice pics too!

Hi Lainey, I'd be proud of them too. They look great, and are huge! Thanks for being specific about the pinebark and manure technique of growing in pots. I had heard it referred to before, but hadn't seen the thread it was mentioned in, so I didn't know the specifics. I'll have too try it in my next pot. I use pine bark alot both in beds and in containers, but the manure is definately going in next time : ). Thanks for the info and great photos, Dan

I've been thinking about Thunderbolt for some time now... as soon as my plant hiatus is over (after we return from our trip to Holiday World at the end of June) I think I'm going to have to get one.

I don't know where you live in southern Indiana but I hope everything is okay where you are! I've been watching flood footage all weekend. I'm north of Indy and horribly worried about the additional rain coming tomorrow. It's heartbreaking to see my fellow Hoosiers so devastated.

Where do you live, Icy?

It's been dry here and hot. But as I mentioned in another thread the water all travels toward the Ohio River and I live only 1/4 mile from it. It's 6 feet above flood stage right now and expected to reach 15 feet. If it does, I'm going to have to head for higher ground. I'll be grabbing my mother's genealogy book and all the hostas that are in pots, and I guess I'll let hubby and dogs come along to higher ground too. Keep us posted how things are at your end of the state.

Lainey

I'm in Muncie. They've just put us back in the flood watch after taking us out of it yesterday evening. Have you seen the line of storms coming? I'm more than worried... but not about myself, we're far from heavy flooding, I just hope everything is okay (or doesn't get much worse) down there!

I just watched the news and they're talking about all that water going south... I hope the river crests lower than expected for your sake! Some of those places flooded incredibly fast yesterday (literally in minutes) so be safe!

Those are super hosta pics.........PUDC looks really good in a pot, shows off it's form nicely. I'm going to try your potting mixture, it seems to be working well for you, my 2 yr. old Thunderbolt is about 1/2 the size of yours. Thanks for the tip.

June

Sure hope those flood waters stay put and you all stay safe!

"Do you suppose tht the manure that you can buy bagged in the store would be too much to plant them in, maybe just add it to the top?"

The manure you find in bags is so composted that there is probably no manure left only bulking agent and the dead organisms that ate the manure, both good for the plants.

To Dee in Nebraska - I don't believe Blue Umbrellas ever has a creamy edge, not in my limited experience any way.

Thanks Lois...I was afraid of that. Guess that's a good excuse to go hosta shopping again! And when I take the time to learn how to post a picture maybe I will find out what I really have. Dee

River is up another 2 feet. We'll see what tomorrow brings. It's still about 9 feet from the top of the levy.

Lainey

Today I got a "real" Blue Umbrellas hosta. I went back to the small nursery where I made the purchase last week and talked to the owner. He checked into it and sure enough some of them were mistagged. Since I already had the other one planted he gave me this one in a one gallon pot for under $5. I was pleased. Sometimes it does pay to complain!

Way to go Dee! Good for you!

Lainey

Your Thunderbolt knocks my socks off!

Thunderbolt is a nice cultivar and one of the top 5 hostas in my opinion. It's an excellent performer if it gets enough sunlight. Today I found a little toad sleeping under one of the leaves.

Lainey