I dug up my lancifolias in wedges, put the roots in plastic bags and set them on the curb with a "free" sign and they were gone within an hour. I don't think I've ever thrown a living one away.

I even have a hard time getting rid of the diseased ones. I had some kind of virus on a Diamond Tiara, and kept it through the winter (away from my other hosta), hoping Chris was wrong.

Somehow, I picked up nematodes on one of the others. I kept it for a month, thinking about doing the hot water thing. It was a Wide Brim - cheap and widely available, and it wasn't that big. It's crazy. I agree, they are hard to toss.

bk

I border on pathetic when it comes to pitching living plants...like You, Coll and others I give away...here's what I'm nursing at the moment because I can't toss them...they're growing in water, producing more roots. They'll get potted up soon. How could I possibly throw them out? SOMEBODY will be thrilled with these little guys..maybe I'll keep them myself! Grog w umbrella is there for comic relief...lol

I'm swamped in seedlings... I usually let them stay until I can find a home for them... now all the "home" space is used up... maybe 3-400 of them in "the back forty" - and some of them in the regular gardens dwarf the regular plants...

yup... hostacide is hard for me. I think I pulled maybe a dozen this week and left them in the pathway to dry out.

but at the same time I put a bunch of cute little ones into pots to watch... so...

I'm bad, my husband is worse. I finally pulled out a couple of undulata's (mediov.) to make space for my Sum and Substance that needed to be moved. I still have 7 of them in the garden. My husband,while cleaning up, found some pieces sprouting from the dirt and potted them up. Agh, it was so hard to compost them to begin with, now I have to do it again.

One of the hardest but very important jobs in gardening is editing. Move this here, divide these, pull out the under performer ... But every time I edit, my garden improves.

-Beverly

Diseased plants I can't get in the trash fast enough.

Don B.

Yes indeed, I'm with DonB, on the diseased. BUT....when it was my huge Fried Bananas, I kept it for a day beside the trash pickup bin, hoping I was wrong.....no such luck, it was a mosaic kind of virus, so I stuck it in a contractor size black plastic bag, pot and all, and had previously sprayed it down with RoundUp to make sure it died. Well, every day I looked into the oven that is the trash bin, and it was not giving up, not dying, not wilting. It broke my heart to be so cruel to this one. Like the time I found a wee mouse in my waste basket one night, and I covered the basket so I could sleep, then thought to drown it next morning. Don't you know, I could not look at it swimming in there as the water rose higher and higher, so I too the basket and dumped it into the edge of the park behind our house (I was in college living at my parents) and it weakly crawled into the grass. Little creatures and plant life that comes up against our cruel technological culture are treated no worse by us than by nature. Mother Nature will quite efficiently do away with a bad seed if we do not interfere. Usually Mother knows best.

But Jo, the one on the quarter, that is so cute!
And Bev, I agree, "editing" is a better word than "killing."
Healthy give away if possible, but diseased, .....get them where they can do no harm.

Nope, not alone in feeling guilty. I just managed to get rid of several paper grocery bags full of Undulata Albomarginata by posting on Freecycle. Stuck them at the curb, posted the address and general description, said they could have 1 or all, and that I would remove the post when they were gone. Think they lasted about 30 minutes.

No. I think part of my job as a gardener and a purveyor of plants is to sell good ones. Some older varieties have been surpassed by newer varieties, so why should I keep them? Some new hostas are junk plants, so again, why should I keep them?
By all means, give them away if someone wants them. But don't stress about it. The hosta that are wearing out their welcome in your garden are likely doing the same thing in gardens all around you.
Anyone who has ever grown a vegetable garden learns that they won't get a good crop if they don't learn to be heartless and cull the babies.

In 2009 I had about 250 hostas of 35 varieties. Now I have 330 hostas of 202 varieties. I did not dig under more lawn, so a lot of the duplicates went to the hosta sale of the local society, but mainly into garbage. I figured out that with a sharp spade, cutting first all the leaves off, the roots come out quickly even of big clumps.

When you grow seedlings from seeds you learn - you have to- very quickly to pull out seedlings you do not want, such as all 100 or so greenies. You might get 200 seedlings, but you have space only for 40 plants on your shelf under 2 lights. Some people on the Seed Growers forum germinate 10,000s of seeds, they must have a real mayhem with the greenies and all the others they do not like.
Bernd

I'm removing two huge Sieboldiana - which I would have never done until I discovered this forum and the world of hostas. I thought they were wonderful in the good "old" days, but I'm moving on. They had their day in the sun for a few years after I rescued them from behind a park bench in my community. Maybe I'll try posting on Free Cycle or I could put them in bags at the bus stop on Rt 4. Anyhow, I'm in Delaware so if you want em come and get em. Ha!

THANK YOU, DONNA!! I think you just I.D.ed my mystery blue hosta. : )

Don B.

No, you are not the only one. This is what is left of a 3 gal sized 10 yr old Thunderbolt. Ever hopeful...

-Babka

{{gwi:1051420}}

Don - Trust me....The hosta is GREEN. I don't know why its looking like it has a blue tint to it.

DD

Thanks guys. I feel better. I will still try to find someone to give them to, but when I can't, it's editing.

That's a big one, Donna. How long has it been planted there?

Don B.

Only my second season addicted to hosta, but before that, I was more heavily into roses; if I had underperformers (a few were), I had no problem with replacing 'em with superior performers. I guess they have to 'earn' a spot in the garden, if that makes sense. If they don't, they're fired! I'd be more willing to give hosta a longer grace period, though. I could always stick 'em in an out-of-the-way place and see what happens with them. Never tossed a hosta that didn't have HVX; But still it's been 5 or 6. Made me a little sad, but more p!ssed off than anything. GRRRRR!

Don B.

Don - That hosta is over 10 years old. When I moved it to my hosta garden it was already at least 4 years old, but in a confined area behind a park bench. It really took off once it was transplanted.

DD

Fortunately, I have woods I can throw (literally) them into. It's always a surprise in the spring to see who's still hanging around. A few have made awesome come backs after living out there for a couple of years. Antioch and Hadspen Blue to name a few. Have a feeling FW and ADG may find that their new home. May even start digging holes for them. WW

Don, I know how you feel about being PO'ed more than sad. When counting mail order and all, the average cost of one hosta might be $20 easy. Then how much are the sellers of such plants in your pocket already .... $100?

So far, I've lost none to HVX. But I've lost a few to other viruses which could have been here, or could have hitched a ride with a mail order hosta....who knows. I sure don't have much opportunity (besides Lowes/HDepot) to pick up a potted hosta locally. Thus I'm careful about where I buy online. I'm too inexperienced to be comfortable judging the signs of virus in hosta. And also knowing which viruses can jump between species, what plants are likely to carry it.

It's only MY second year addicted to hosta too, Don. Must be contagious! I was addicted to tropicalesque plants in a subtropical location, not a big reach. Hosta gardening here is a much more demanding activity. It is very challenging, and personally rewarding.

This is off topic. I love Inthecountry.com. They provide their customers with a detailed explanation of how they sterilize their garden equipment and other precautions when growing their hostas to avoid HVX. So Moc, you could feel comfortable ordering from their website.

I didn't realize that both you and Don are neo(hosta)phytes.

DD

Thanks for the info, Donna. Others I feel good/safe ordering from are Hallson Gardens, Green Mountain, New Hampshire Hostas, and Hosta Patch. Naylor Creek I've never placed an order with, but I certainly would, as their reputation is stellar. I'd order from Bob Solberg (Green Hill Farm) with confidence as well. I'd be shocked if you ever got anything but clean, wonderful plants from that man.

Don B.

Strangely I have never thrown a hosta away. It doesn't make sense to not have. I am a particular sucker for 'volunteers', and that is probably because I only have two. One is in it's 3rd year that Les named "Theresa's Glory" and is variegated. It hasn't thrown up a scape yet so I am curious about the flowers it will have.

The 2nd I'd just found this spring far away from any other hosta hiding behind some 6' tall Lillium. I have no idea how long ago it germinated there. It has green heart shaped leaves but deep purple flowers on it's first scape. Are ventricosa seeds highly viable?

I wonder how many open pollinated seedlings I have inadvertently eliminated with my shuffle hoe.

Theresa

For the last couple years, I didn't cut off the stalks and had a TON of seedlings last year and this. I gave a lot of seedlings to a neighbor. And this spring, a friend lost a lot of her garden, so I gave her ever seedling I could find, plus some mature hostas.

My experience is if you post on the free section of craigslist, or on Freecycle, you can usually find a taker or two.... just arrange a day for pickup, tell them to bring their own bags and BOOM. You're done.

You don't even have to pot them up!

Theresa, I checked out ventricosa because you wondered about the seeds being highly viable. I'm glad you asked, because what I found is very interesting (at least to me)...

In terms of propagation of this plant, The Hosta Handbook by Mark Zilis (2000) continues on page 495, "One unusual characteristic of Hosta ventricosa is the formation of asexual (apomictic) seedlings. The flowers need to be fertilized for seed formation to occur, but instead of just developing a single, sexually produced embryo like all other hostas, multiple embryos, asexual in nature, develop out of endosperm tissue in the seed..."

"...The asexual seedlings are genetically identical to the mother plant, meaning that Hosta ventricosa can be clonally propagated by seed with the caveat that an occasional seedling (from the sexually produced embryo) will be different."

Hosta, continually fascinating!

Don B.

I used to try to save everything and baby them all because I became so enamored with them. Now I pull them out if they have not performed well or if they turn out to be look a likes. I have excellent garden soil but only a quarter acre of it. So if I can't grow it in my garden soil, I label it a poor grower and move it to the neighbors yard or his compost heap. Seedling have started running rampant and I have had to been utterly vicious about pulling them out. If they are not really blue, gold or somehow interesting they go to the composter. It took me several years to learn that it's actually a good thing. I still have lots more to do but eventually I'll get down to a small enough number of hostas that my garden can handle. I have over 400 but would like to only have about 150.

we let the children of visitors dig 'volunteer' plants from the pathway to take home

hh

we let the children of visitors dig 'volunteer' plants from the pathway to take home

hh

Don, I am flabbergasted by ventricosa and its asexual reproduction abilities. I'm thinking the hosta in general, all of the various species, have this reproduction thing down pat! They are ready for climate change, and I have no doubts that hosta will survive. Looks to me like they are experimenting with new ways to increase the population.

How many ways can you think of besides stoloniferous, rhizomatous, seeds, and now asexual cloning by one of the oldest known species. I wonder what lancifolia has up its sleeve.

I may have a warped understanding of it, but not important for me.....just for the hosta to know what they're doing.

I needed something in an obscure location around a steel shed where Les had plopped in 5 Lancifolia, which I have read here are sterile. Last spring while cleaning out the weeds I wanted to suppress with the hostas I found literally dozens of what appear to be Lancifolia seedlings.

So much for H. 'L' being sterile? Or could it be another asexual hosta. Nice question Barbara. I'm letting them grow out kind of like a ground-cover, plus a curiosity appeasement.

Theresa

Theresa, Pineapple Poll is a cross of Sieboldiana and Lancifolia. There are others, so not completely sterile. However this is the first I heard of a bunch of seedlings.

H. cathayana is a prolific reseeder (I'm reading from Hosta Library) and is often mistaken for Lancifolia. You might ask him the source of this plant. I have a very good local nursery that still occasionally has hosta mislabled.

BTW I find Royal standard to be the best weed surpresser in my garden.

Beverly

Hmmm. I had just assumed that the little green monster that reseeds and grows so prolifically and usually comes up in late February; immune to the freezes, was lancifolia but I see it may be cathayana. It's blooming now and the pretty dark purple flowers are a luscious shade of grape soda.

Sandy

Cathayana, huh. Looks like a grape soda, has my taste buds quivering here, and can almost smell the grape. I could use some of that cathayana! Is it for sale under that name?

YES! American (Wade) has it for $4, and Schmid for $5
could get a whole bucket full of the little darlings for less than $20!.......lazy lady's ground cover weed supressor. :)

I'll add it to the order with Wade Gatton for late fall. Into the ground it goes too.

I took a picture but it doesn't photograph as intense a purple as it really is. Love the color!

Sandy

Doesn't do it justice? The real thing is more INTENSE?
Wow, that is some color on that set of blooms. Thanks for the picture.

Beverly-thanks for the information on H. cathayana. I am going to have to go out and do some checking. The plants I am talking about were given to Les by a neighbor who was moving. He'd gotten his from his mother who "had tons and tons of them.

I remember when he'd brought them home and planted them. His suv was loaded and he had enough to plant around his house, both sides of his front walkway and one side of his driveway. He said it didn't even put a dent in what his Mom had. That sure sounds like it could be a prolific seeder, doesn't it.

Les did an NOID inquiry here on HF and the assumption was that it was Lancifolia. But that was before we have gained experience with it.

Several times in the past year I have posted here regarding groupings of Albomarginata and what I'd believed to be Lancifolia for their abundant flowers. Around here there are the GrW and the Gr hostas everywhere and the Gr seems the same as what I have. I will start a new post regarding the history of H. cathayana.

It seems 'time for the tape and camera'.

Theresa

This post was edited by gogirlterri on Mon, Jul 29, 13 at 7:51

Moc, it is more purple than this picture shows; there is a little too much pink in it. I guess that's what I meant. the blues and purples are the hardest colors to photograph, they always come out pinkish. At least with my point-and-shoot camera!

Sandy

Reading this post, I have a gorilla cart full of greens that I need to replant. I am so glad I'm not the only one. I cannot throw out a plant that is alive! It just kills me to do it. :)

I dug up and moved dozens a few years ago and they have gone crazy! I'm running out of shade/part shade. The tree ringing has started and soon, I'm just going to dump them in the hole in the back corner in full sun and see what happens!

I "edited" three more today. Those little bitty struggling ones. I don't even remember what they were originally. But as of today, they are gone.

Lifes too short to mess with them.

I don't feel bad putting a poor performing plant in the compost bin. It isn't getting "thrown away." Its being recycled as fertilizer. I can't give away a plant I don't think performs well. This year I pulled out a sedum that flopped and didn't have nice bronzey seed heads and replaced with divisions from my Autumn Fire sedum. My DH offered it to a friend and I said no she doesn't want that, and composted them. Same for misbehaving plants, ones that reseed too much or take over. Compost them and thats that.

Now as for nice plants, I do give them away. My sister calls it my nursery. She will stop by and look at my plant stand full of extras trying to find a filler plant for an empty spot or a pot. My friend I referred to before left with a trunk full and had to add some to her back seat. My neighbors have received extra divisions as well. Its all fun.

Beverly

I do not put any hostas, their seedlings or their trimmings into the compost. Any hosta, even seedlings could have hidden Southern Blight spores, foliar nematodes or/and HVX, and I do not want to spread any of that. All of that should go into the garbage. Bernd

This post was edited by berndnyz5 on Wed, Jul 31, 13 at 10:03