I just threw out a itsey gold I had for over a year all of a sudden showed HVX. Got it as a bonus plant so not much lost.

What a bummer to have a plant that beautiful get so ugly so fast! Are you sure that's the same plant? Fork it out of there, toss it and plant a fern there would seem the safest thing to me.

I opened your post and winced when I saw the photo. So sorry for your friend. Where did he buy it?

-Babka

I pretty much had the same reaction as Babka... like it almost hurts to see that!

I would buy cheapo dollar store tools and label or somehow identify them as the "HVX safety tools" only to used on the hostas that may have been contaminated by the HVX hosta. Just in case one day the tool cleaning procedures are forgotten.

With the extra tools measure... get into the habit of doing a Bleach solution soak for at least 1 minute and then wipe/scrub down all gardening tools that may have been used for digging/planting the hostas.

And for now on- in hope for preventing any spread- your friend should do that bleach wipe down between each hosta when using any tools to snip or dig etc. (I spray it on with a squirt bottle and have paper towels handy, along with a small trash bag to dump the paper towels).

Different cleaning solutions offered along with more info:
http://hort.uwex.edu/articles/hosta-virus-x/

http://www.americanhostasociety.org/Publications/41/HVXarticle.htm

When disposing of that infected hosta take out a generous surrounding section - to be safe dig bigger than the original hole to get all of the new tiny roots that may have grown- dispose of the plant, roots, dirt and all. Don't shake it out!-

Make sure that you get everything associated with that hvx hosta- the root ball, crown, plant leaves and all the bits of leaves... and do not compost it!). Toss it in the trash- better yet bring the trashbag to the hosta and neatly dispose of it there. Or burn it the waste.

Not sure about other hostas that were planted nearby around the same time... were they tinkered, pruned, cut, or wounded in some way during the same time as this hosta?

Take this paragraph with a few grains of salt because now I am just thinking aloud... would digging them up removing the surrounding soil, rinsing off the roots, soak in a bleach solution for 3 minutes and then replanting in another area OR putting fresh soil in same area, help at all? Who knows, and I am not sure about those ideas, but perhaps the less possible damage/wounding to them at this time is the best course of action?

I have read about different ideas of what to do for HVX and the garden area (definitely agree that no new hosta should be planted in that spot in case former bits and pieces of HVXhosta remain ).

Excellent information HVX on this forum about 8 years ago and recommendations from U of Minn researchers on HVX

Here is the HVX information from the American Hosta Society.

HVX info

-Babka

And for good measure: Hosta HVX forum

all of Chris Hallson's posts are super helpful.

Here is a recent post June 2017: How to handle HVX