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stephanie_h12

what do you do with seedlings

6 years ago

I have a bunch of hosta seedlings coming up everywhere and was wondering what you guys do with them. Do you save them or weed them too? I hate to throw away a plant but I don't know that I need a gazillion green hostas.


Same thing with Lenten Roses - good grief, they are sprouting up everywhere!

Comments (9)

  • 6 years ago

    anything you have too many of.. are weeds within certain aspects of the definition of weed ..


    the world does not need another non descript green hosta... just get rid of them ...


    but... and there is usually one around ... if its yellow.. or blue.. or variegated... maybe pot it up and keep track of it.. and see if it turns into something interesting ... but that is a different hobby ..


    same for the LRoses... too may equates to weeds ...


    ken


    ps: you can cut off the flower stalks before the pods ripen.. if you want to avoid the issue ...

    stephanie_h12 thanked ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
  • 6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I put my seedlings in window boxes and see what I've got as they grow. Most of them come from a bunch of Fortunei Aureomarginata planted together in the front gardens. Their seedlings are usually very dark green and of good thick substance, plus they grow fast and bloom with vigorous flowers on stiff scapes. And they propagate like mad as do their parents. I've gotten one blue plant that is phenomenal from those Fortuneis. What I do now, since I have so many of these seedlings, is cut the scapes down after booming.

    I have one seedling in the back gardens that is interestingly odd. It has narrow leaves on long petioles and is very, very waxy. It's planted next to Lamium, so you can see how light it is next to those leaves full of white. Its wax holds all season. But the leaves are not dense; darn. I'm waiting for it to get more mature to see how it looks at 5-6 years old.

    Here it is in context from last season (I think), and a close-up next to its Lancifolia (!!) mommy from the previous season or the one before that.

    Lancifolia does not set seed in my garden, but one season it did and this baby was born. So it is is special in several ways.

    I don't throw hostas away, and I don't eat them either. I value them too much. They are all precious in my sight.




    stephanie_h12 thanked liquidfeet Z6 Boston
  • 6 years ago

    liquidfeet, that one is pretty.


    There's a couple I may pot up and see what they do. One is huge and blue, one is cupped, and one appears to be streaked. I can always cull them later.


    If anyone lives near Asheville and wants a Lenten Rose (or twenty, haha), let me know.

  • 6 years ago

    That is very pretty!!

  • 6 years ago

    Very nice liquidfeet. I’m a sucker for cupped hosta’s with good substance. Who am I kidding? I’m a sucker for most any hosta!


    As far as Stephanies question, they’re weeds if you don’t want them and I wouldn’t hesitate weeding them unless you find some worth keeping. I personally don’t have the room to grow seedlings out but probably would if I did.

    stephanie_h12 thanked mac48025 ( SE michigan)
  • 6 years ago

    Just my opinion, but I wouldn't throw them away. I would pot them up and give them away or use them as trades for other plants I do want. I find Craigslist, Nextdoor, Freecycle or local garden group have loads of people willing to adopt them. I can't stand the thought of throwing away a hosta. Just my opinion as a hosta hoarder.

    stephanie_h12 thanked popmama (Colorado, USDA z5)
  • 6 years ago

    I just spent a couple hours dealing with weedlings. I had back problems, and some of them got pretty big over the last two years. The best looking ones went into a "weedling" bed. Most of those will be potted up and donated to a plant sale. They have to have something interesting like a pretty color, piecrusting, or corrugation to get saved. Occasionally there's a few that I save and look at for a few years, and very rarely the big winner that gets a place in the garden.


    We had 5 nights of hard freeze this year, and some of the weedling bed got culled because they froze to the ground or had severe damage. No cold tolerance and out you go!


    Love that pretty blue baby.

    stephanie_h12 thanked MadPlanter1 zone 5
  • 6 years ago

    It's nice when mother nature doesn't make us decide sometimes.