Older Hostas

[ViolaAnn]

Most likely, hostas from Knippel or Artistic will be OK. Both are high quality nurseries and SHOULD be aware of HVX, but you might want to ask some questions about how their suppliers check their stock. If they can't answer well, avoid them. Both are general nurseries which have hostas but don't specialize in them.

[eastwood2007]

I hate to over generalize, but most anything from Walmart or the box stores (Lowe's, Home Depot) WILL be infected with something you don't want in your hosta gardens....especially things like Gold Standard and Royal Standard. I heard not too long ago that there may be no clean Royal Standard on the market.

Not intending to be mean....just want to help protect your collection...

[Angel3K]

I hate to over generalize, but most anything from Walmart or the box stores (Lowe's, Home Depot) WILL be infected with something you don't want in your hosta gardens....especially things like Gold Standard and Royal Standard. I heard not too long ago that there may be no clean Royal Standard on the market.

Not intending to be mean....just want to help protect your collection...

Hi Charla,

I know its of good heart, thank you.

I do agree with you, hence they are both on its corner, between our paving stones. I might consider uprooting Royal Standard too, since I took off Gold Standard 2 days ago. I find these two standards are " slug-o-magnet", so putting it on pot, move to higher grounds and of course "isolating chambers".

I've read online that both Royal Standard & Gold Standard are fast growers, therefore if one is infected, I imagine the infection & spread is as fast as its growth. If an infected one goes into TC, then there is a mass of infected RS and GS out there, even infecting a neighboring stock by just moving around at Home Depot.

It might be a good project for me too, by observing two standards and see how long they show signs.
Aside from my weekend gardening job, this recording/observing such plants is sort of something that will keep me occupied.

Do you think excluding both Royal Standard and Gold Standard on the "Hosta Pioneer Garden" might be a wise idea?

So far, I just laid Lancifolia yesterday & Undulata Univittata (think that's the right name - the one with cream colored center - around 1930's Bailey)

[ViolaAnn]

It's never a bad idea to treat ANY new hosta as potentially infected and get in the habit of cleaning your tools and hands well between plants. Because HVX can be present in a plant and not show symptoms for some time, you will then avoid infecting your other plants should it show up.

[eastwood2007]

It's never a bad idea to treat ANY new hosta as potentially infected and get in the habit of cleaning your tools and hands well between plants. Because HVX can be present in a plant and not show symptoms for some time, you will then avoid infecting your other plants should it show up.

Yes, very good note. I don't put any newly acquired hostas in the beds until I have observed them for at least one season...I'm also down to where I only buy at about 3 places, knowing these suppliers, and thinking I seriously lessen my opportunity for exposure.

Regarding whether or not to include Royal Standard or Gold Standard....it would be a shame not to as they are both awesome plants. I do know there are more "good" Gold Standard out there now, but I haven't seen anyone selling Royal Standard commonly, such as in the larger stores and nurseries? You may/probably find it mail ordered, but I don't think I have ever seen it just out for sale here in the states? Could you show a photo of yours...it may be something else marked as Royal Standard. The good news is, that if you want to keep the 2 of them isolated until you watch them awhile, both varieties show the symptoms fairly soon.

Good luck!
You just have to decide if it is worth the risk, as squirrels, moles, insects, storm damage, etc. can transmit the virus.

[Angel3K]

Hello Charla,

These are the pictures of my gold standard in pot. Note all the "slug bites". I walk in the garden one night, and this was favorite for slugfest. In my revenge, I put them in the jar of vinegar, now they are pickled slugs.

The plant tag was from Willmill-Product of Canada.
Grown by: Pan American Nursery Products Inc. (Surrey, BC and Milgrove Ontario L0R 1V0)

So being from Ontario, I think this is a local plant, but really don't know if this is field grown.



And another one:

[scootersbear]

I've been collecting the oldies for years and it's not as easy as it sounds a lot have just fallen off the hosta map but this will help. Theres some like White Ray and Resonance which most people I'd imagion haven't heard about but are nice hostas and have been around for probably 35 years or so and are fairly cheap and others like Love Pat which are still mentioned as possible top 10 hostas.

Heres a good place to start

http://www.hostaregistrar.org/Docs/Silv ... lement.pdf


Good Luck

[Angel3K]

Thank you very much. Ah, that link is 91 pages, and I am reading it like I am back in university again. Full attention to it.

I am glad that you are collecting older hostas too. I think we won't have these nice hybrids without them, so I wanted to put a special "Hosta Pioneer Garden".

Do you have a small list of your favorite older hostas?

I might find em at the nursery, and hopefully bring it home.

Angie:)

[ViolaAnn]

Interesting link. And I'm surprised how many of my varieties that I thought were relatively new are on it.

Then there are others that were registered earlier - one in particular from 1985:

'September Sun' R. Solberg (R) 1985
Plant: 36 in. (91 cm) diameter, 16 in. (41 cm) high;
Leaf: 8 in. (19 cm) long, 6 in. (15 cm) wide; 7 to 9 pairs of veins; yellow; dark green margin;
Scape: 36 in. (91 cm) long;
Flower: North Carolina - late June - July;
[Sport of H. 'August Moon']

Is there another list of earlier registrants?

[scootersbear]

August Moon in 96 and Sept. Sun 85 am I missing something. Not sure I've heard of a sport registered before the parent??? You can make an arguement for a lot of hostas being oldies Patriot was registered 20 years ago (surprise). Aksarben (don't like this hosta I'm from Colorado) over 20 years ago and the first time I heard of it was maybe 5 or 6 years ago and yes I have it and just like the college it's over rated. Then theres some that I thought would be older such as Brave Amhearst which if I could fill my whole yard with Love this hosta and it's from 93. I love the older hostas because it's where it all started from and to be honest they are tried and true, you plant them they are going to grow (with the exception of GE, hate this hosta with a passion and have killed it more than I'd like to admit and it's about 25 years ago. Ever hear about a hosta called Dorothy Benedict it's almost 30 years and how about Galaxy about 25 years and imagion the world of hostas without these 2 streaked hostas. Don't want to. Love the Fragrant hostas from Aden but a few have been fairly hard to try and find. Theres just so many golden oldies and I haven't found a list of anything older I generally have to go to the registry and look them up to find what year they were registered. Good winter project for somebody.

[ViolaAnn]

Registration date is not necessarily an indication of when the plant arrived. I've had a couple of plants for a decade or more that were just registered within the last year or so.

[eastwood2007]

Hi, Angel -

Your Gold Standard looks great so far!

Be sure to look at some of the photos Chris has posted on the HVX forum, as he certainly has pics of GS with HVX.

I would take a closer look at the dark spots starting on the veins in that leaf at the 1:00 position....that's how it starts with GS, but this may just be coloration....could you show a close up of that leaf?

[ViolaAnn]

Eastwood - I also looked at that leaf and wondered a bit.

[Angel3K]

Hi Charla, Ann,

Thanks for the note. I will take a picture of the back portion of that leaf tomorrow. She is in one corner along with Tiarellas.

Scooterbear: Dorothy benedict and Galaxy, Aksarben, Brave Amhearst, will look for it.

GE: as in gold edger? seems to be just vigorous on the front where there is heavy foot traffic.

And here is the Lancifolia, in a big pot as well.

[hippieindenial]

GE = Great Expectations

[Angel3K]

GE = Great Expectations

wonder why scooterbear don't like this one? I don't have it.

[ViolaAnn]

Angie, I don't want to be a bearer of bad news and I hope I'm not, but please inspect the leaf at 3 o'clock in your pic of Lancifolia. It looks as though it MIGHT have some of the type of sunken tissue that one finds with HVX.

[scootersbear]

generally the parent is registered before the sport or seedling, it's just not that common otherwise.. Great Expectations might be the worst hosta ever on the market it can be extremely fussy, a few can get it to grow but most of the time you can expect it to die, it's a waste of money and time, which I've wasted both on this hosta.

[ViolaAnn]

My GE is not a fast grower, but it has grown and I've had it for over a decade.

[Angel3K]

generally the parent is registered before the sport or seedling, it's just not that common otherwise.. Great Expectations might be the worst hosta ever on the market it can be extremely fussy, a few can get it to grow but most of the time you can expect it to die, it's a waste of money and time, which I've wasted both on this hosta.

Ah, don't have it. I wonder why they call it that name. I'd say Great Expectations could mean fast grower, or maybe very nice big mound. At leat, that is what i'd expect.

I have none of that GE, I have gold edger, who does not mind being step on once in a while. This GE spread sideways, so if the one you step on died, another one just sprout beside it. Clearly a winner for me, with young kids, bike and sandtoys around.