H. Emerald Ruff Cut

[irawon]

Hi everyone,

I've been enjoying everybody's pictures, so I thought I'd share a pic of Emerald Ruff Cut (June 3, 2014), which is looking a lot better than last year. It was damaged by frost last spring. I didn't remove the dead foliage last fall and wasn't able to remove it early spring, so perhaps the dead leaves provided extra protection. I was a bit worried that the dead leaves were harbouring slug eggs and that I'd have a big slug problem this year, especially since I didn't have the time to apply an ammonia bath. I was slug hunting a couple of nights ago and found only one. Perhaps the extra cold winter and late spring reduced the slug population. I'm rethinking the removal of dead leaves in the fall. Any opinions?

[Tigger]

Lovely! Some kind of winter mulch is helpful, I'm sure.

[rufie98]

Your Emerald Ruff Cut is a beauty! I remember seeing one in person two years ago and I never forgotten it.

As for whether you should leave the leaves on in the fall, it wouldn't hurt to continue to experiment and see what happens. I think if you leave the fall leaves, but then do the ammonia bath in spring, you should get rid of a good deal of slugs.

Last fall I decided to cut down some of my hostas in the fall. I cut my large albomarginata down to about two inches during the daytime and then went out slug hunting that evening. What a surprise---there were several large slugs around the remains of that hosta! I got rid of them then and there. So for me, I think cutting the hostas is a very good idea. The slugs are so much easier to see. I have never lost a hosta that was in garden soil. Now growing in pots, well, that is another story!

[Phil]

Beautiful!

[irawon]

Rufie, I like to wait until the foliage of my hostas is dry before removing it, to avoid transferring latent HVX from one hosta to another. I'm glad I do, because my Ani Machi/Geicha was near ERC and found to be infected 2 years ago. I'll try to make sure I get around to the ammonia bath next spring.

Phil and Tigger, thanks for looking and the kind words. I wasn't expecting ERC to get this big.

[thy]

Great pic of a lovely hosta
Slug controle in late fall can help

[lessa's dh]

With a little extra love (watering every 4 days or so) and some really good dappled light from the shade cloth - this is what happens!

[pauhaus]

Ed and Art, your ERCs are beauties. I must have a dud because it's really small and comes up looking the same every year. I have had it for four years now.

[ViolaAnn]

Lovely pics above. My ERC is looking the best it has ever looked this year. With the slow spring, it didn't get frozen as it did a couple of years ago. And most of my hostas look large and healthy.

Re garden clean-up, I've had foliar nematodes for a few years now and I think that a really thorough garden clean-up and spraying the cut hosta base with an ammonia solution may help reduce their numbers. They are just about everywhere and most of you probably have them too since they affect many different perennials.

This was mine in late May.

[irawon]

ViolaAnn and Lessa, thanks for posting your pics. Both of your hostas are beautiful and show what a gorgeous hosta it is both while in the young and mature stages. I'm surprised to see that mine should still grow taller.

[Tigger]

An Emerald Ruff Cut leaf took Best in Show yesterday in Philadelphia.

[morgansrgr8]

My mom has been on a shopping spree lately. Will have to put a bug in her ear about ERC. Its beautiful. She got me Church Mouse and Curly Fries yesterday. I love her surprise visits. lmao

[ViolaAnn]

Picture taken today. It's in bloom.