FINALLY! Seedling pics from 10/2010 sowing

[GrannyNanny]

I finally made myself get some of my seedlings upstairs to take pics today, and below you will see the results. In the first pic the seedlings are all from "Christmas Tree Gala', which is a randomly variegated medium hosta that does not -- at least in my garden -- settle into an edge or center variegated form. It shows the variety of seedlings that you can get from a single pod parent, open pollinated! The preponderance of this year's seedlings are streaked,(like those in the fourth pic) but as you see, in this first pic there is one very large green one, and several in varying shades of yellow or gold. I have kept the green one, which I don't usually do, because it is so much bigger than all the rest, and I want to see if it will turn into a monster sized hosta in a few years.
The second batch is from my recently-registered (last June) "Pucker Up", which is a bright yellow-green large hosta with intense corrugation in the leaves. There you also see some variety in color and leaf shape. The third batch is from my green-black recent register, "Dark Matter", and the seedlings from that are uniformly dark green. I had a seed tray of around 50 of them, and they all looked the same!!!!! I've never had that happen before, so it is an interesting idea that one would get identical-looking seedlings from any pod parent! Hostas are infinitely varied and interesting, aren't they? Phyllis
PS Remember you can click on the pics to make them bigger!

[paul_in_mn]

Granny Nanny, Nice seedlings. Love the streaks and the dark greens. Happy to hear the seedling thumb has gone back to green.

Also, congrats on the future new home. If you could use some help getting things moved to the new gardens, let me know. I have a van, a truck and like to get dirty .

[pauhaus]

Great looking batch of seedlings you have there Phyllis, it's surprising the variety of seedlings you can get with the same plant. I especially love that Dark Matter seedling that's on the bottom. Thanks for posting.

[kHT]

Awesome new seedlings, can't wait to see them in your new home garden.

[rosemarie]

That is a handsome bunch of young-uns you have there, Phyliss! Keep us updated on how they do!

[Marlys]

Hey! Phyllis, I see you have been a busy bee! (Just couldn't resisit that one.) Beautiful little baby sdlgs

You know those that all look alike, could maybe be like Ventricosa and be identical to the parent plant. You just never know with genetics.

I got my seeds sown in mid-February. So you can imagine they are just beginning to emerge. I'm about ready to give up on the Galaxy seeds. They are all just lying there, doing nothing.

I had a beautiufl pale yellow sdlgs out of my H 'Galaxy II' now known as 'Adrenaline Rush' as Reldon renamed it when he won it in the 2010 January AHS Auction. Well, it withered away right away. I have often wondered how 'Grey Ghost' survived culling. But then, Bob Solberg does have an eye for hosta, and it was a sport, not a sdlg.

I have so enjoyed all your seed growing adventures you've shared with all of us over all these years. I grow mine just for fun! But who, knows, one of these days, just maybe, I'll grow the "Host of the Century". I am watching a couple (to be 3rd year) sdlgs that look different and maybe, promising. You just never know

MM

[GrannyNanny]

Marlys -- I, too, grow seedlings for fun -- and as therapy to keep myself from going wiggy in the cold, long winter. It's lovely to be able to go down in the greenbasement and play in the dirt! I'm trying to figure out how I can keep these in pots until our house is finished, so I can designate a plot at the back of the lot just for seedlings, and put them into the ground there rather than here. So many things to think about when building a house, and many of them concern not the house, but the garden surrounding it. Phyllis

[Linda P]

Nice to see that you have a good crop this year, Phyllis! I didn't start any of mine til the last week of January,
and on into the end of February. They're just getting going, so it will be a while before I have anything
much to show.

Linda P

[Marlys]

I too, am a late starter. I didn't get my seeds sown until mid February.
Just since the end of the week there is life in the trays. One tray has a tiny green sprout, a tiny yellow sprout, & a tiny yellow with green streaks, or would that be green with yellow streaks It has more yellow that green. I showed it to Ron yesterday & he said how can you see those streaks all ready. Men

[GrannyNanny]

Marlys -- there is no limit to the hopefulness and enthusiasm of hosta-seedling-growers! We can see characteristics in hosta babies that no one else would ever dream were there! Congrats on getting a good streaker. Phyllis

[Marlys]

Phyllis - Congrats is premature as I could kill the little darling plant off real easy. I'm not too good at this seed thing. If the poor babies survive long enough for me to get them outdoors for Mother Nature to nourish, then they have a much better chance of actually growing up. But the cats can be hard on tiny sdlgs too, if you get my drift. They dig 'em right out sometimes. Oh, the trials of a gardener are many.

[ViolaAnn]

Some nice looking seedlings there. I haven't started mine yet and won't until mid-April as I'll be away from them for awhile. Don't want to make a neighbour look after them. But I'm getting itchy to get them started for sure.