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angie_kaylor

Hosta Identification

Angie Kaylor
10 years ago

I'm trying to identify this Hosta. It was a gift from my sweet Mom & was not labeled when I got it. It was by far my favorite Hosta last year. Unfortunately, I put it in a pot & ignored it all winter. It sat just under the overhang of my house & I'm afraid it didn't get any water all winter. My other pots sat a little further out, got some water/moisture over the winter & are growing quite nicely, but I'm heartbroken over this one...it was my favorite by far. Can you help me figure out what kind it is so that I can search for another one? Please and thanks!

Comments (31)

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Here is one more pic taken later in the year.

  • Steve Massachusetts
    10 years ago

    Looks like Christmas Tree to me. A very nice cultivar and fairly widely available. Are you sure yours is dead? They don't need water during dormancy.

    Steve

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    I'm pretty sure. What I can see of it is brown & crunchy...no signs of pips (hope that's the right term - new to gardening). I read on another post to dump it out & check it, so I think I will try that. I've tried to keep all of mine labeled, but this one was a gift, so I have no idea. My yard is 99% shade, so I invested in quite a few last year. The others are doing nicely or at least peeping above the ground.

    I looked up Christmas Tree...I believe you're right. That looks just like it! Thank you.

    Looking forward to adding it back to my growing collection/obsession. I said I wasn't going to buy any more this year, but after looking through all the gorgeous HOSTA pictures on here, I think I told a lie. hehe

  • jadie88
    10 years ago

    Ah, I've told myself that lie quite a few times!!

    Christmas Tree is my most mature hosta, so I'm looking forward to seeing it come up. We love pictures, so I'll watch for your photos of the new shade garden! :)

  • bkay2000
    10 years ago

    So does the tn mean you are from Tennessee?

    (One of the best hosta hybridizers ever, lived and worked in Tennessee. Her hosta are prefaced with the name, "Lakeside". Her name is Mary Chastain.)

    bk

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Yes, I'm in Tennessee - almost on the Georgia line. :) How interesting re: Mary Chastain.

    This is only my second year to work on the yard, so it's not real pretty - yet. The first couple of years I worked on the inside of my house & totally neglected an already neglected yard. When I finally started, I just bought any plant I thought was pretty...then I realized I have little to no sun. lol! When the tornado came through a couple of years ago, I had a tree down for a year before it was cleaned up. When it finally was, there were tons of Hosta underneath. I couldn't believe they had lived with that monster tree on them. I split them up & planted them around the yard. Thus beginning my Hosta obsession.

    I've read lots of good info on here & look forward to learning even more!

    This post was edited by tnsunshine on Fri, Apr 18, 14 at 21:05

  • mountainy man z8 Ireland
    10 years ago

    It seems I was wrong on your other thread, I'm glad you got a name for your plant, now stay and be enabled, you soon will have hundreds lol.

    Denis

    This post was edited by mountainy_man on Sun, Apr 13, 14 at 21:26

  • Lee
    10 years ago

    It's not showing the lighter shade of green color and not cupping like Christmas Tree would so I don't think its CT, I was thinking of burned edges Frances William...

    This post was edited by melati on Mon, Apr 14, 14 at 10:37

  • bkay2000
    10 years ago

    It has the desiccation of Francis Williams. It looks really dark for her though. Mine are a lighter green.

    bk

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    It is a really dark green. Ken sent me a link to the hosta library...I'm just not sure now.

    I did go ahead & dump it out last night. The top part (crown?) was light brown & crunchy; however, the roots still seemed moisturized & alive...or at least they did to my non-expert eyes. I replanted it & will keep an eye on it.

    On a side note, some on my others are looking so pretty after the rain showers today. No comparison to the the pro's pics on here, but really coming along nicely.

  • zkathy z7a NC
    10 years ago

    Here's my young Frances Williams. It's pretty dark green.
    Kathy

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Kathy, that really does look just like mine. Maybe it's the ages of the plants in the library that's throwing me off?

  • ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
    10 years ago

    the bob axmear pic at bob's library.. is a young plant .. and is equivalent to my recollections ...

    it looks NOTHING like the plant being discussed here... to my eye anyway

    the blue.. which of course can wear off in warmer climes... leaf shape.. more yellow... texture.. veining ... clump shape.. and the way the leaves are held upright... etc ....

    other than all that.. maybe i am wrong...

    MMan... you know i was messin with you in the other forum .... or do i need to apologize ... ala father ted??? ...

    ken

  • mountainy man z8 Ireland
    10 years ago

    Ken, yes of course lol, I like your humor! was keeping my powder dry, but I still could possibly be right according to some of the replies above lol crikey blimey gosh ect!

    Denis

  • josephines167 z5 ON Canada
    10 years ago

    I've been looking at my own photos of FW back and forth...I have 3 growing in different locations. The leaf tips on yours are identical, so is the shape ... Quite a few juvenile FW's I've seen don't show any blue if they are sited in more sun than shade. When I enlarge your photo I see the seersucker pattern on some leaves which is prevalent in mature plants. It looks like a twin of Kathy's. I'd bet money it's a Frances Williams too.

    Jo

  • zkathy z7a NC
    10 years ago

    This is the big Frances Williams. Years ago a friend brought me some hostas and she said just break them apart and now you have two, demonstrating with FW. I planted them around the yard, this one has never been moved. The other pic, the one I call my young FW, hated the first four places I put it and was usually down to one leaf before I rescued it. So it's been happy in its bed for about four years. Unfortunately that is the bed we just reworked so it got dug up and moved again.
    Kathy

  • bkay2000
    10 years ago

    Kathy, your photo is upside down.

    bk

  • zkathy z7a NC
    10 years ago

    It's upside down on the iPad too. Can't figure out why it works sometimes and other times not. Maybe I'll stop at the Apple store and ask them. It was right side up on the message preview.
    Kathy

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Kathy, it sure looks an awful lot like your young FW, but not at all like your big one. And yes, I did keep it completely in the shade, so that could explain the difference.

    Ken, I looked at the Bob Axmear. The shape is the same, but the colors look different?

    On a diff topic, this Hosta (Earth Angel?) is really growing. I split up most of the ones I bought last year except for this one. I don't expect any size out of anything this year, so this one is a nice change. Again, nothing to brag about, but I'm tickled. :)

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    And even though this one just has a couple of leaves, they are HUGE!!! I am also loving the colors.

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Don't shoot me...one more pic. This is how most of my yard looks. Mossy - no grass - nothing much grows.

  • don_in_colorado
    10 years ago

    Oh, thats nice, tnsunshine! Very nice EA you have there.

    Don B.

  • Babka NorCal 9b
    10 years ago

    Just as a note for the upside-down and sideways shots we get here sometimes. Just click on the photo and it will display properly. Cannot explain why, but it sure beats turning my computer upside-down or sideways to see these.
    -Babka

  • don_in_colorado
    10 years ago

    Thanks, Babka. Good to know.

    tnsunshine - SHOOT you? Are you kidding, we LOVE pics here! Post away!

    Don B.

    P.S. Mossy is just fine. Grass is way overrated anyway. : )

  • josephines167 z5 ON Canada
    10 years ago

    TNsunshine... Last night I visited the Reading Room on the Hosta Library site. I read every article but one that I got immersed in was the interview with Mary Chastain. That article really raised my level of awareness for the Lakeside series. I thought you might like to see it - and read at your leisure. I've attached a link for you and anyone else that's interested, if they haven't seen it before.

    Jo

    Here is a link that might be useful: Mary Chastain interview

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Don, I'm glad you like the moss - the little bit of grass I have is shameful. The yard desperately needs to be resown...or I can just plant a zillion Hostas everywhere in this shade. ;) I think I found an old thread where someone (Ken, I think) had posted a link to 100 Hostas for $100....so tempting. tehe

    Oh, my goodness, Jo. What an interesting read! I haven't had a chance to dig around in the library this week, but definitely will try & make some time this weekend. I am only 10 minutes from Ooltewah...so she is super close to me! Thank you for sharing.

    Angie

  • josephines167 z5 ON Canada
    10 years ago

    My pleasure, Angie ... and I envy you ... you can actually get to meet her! :-)

    Jo

  • User
    10 years ago

    Babka, thanks for the remedy to upside down pictures. I had a bad case of vertigo looking at one picture above..... One click and it turned itself upright. Whew!

    But, TNSunshine, I saw your photos. Jo is good at retrieving links and doing searches.

  • bkay2000
    10 years ago

    Babka, I'm viewing on my HP tower with Windows 7, the photo does not turn upright for me when I click on it. I just go to another upside down photo.

    tn, chances are you don't have enough light for grass. Here, at least, you have to have 6 hours of sun for grass to grow. It can survive on a little less, but that is if you solid sod it.

    The 100 hosta is a really good deal. I would suggest you stay away from their named varieties, though. From speaking with their horticulture director, I learned that they buy only from US suppliers for their starts. But, from experience I learned they are selling liner sized hosta. I bought 18 last year and they sent me 10 more after I complained. So, I had 28 liner sized plants. Five have survived the winter in good shape, although they are definately really small plants. (My Humpback Whales are about 10" tall with 2 or 3 leaves each.) Six are on life support and the others did not return. We had a bad winter, though. So take that in consideration when you read this.

    There are several folks who sell liners and have good quality, if that's something that interests you. Just post a question and ask who sells good liners.

    bk

  • Angie Kaylor
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    BK, you're definitely right re: my grass - or lack of. There are a few spots that get enough sun that I should resow, but for the most part, it is what it is. I just hate the bare spots, but I do love the moss.

    I was just teasing on the 100 Hosta...well, maybe, but thank you for the info. I'm trying to soak up all the info I can.

    I've read about the infamous driveway treatment on the Hosta, so I had to share this. I had split up some Hosta w/a friend last year & threw a bunch of what I thought was just dirt back in an old flower bed. Yesterday, I walked by & noticed I had about 6 tiny Hosta growing. Now keep in mind, they were not planted, just laying in there. I guess I missed some roots. lol! I planted them yesterday in the rain & mud. I think they will be just fine.

    On a side note, I had kept all the plant tags in the ground as my plant labels. I just noticed this week, that they were all gone. Eeek...my child removed them all to "help". Some of the Hosta I know, but some of the others, I really don't have a clue because I can't find all of the tags. lol - it will be fun to research them. Bless his stinking little heart.

  • Babka NorCal 9b
    10 years ago

    Bkay- Regarding the sideways photos... I have both Internet Explorer and Chrome for Windows as browsers on our Windows desktop, and sure enough when I viewed the Hosta Forum with IE, the click trick to make them normal doesn't work.

    It does work when I use Chrome as a browser for the desktop or a tablet. I don't have Firefox so I don't know if that works to, Anyone?

    It is an easy thing to load Chrome as a browser on your computer if sideways drives you nuts (as it was for me).

    -Babka