The pics are a bit small, but I'd say that it looks like HVX.

That's what it certainly looks like. Definately, sunken tissue and some ink bleed. Looks like a Gold Standard which has a lot of virus in the trade.

Where did you get the plant?

Steve

I bought it last year at our local hosta society plant auction. It was donated by a couple of our members. After I got it home something about some markings on one of the leaves made me question its health...I actually suspected nematodes. So I potted it up in a container and kept it separated from my other hostas. This year I thought it was healthy until this particular leaf fully unfurled. I'm glad I kept it in a container!
Thanks for your input.
Cj

I know this may change how we hosta lovers are able to do things. It is awesome when I hear some of us obtaining 100-200 new hostas in one season. But your experience, Cindy, says a lot for quarantining new plants before we turn them out into our gardens.
I also am glad you kept it in a container.

Les

THAT is what's frightening. A hosta society member either not knowing about HVX or even scarier... donating it anyway.

Melissa, all three of my HVX infested hosta have come from hosta society members and/or sales. Pretty scary, huh? Nance

p.s. I don't buy from them any more!

one club.. buys TC stock ... as a group.. for discount ... and then shares them among themselves..

there are ways for clubs to DO IT RIGHT ...

which of course.. should start with eradicating such in their own gardens ...

ken

Yes, that is HVX. Part of the bigger problem is that there just isn't enough education out there so there are many people that don't really know what it looks like and lots of hosta gardeners, even club members, that don't even know it exists.

Many people still believe that if we educate people about it that it will cause people to stop wanting to grow hostas. I still say that if we don't educate people about it then their gardens will be such disasters that THEN they won't want to grow hostas.

A few years back during the national convention, almost every hosta garden featured had at least 1 virus infected hosta displayed in their gardens. When people noticed it they were told not to say anything about it :(

I saw this coming 10 years ago and was called crazy and obsessive, and many wished I would be quiet about it. Just one year ago I was told by the former head of a large group that we will just scare people away if we tell new members about HVX.

I'm glad that people are open to these discussions here and on other forums, but for those who don't get on the internet there is almost no way to know about this :(

One of the only ways to totally eradicate this from gardens is to test everything you have. So many plants don't show any symptoms and other plants have such obscure symptoms that it is really hard to tell. I've had discussions with people who think they've only had one or even had no HVX infected plants in their gardens yet I've seen HVX plants in the background of some of their pictures so I know they just don't realize it is there.

So don't let it discourage you, but keep talking to the clubs and keep asking questions from your growers, nurserymen, and fellow gardeners so we can keep spreading the word about this.

Thanks for reading!

Chris

Last week I was at a local garden center (buying coleus, actually), but out of curiosity asked the staff if their hosta came from an HVX free source. No one on the staff had ever heard of HVX.
Christine