Great pictures Steve!

"Liberty" looks like it could glow in a shade garden and
3 feet in 3 years is good enough for me in terms of a growth rate.

GONG! Did that bell sound as loud outside of my head?
The ringing bell is my recognition of H.'Victory' being the name I couldn't remember; like HMS Victory of the British Royal Navy. Now I can go back to bed. LOL

Having eyeballed both face to face as mature hostas, I would give the edge to Liberty (or Victory if Liberty weren't available)over Guardian Angel. But that is my personal opiniion. I have both Liberty and GA as "teenie-boppers". I would like to have Victory also/to compare with V. I have Paul's Glory and Old Glory living side by side for comparison. IF I had to pick one and give one away I would really be torn to make the right decision which to keep and which to let go of.

Just from pics, that is how close L & V are to each other.

Les

Thanks Les for that comparison of L & V.

Do each do equally well in deeper shade? (In part I have this plan to put my hostas on the front edge as there is a touch more sun on the perineter and less as one proceeds towards the back corner.)

How do L & V compare in terms of final size and growth rate as I have heard L is slow growing.

Victory is a true giant. This is a pic of Mark Zillis measuring the one in Paula Lehtola's garden.

{{gwi:1101672}}

He reports the largest size as 38" high by 88" wide, but this one may have been larger. The only drawback with these nigresens types is the 7' tall scapes. IMO, these look way out of proportion to the plants. Of course, you can always remove them.

Steve

Thanks for that telling picture Steve. Given the dimensions of my new garden it would complete overwhelm the space. I am back to three "Liberty" on the border.

Steve-I wasn't aware how large Victory is. Thanks for the great pic. I'd like to meet Mark Zilis some day. Thanks for the pic of two I have great admiration of.

Victory is now on my next to get list.

Here is my young Liberty from this spring. It is also a lesson for newbies as to what a couple of vole-holes look like. The sleeve saved Liberty but the Serendipity behind took a hit. :(

Les

Jon, yesterday I added almost another cubic yard of 'garden soil' (which will make about 2.5 cubic yards of such soil in total + many bags of shredded leaves and garden clipplings just beneath the surface) and then I added stone edging to finish it off. I now have about 150 square feet virgin shade garden to plant in starting this coming spring.

Great job rouge. That is going to be a sweet garden tucked in the corner. With the stone wall in place it easy to see how much work you had dealing with an irregular surace. Your precise quadrant will suit your formal plant orientation very well.

Please make sure you share some pictures in the Spring.

Jon

You know if you spray paint that galvanized fence black it will disappear...or maybe ivy or something climbing on it??? ...or something with height to block it??? ...or...

Thanks Jon but the quadrant isn't really a quadrant :(. It is 16 feet from the edge of the gate to the back corner along the fence but only 12 feet from the back corner to the top right front. If I did a 16 foot radius it would eliminate the shady spot on our lawn where 2 comfy Muskoka chairs are positioned. You cant see all the other gardens (which were once lawn) not far from this new one leaving very little grass lawn remaining. I am sad to say this is the last expropriation of lawn that can be done on our residential property.

The fence looks its worst from late fall and on into winter due to the lack of surrounding vegetation. For example in the summer months I usually hang bags of impatiens or begonias from the top links. And given that there are wonderful perennials flowers just on the other side I wouldn't want it completely blocked out. And finally I am confident that when the new garden fills in one will notice very little of the metallic links.

(But it might be interesting to see the fence painted black...although it would be a messy job with the spray?)

You have made an excellent choice in Liberty. Whatever you do, it is going to look great.

Here is a link that might be useful: Photos of my Liberty for the last few years

A can of Rustoleum spray paint, a quick wire brush, if needed, a drop cloth or plastic on the ground in front and a big piece of cardboard (or a smaller piece and keep moving it along) in the back to prevent overspray. Tie back the arborvitae (?)

Sounds like about an hour or so work (for the 2 sections) and not too messy if you put on some latex gloves and old clothes. The entire fence could be a major project. I have a chain link kennel that I would like to vanish some day.

I had to search to see what a Muskoka chair was; it looks similar to what we would call an Adirondak chair in this neck of the woods.

Jon

I am speechless 'cowboy'. That is a stunner. I looked at your link and it seems that it went into the ground in 2007 and within 2 years ie by the summer of 2009 it was a good size, a real eye catcher. Do I have that right?

How much shade does this particular specimen experience?

Rouge21,

My Liberty was actually planted in 2006. I purchased it from a local nursery (Savory's) and it had one large eye.

It may get late morning sun. My house is just to the east, a large Sunburst Maple is just to the south and large White Pines are just to the west Liberty.

Here is a photo of the area from my deck, the top of the photo is to the southwest. The branches of the Maple almost reach to Liberty.

If there is a moon out at night, Liberty will almost glow in the dark.

Cowboy.. I love your link on your hosta and the grouping for each picture and have saved this site n my favorites to look back on in the long winter . I would love to know how your site was set up and what an awesome way to keep track of the growth through the season and the years. Thank you so much for sharing this with us. My tiny Liberty has an honorary place ovelooking my pond.
Faye

A real specimen cowboy, and well staged against the darker hosta and plants. Here is my Liberty which I got from Naylor this year.

I think it is in a good spot and I hope I can duplicate your success over the years.

Jon

That is a quality plant photo Jon.

(Is the growth that one sees in your picture equivalent to 1 "eye" or can one not tell this after the fact?)

It is one eye. A very close shot (putting the background out of focus) and there is a slope behind it which makes it look even larger; I think.

Almosthooked or should I say TotallyHooked,

I will try to explain how we set up the site as best I can.
All my photos are in http://imageevent.com/tsbccowboy/theyardplants

imageevent.com is the best photo sharing site in my opinion. You can see how I arranged the photos in the site. Please check out the different sizes of the photos if you are looking at them.

We (my brother did almost all of the work) set up a website and databases in GoDaddy. Without going into too much detail, the databases point to the photos in imageevent.com. We have screens for data entry of the photos; on these screens, I basically just put in the address of each Hosta photo. We don't have all the entry perfected and sometimes I have to go directly into the databases to make changes.

I also utilized slide.com in the hostagardener.com website, which had real nice slide shows. I just noticed it has been shut down since March; now I will have to update hostagardener.com.

If you want more details on this, you may send me an email (the bottom of the hostagardener.com home page has a place for sending me an email). I know quite a bit about imageevent.com and I would probably have to ask my brother about questions on the hostagardener.com website.

Cowboy

Here is a link that might be useful: imageevent.com - photos of my gardens and Hostas

I'm wondering just how much trouble I'll be in about ten years from now? BKAy may be right, I'm over my head!

Having looked at the GIGANTIC Liberty specimen, then over to Cowboy's albums and in particular one blue NOID that ate his air conditioner and seems to be consuming the window behind it, I may be in some deep trouble before ten years. Sharpen the machete. If I wind up with even ONE hosta that large, I will be ecstatic. So yeah, I envision putting some of my hosta near the street where neighbors can see how impressive a Sum And Substance or a Liberty might be.

Inspirational! Thanks for this series of photos, folks.

Great to see you back Cowboy. I'm excited to see additions on your image event site. I guess I know how I'll be spending the morning.

You're right about almosthooked. Totallyhooked or aroundthebend would be more appropriate for my friend and neighbor. I can't wait to see what her garden looks like in the spring. Every time I was there she was finished creating the 'last' garden. Within the next couple days she was doing another one.

Off I go to look at your albums. Myrle

Totallyhooked.....or just plain HOOKED....right!

Cowboy, your remark about Liberty glowing in the dark....I know now that mine must go in the ground where it can be seen after dark. Preferably from my kitchen window. I'm into twilight walks in the garden, which is why I'm fond of white flowers in the shady areas. So Liberty is added to that scenario.

My young year-1 Liberty is now officially dormant, and has its place in the Hosta Sanctuary as of this morning. By next spring, maybe its permanent location will be prepared for it. Because of this thread, Liberty is more respected than ever.

Okay you guys ... quit picking on me!!I still don't believe I am totally hooked but de nile is a river??? I have a passion and that is all. Anyway I keep trying to lose my want lists but somehow they seem to reappear or some has their spring order and I see some that I really LIKE LOTS
Faye

hey moc ... you remarked on the GIGANTIC specimans you see in photos. You only need patience.

When I planted my first hostas 8 years ago, I did not pay any special attention or have any great interest. They were just shade tolerant plants. Now, the Lady Isabel Barnett planted those many years ago defies description - it is much larger across than the size given in the literature and has eaten the area around it.

Your Liberty will do the same if you can just be patient and don't kill it with love!

I also planted Liberty last spring and am really looking forward to seeing it fill the space around it - the pictures here are of some gorgeous plants.

hostales wrote: we need to know about the tree roots.

Although this is not a maple tree in behind, I am considering using some type of "root control bags" when planting in this bed; likely the Tex-R Agroliner (5 gallon size).

Maybe this deserves another thread but I am wondering if any of you 'hostiers' have had positive experiences using such a product extensively?

if you can just be patient

After a certain age one often doesnt have the luxury of the time needed for patience ;).

There is an old adage that says only old men plant trees ... probably because only with age comes the wisdom of patience (and in the case of trees, the planter will never see the result).

Patience with a hosta that is well planted and watered is probably only 3 or 4 years. The reward of enjoyment is available to all, even folks like me who are not exactly teenagers.

Rouge21, I'm with you, kid!
I once thought I was a patient person, but that was a LONG time ago. I suddenly realized time it was a flying, and I was sitting still. No more time to wait for things to happen later, get on with it. I'm gonna quote you though...I love it:

AFTER A CERTAIN AGE ONE OFTEN DOESN'T HAVE THE LUXURY OF THE TIME NEEDED FOR PATIENCE :)

UPDATE

I attended a garden show yesterday, on the same day as an ice storm and with this too long winter it made me feel good picking up my first LIBERTY from one of the indoor vendors. Although it is in a small container this specimen appears to have 3 eyes.

You do not have to spray the fence black. Nope. Get yourself a nice wide roller that has really fluffy long nap, and just roll er on there. No overspray that way.

And this spring I have my Victory coming out quite nicely. But I did not know to expect it to get THAT HUGE, such as the photo of Paula Lehtola's garden! Oh boy! Not far in the distance will be my First Look winning of a hosta from Paula Lehtola, the darling small gold hosta, STUD MUFFIN.
But I digress.

Let's see if I have that recent photo of Victory, this spring, coming on strong. Got "2 for $20" from Bob Solberg late in 2011. So would this be its 3d year?

Victory

This is such an exciting time of the year and from my one eye Liberty last season , as of today there are 5 eyes poking out of the winter sleep. I can hardly wait!

You do not have to spray the fence black. Nope. Get yourself a nice wide roller that has really fluffy long nap, and just roll er on there. No overspray that way.

Hey guys, I do promise that when gardens surrounding both side of this fence are in full swing the chain link fades away to insignificance. However I should be painting my deck this summer...anyone want to come help with that job? :)

This post was edited by rouge21 on Sun, Apr 14, 13 at 16:12

UPDATE

I am the original poster.

Here is the corner garden now:

And an upclose shot of one of the 2 "Liberty" one year later. It survived it first trying winter just fine.

This post was edited by rouge21 on Sun, Jun 1, 14 at 7:41

Looks great Rouge! What else do you have planted in that garden? I think I see a couple Heucheras and what is the tree to the right of your garden?

It's beautiful.

Rouge, thanks for coming back and telling us the rest of the story. I love happy endings!

And there will be more to come. I hope you smile every time you enter your drive, such a lovely bed you put together.

If you play around with hosta long enough, they will grab you. Just be aware. It can happen. And what a great passion it becomes. Remember this forum because you'll visit it often.
Look forward to your next appearance. Have fun this summer.

Thanks everyone for your encouragement.

- the tree to the right is a Acer shirasawanum "Aureum"

In the garden are the following perennails:

(- of course 2 "Liberty" hostas)
- 2 bergenia
- 2 heuchera "Havana"
- 2 "Burgundy Lace" (Japanese Painted Fern)
- 2 Aruncus "Horatio"
- Rodgersia "Bronze Peacock"
- Eleutherococcus [Acanthopanax] sieboldianus
"Variegatus"
- Polygonatum "Double Stuff"
- Syneilesis aconitifolia ("Shredded Umbrella Plant")
- Chrysogonum virginianum ("Allen Bush" and "Pierre")
- several Epimediums
- "Silver Heart" Brunnera

Yikes! Now that I have enumerated all the plants I can see there are way too many!

This post was edited by rouge21 on Mon, Jun 2, 14 at 19:10

I purchased Acer shirasawanum 'Aureum' on Saturday. It is great to see yours looking so nice.

UPDATE:

Here is the same LIBERTY this June. It is getting very large.

Exquisite. Do you have an update photo of the whole corner? So fun to see it fill out over the years.

-Babka

Thanks for the update rouge and yes, please show us the entire area when you get a chance.

Jon

Filled in nicely rouge. I see you have the Adirondacks set up to enjoy it. Great!

Jon

What a great history contained in this conversation! I love happy endings. Also beautifully tended. Congrats on a job well done.

A wonderful shady oasis!

BC

Thanks for your kind words and advice. I very much enjoyed the whole process of going from grass to garden.

rouge, how did your Eleutherococcus sieboldianus "Variegatus" do this winter? Mine had quite a bit of die back both this winter and last. Both winters were a lot colder than average and it's in a spot with soil that's heavy and can stay wet.

Love your corner, and love your LIberty!

Thanks very much 'ruth'. Just like you, our last two winters were quite harsh. But our ESV seemed to take it in stride. I find it grows quite quickly anyways and due to having no direct sun it grows a bit gangly. Last season I had to keep it in trim and I will have to do similarly this year. I wish ours were more 'variegatus'. (If I remember I will post a current picture of it. In the pictures above it is in the very back corner. 'Ruth', how old is yours and could you post a picture of it as it looks this season so far?)

Just read this and ran out to get a picture while there was a little light. It's still a flash picture, but that shows up where I hacked back a few branches. Mine is "out back" (behind my yard) in what's technically a commons area. But the area isn't mowed, and would be all garlic mustard, Canada thistle and other invasives if left alone. So I try to pull weeds and plant when I can, but keep it looking very wild so I don't upset anyone. That's a massive boulder behind it The ESV is probably about 5' tall. I got it years ago (5? 8?) but have moved the poor thing quite a few times.

Thanks so much for the picture Ruth!

Here is ours. It is at the very back corner (there are 3 main branches...two make a "Y" at the back and then one branch is bent forward):