Hosta La Vista Baby!

Hosta blossoms, do you love them or lop them? Personally, I love them. I'm always surprised when customers choose to have their hosta blossoms removed, but a large number do. So, I asked my girlfriend (the one with a ton of hosta and incredibly good taste) why she lopped hers. In her opinion, hosta blossoms made her (immaculate) landscaping "look messy." She wanted perfect mounds of foliage. That made sense to me as she's also one of the neatest, most organized & orderly people I know.

It has taken many years to build our hosta collection mostly because hostas are expensive & I'm a bargain shopper. I always look for new varieties in the bargain bins of garden centers but truth be told, I've purchased very few at stores. I bought a wheelbarrow full at a local garden club's annual plant sale. We have salvaged clumps from the spoils of our projects. I have purchased them at garage sales & happily accepted tiny starts from gardening friends. All have been split numerous times. 

I love the contrast provided by variegated hosta. I have several in green/white and green/yellow. I'm also partial to those with a large, heart-shaped leaf. My absolute favorites are the jumbo variety. The bigger the better. They're so impressive. But, I find the hosta's flower equally impressive. Their flowers are just as varied in size, shape & color. Each as interesting & beautiful as their foliage. Funny enough, as much as I love my giant hosta, my favorite hosta flowers are the tiny dark purple blooms that belong to the smallest, most compact, thin-leafed hosta we own. Go figure.

I let all of my hostas bloom & only trim them when the blossoms are spent.
​FYI - Hosta blooms are excellent "filler flowers" for bouquets.

We have three different hosta in bloom with more on the way. But that's not all. Here's a look at everything else in bloom today.

We want to hear from you! Love them or lop them? Will hosta blossoms get 2 green thumbs up or is it "Hosta  la vista baby?" Leave your comments below or visit our Facebook page to share your thoughts & garden photos.

We hope you have a safe & happy 4th of July holiday.
Enjoy Your Freedom!