Hosta

Plant Characteristics

Habit		herbaceous
Lifespan:	⌛	perennial

Cultivation

Exposure:	☼	part-sun, shade
Features:	✓	flowers, foliage, houseplant

Scientific Names

Agavaceae >

Hosta >

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Read about Hosta in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Hosta (personal name). Funkia of Sprengel, sometimes spelled Funckia. The Funckia of Willdenow is Astelia. Liliaceae. Day Lilt. Plaintain Lily. Hardy perennials of China and Japan, much planted for their masses of root- leaves and for their white and bluish flowers; the funkias of garden literature. Sometimes spelled Hostia. Herbs, forming stools or clumps: lvs. petiolate, ovate or lance-ovate, prominently several - ribbed, those on the flowering sts. smaller and becoming bract-like: fls. in terminal racemes or spikes, white or blue; perianth funnelform, 6-parted and more or less irregular, the lobes not widely spreading; stamens 6, the filaments filiform, the anthers long-oblong and versatile: pod oblong and angled, many-seeded, splitting into 3 valves; seeds flat and black, winged at the apex.— Species about 10. In cult., the synonymy seems to be much confused. The hostas are hardy and of the easiest culture. Their dense stools or clumps of foliage are in place along walks or drives and in the angles against buildings. A continuous row along a walk gives a strong and pleasing character. Make the soil rich and deep. The clumps improve with age. The large-leaved kinds grow vigorously in moist, shady places. Of some varieties the leaves are strikingly variegated. They bloom in summer. Foliage is killed by frost. Propagation is by dividing the clumps; some species produce seeds freely, and seedlings can be grown readily if seed is sown as soon as ripe. H. aoki, with "large glaucous-green lvs." is advertised. It has been offered in this country from European sources, and is said to be apparently identical with Hoata sieboldiana, except in time of blooming.—H. aurea, Hort., variegated forms of various species.— H. elata, Hort., "bears tall scapes of pale blue fls."—H. gigantia, Hort., has "long spikes of blue Ms."—H. variegata, Hort.~variegated forms of various species, usually of H. caerulea or H. lancifolia.—H. viridis-marginata, Hort., is probably a form of H. caerulea. The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.

Cultivation

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Propagation

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Pests and diseases

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Species

Selected species^wp:

• Hosta albofarinosa
• Hosta capitata
• Hosta cathayana
• Hosta clausa
• Hosta fluctuans
• Hosta gracillima
• Hosta hypoleuca
• Hosta ibukiensis
• Hosta jonesii
• Hosta kikutii
• Hosta kiyosumiensis
• Hosta longipes
• Hosta longissima
• Hosta minor
• Hosta montana
• Hosta nakaiana
• Hosta nigrescens
• Hosta plantaginea
• Hosta pulchella
• Hosta pycnophylla
• Hosta rectifolia
• Hosta rupifraga
• Hosta shikokiana
• Hosta siberiana
• Hosta sieboldiana
• Hosta sieboldii
• Hosta tardiva
• Hosta tibae
• Hosta tortifrons
• Hosta tsushimensis
• Hosta ventricosa
• Hosta venusta
• Hosta yingeri

Gallery

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References

• Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture, by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963

External links

• w:Hosta. Some of the material on this page may be from Wikipedia, under the Creative Commons license.
• Hosta QR Code (Size 50, 100, 200, 500)