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Any particular reason a hosta won't flower?

16 years ago

Hi all - posted this over on the perennials forum, have a nice discussion going over there, but would be great to get some insight from the hosta experts over here, too, so hope you don't mind the duplicate post.

Here's the problem: I bought some Grandiflora hostas (Hosta plantaginea Grandiflora) two summers ago at Arrowhead, they were blooming when I was there and I almost fell over when I got a whiff of the fragrance - it's fantastic. The flowers were actually very pretty too, large and pristine white (normally I cut off hosta flowers, I don't care for them, but the flowers are definitely a feature of this hosta).

So wouldn't you just know it - no blooms last summer. At all. The plants themselves seemed fine, they looked pretty healthy, so I have no idea why they didn't flower.

The other thread mentioned really watering the heck out of it perhaps it needs more sun.

Any more insight into the problem?

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Comments (4)

donrawson
16 years ago
Too coooooold to flower right now. Have to wait till summer. :) LOL, Don
hosta_freak
16 years ago
I'm afraid no one knows that answer. I have some hostas that have flowered every year since I planted them,some that have never flowered,some that flowered one year but not the next,some that flowered the same year they were planted.....well,you get the picture! In other words,why don't hostas flower? Because they don't want to! Phil
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i dont see plantiginea .... but i did wonder about royal standard ... or one of the look alikes ... look for fragrant white flowers in the future.. not sure these will bloom with the treatment they have gotten .... yeah.. i was messin with you.. by not telling you how to tape.. welcome to this forum.. lol ... whoever did those posts in the links included in the link above.. was genius ... if i say so myself.. lol .. now you go sit in the corner with an adult beverage.. and contemplate what you did to these you show in the post.. rotflmbo ... ken
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hostajim1
16 years ago
mxk3, I have had problems with Plantaginea flowering, myself. I have cultivars with the Plantaginea background that bloom. Guacamole, Hole Mole, Stained Glass. they all have that heavenly smell. Jim King
esther_opal
16 years ago
Without proof I believe it is day length during the spring or the late part of the season. For those who really want to work with those flowers for hybridizing could set up lights at either or both periods. I would begin as soon as days begin to be shorter. It doesn't take a lot of light to change daylength, one study worked on plants under streetlights. Streetlights are not enough light to effect growth but it does change signals plants use.

Set up plants with 14hr daylength beginning at the summer solstice or start with long days in early spring and stop after the solstice.

Many growers have attempted to bring plants indoors in the fall but that doesn't change daylength.

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