I don't know about hosta virus x infected plants,but it sure works on poison ivy vines,which it does kill right down to the roots! Phil

i am not sure roundup.. or its generics.. actually kill a hosta ....

and i have gone through thousands of gallons of the stuff .... and can not assign a loss to it .. not that i stumble around spraying wildly.. lol ...

i will let others address the virus issue ...

ken

BUT!!!!

poison ivy will continue to be toxic for a period of years.. dead or alive ...

ken

Drifting Roundup also kills neighboring plants. Trying to kill wildly spreading groundcovers, I also killed a large Sum and Substance and several azaleas. Looking at pictures of Forum members' gardens with hostas very close too each other, using Roundup might lead to a massacre.

If you're worried about overspray from roundup - use a roller/rag/brush.

Paul

Hi Jakki,
Roundup takes a while to totally kill a plant. Depending on the "wax" and "thickness" of leaves the roundup will have a tendancy to only distort growth. Think back to the waterdroplets that form and collect on hosta leaves. They usually evaporate into the air before they are obsorbed by the plant. You can add "crop oil" to roundup to make it stick and penetrate better. However, you still will have to apply various times to get the "kill", if at all.

Dr. L. will be giving a lecture at the hosta convention in Mn. Perhaps, the answere would be more thourough? The questions are the easy part; it is the answeres that cost thousands of dollars to get correct.

It would seem more practical to get rid of the problem as quickly as possible by removal.

You should already have the nessities to clean your tools in your garden arsenal. Why should you already have the nessities? Here is an example: I used my pruners a while back to clear out pagado dogwood branches that had fire blight. On the way back to the shop I trimmed some branches on a $500.00 oak tree; I spread the disease to this oak.

Although it seems somewhat unpractical to clean between all cuts or digging, the more often the better. W/o being a pain in the butt, it is pretty simple to clean at break time, moving to a new garden, between species of plants, etc.

Hope that helps,
Rick

Thanks for all your thoughts - I actually don't have a HVX plant that I need to get rid of at the moment (though with the spread of HVX I am not hopeful that this situation will continue!!). I've read lots about it though and haven't seen this issue addressed before.

It will be interesting to see what Dr. L has to say, if anything about the science of using Roundup on the plants. My thought was that if the Roundup is taken deep into the roots, then that would be safer/better than digging up a live plant, as the Roundup-killed roots, along with the virus, will be dead and unable to be passed on...

Mind you, what sounds perfectly logical to the non-scientific mind, may not be perfectly scientifically logical!!

Look forward to see what other comments and thoughts come up!

Jakki

Hi Jakki,

I've seen roundup sprayed hostas come back a year later, so while it is worth a try to kill the plants with chemicals it isn't a guarantee, and then those roots could be down there contaminating things for quite a while.

From the latest research (they aren't saying much yet) they are saying that HVX stays viable in the soil for months, if not years, from a contaminated location, so the recommendation is to not replant hostas in a spot that previously had HVX. Pretty scary stuff, if you ask me! There was always the possibility of HVX spreading by contaminated dirt particles (using a coarse contaminated sample to grind HVX into hostas is part of the inoculation process in research) and it seems dirt can hold on to HVX for quite a while. Also think heavy dust storm - if the plants get wind damage, bits of HVX could be floating around the garden.

One major issue I see is that people continue to think that the green "ink bleed" is the only symptom. People post pictures here pretty regularly with HVX infected plants in the background and I don't even think they realize it. Many plants get distorted leaves, but others get NO symptoms at all. It's like cockroaches... If you see one you can be guaranteed there are others lurking about, even though you don't see them.

There are millions of HVX infected plants out there, and it will take the effort of all of us to get rid of this huge problem.

Chris

Here is an essential lesson I learned from a licensed spray applicator peson regarding Round-UP and plant irradication. She said, 'Always spray twice. Spray once to sicken the plant; spray again in 7-10 days to kill it off for good.' Here in the NW we have huge infestations of wild blackberries, and I was only able to get total kill with no regrowth using the 2-spray method. When I strayed only once, it was evident that I was only making the vine mad, and more determined to success. The first spray killed the foliage, but the root still managed to live. Less hardy plants can be killed with one spray, but the really obnoxious ones need a double dose.

Thank you for all your thoughts and information. As always, very helpful.

I do hope Dr. L addresses this issue from a purely scientific point of view; it would be interesting to find out if there is a less difficult method of removing infected plants without the danger of spreading the virus on garden tools, etc.

It is heartbreaking to find out just how much HVX has spread. It is important that, when buying plants, we take into consideration the cost of testing each and every plant in the nursery. If there is a little extra in purchase price at the beginning, it is worth it in terms of long-time peace of mind. Mind you, many of the mail order nurseries we know and love seem to eat the cost of testing - and for that we must continue to love them and support them!

Thank you to those of you who mentioned the double spraying. I did not know that about Roundup - I'll certainly incorporate the double spraying into my garden arsenal.

The idea of making a little cairn showing where a diseased plant was removed it a very nice one - fitting memorial, and potentially nice garden art. Another idea I'll borrow this year! I fear the H. Captain Kirk that has been bothering me will have to go this spring. (I know, I know! I said I didn't have any diseased plants to get rid of - I am sure there is a therapy term to describe that avoidance of the truth!!)

Thanks again.

Jakki

Hi Jakki,
Hey, I sure "respect" your exceptance of a plant in question.
You are so right on feeling better. Questionable plants sure aren't worth the risk to the rest of the garden.

I belong to a hosta club. The "big" event for the summer is being held at a place that is so riddled w/ viruses that it makes my skin crawl. Seriously I want to throwup.

I couldn't go last year either because of the refusal to remove a infected plant/plants. This was a different residence.

In talking to this individual , he "always dips his knife into bleach between cuts" It is obvious, this method is not working. Getting the sap off is really important.

In one sense I feel bad for him. The garden and collection is few and far between. A real "addict" for years.

However, I find plants also mislabed here. Has to have everyone no matter if it is right or wrong.

I also see many plants here from "bad" sources. Willing to risk everything for hopes a new sport or plant has been found.

The part that really makes me ill, is the individuals purchasing here. They don't have a clue.