mocassinlanding, how did the HVX test come out?

tomahawkclaim

11 years ago

I saw in another post that you got you Agdia test strips. Your results, please? N

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User
11 years ago
Sorry if I did not complete the cycle, but I am very pleased to report that the test was negative. I have a clean garden so far. Whew, and I am so glad that Frank said why wait 2 years for any signs to show, when I can test NOW. Duhhhhh.

Well, now I can touch my two beautiful plants, the two suspects, and the innocent bystander Fragrant Queen, and deal with them instead of making pariahs out of them. It was very sad to think that I'd soon be RoundUpping three fault-free perfect-leafed hosta. And they were the only three I had IN THE GROUND.

I combined the leaf pieces to make one test sample, and thus have four remaining test strips I can use during the coming year. I was afraid I'd mess up with the test, but no, it was very easily done by following their directions. Critical to getting results is (a) correct sample size, and
(b)depth of insertion for strip in the prepared sample.

Now I can enjoy my two Lowes hosta, but there will be NO OTHERS from such a source EVER.

Winter Snow:

Blue Angel:

and innocent bystander Fragrant Queen #1 from PDN:
tomahawkclaim
Original Author
11 years ago
Couple of points about the test. don't use too much plant material. One of my samples didn't register at all because I'd mashed up a big sample and made the liquid so dense that it couldn't penetrate up the test strip. completely wasted test. But I'm glad you tested; I know I'm always glad to be able to completely eliminate HVX as the problem. N
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Ken, BK took the words right out of my mouth. It is a treat to just go and see a growing hosta right in front of my eyes. Instant gratification, even with the condition I test each one for HVX. And to be truthful, I forgot to look at the price. When I want something, how well it satisfies my need to have it, trumps price....unless it happens to be a Mercedes. :) EAH, I notice that the description for most of Plant Delights Nursery hosta mention "hummingbird favorites". I do not think it requires a fragrance. Hummers supposedly love the red flowers best, so perhaps purple/lavender blossoms work as well. Most of the large plantaginea family blossoms open later in the day, so I could not estimate if that makes them better or worse as a hummer attractor.
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Steve, thanks for taking the time and making the effort to respond to my questions. I may not perceive risk in the same manner that you do but I do respect your opinions and your right to hold views that might differ from my own. AND I love your sense of humour. Having said that, I did read the material on HVX at the AHS (including the summary report based on Dr. Lockhart's research) several times BEFORE I expressed my opinions above, just to be sure I had my facts straight. I've done a bit more research and I understand that your concerns stem from theories that are not yet confirmed as fact by scientific studies: "AREAS THAT WARRANT FURTHER INVESTIGATION Ã¢ÂÂ¨Ã¯ÂÂRoot/soil contamination issues. We found that clean plants could be contaminated BY SOIL and INFECTED DEBRIS. We need to study what occurs and why." I don't want to belittle your concerns and remember an age when cigarette smoke was not deemed to be a danger to one's health, but I'm of an age now where if I have hostas with confirmed HVX, they may outlive me. Bernd, this is what I said in my posts above and I'm sorry if they were misleading: "I had 3 recently planted Krossa Regal that showed signs of HVX. I removed them and removed more soil than the hostas could have contaminated and planted 3 more KRs. I have also used newspaper to kill grass in new planting beds and have been amazed at how long it takes to decompose the layers. Decomposition depends on the number of layers of newsprint used." The three holes with the 3 new Krossa Regals were not lined with newspaper. I just dug out more soil than the newly planted infected KRs could have contaminated. I did use several layers of newspaper to kill grass for a hosta bed extension in 2010. Animals are digging here all the time. Even today I found newspaper dug up by animals that hasn't decomposed yet in my extended hosta bed. I just wanted to clarify what I said and my position on risk management. My views as stated above have not been changed.
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Nutmeg.... last year, Dr. Lockhart reported that he had indeed had a reinfection due to soil at 18 months later. So, we really do not know what the infection period is for the soil. Before knowing this, I left a hole open for the rest of that year and planted a hosta in a pot in the ground for the rest of that year. The next spring, I took it out of the pot and put it into the ground. So far, I have not seen any signs of virus in this plant. Someone suggested to me that I put a rock in that spot. I like the idea since you have to think long & hard about whether you wanna move a rock, but you could forget that an astilbe, heuchera, brunnera,etc was there for a reason!
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Jill, I got the 'MERIT GRANULES 5G' from Primary Products. The 30 lb bag cost $98.99 + $12.95 for shipping to Ohio. Their phone number is: 1-800-841-6630. This was recommended by the owner of Hilltop Gardens. He told me that he never used it, but knows someone that did and says that it DOES work on nematodes. He also told me that it should be applied in early spring. I didn't learn about it until mid June. This stuff isn't labeled to kill nematodes, but if it works I don't care what the label says it's really for. I need to find out if it's possible to overdose the soil with it and do harm to the hostas by using too much. I also need to find out how often it should be applied. ____________________________________________________________ Mary, you said, "Of course I then looked at my H and "saw" nematode damage everywhere!!!" Have you ever heard the saying, "ignorance is bliss?" Frankly, I think that I enjoyed my gardens much more when I was ignorant about nematodes, HVX and voles. I now do more inspecting and less admiring. I remember the good ol days when I just grabbed a shovel and dug a hole...NOW a nearly sterile technique has to be used to dig a stupid hole in the ground. Even touching a leaf brings paranoid thoughts. Yep, ignorance is bliss. SASSY
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User
11 years ago
Yes, Tomahawk, I had read the cautions about keeping the sample the correct size. What I did was slice off from the two Lowes plants pieces of leaf. Then I placed a quarter on the table, and cut the sample(s) to fit that diameter.

I placed the samples in the reactant (whatever they call it),BETWEEN THE LAYERS OF MESH, and got a round pen (smooth round bottom) and very busily smushed it up. The skeleton structure of the leaf parts remained there, translucent and colorless, with the green color in solution.

I had to be careful inserting the test strip, because the solution wanted to wick up the strip further than it should be. Keeping the test envelope vertical is advisable IMHO, to avoid any wicking. Keeping the sample liquid at the 1/4 inch line gave me the result I wanted.

Although, I must admit, I watched the strip for the full 30 minutes, thinking the ONE LINE showing up was a sign of an invalid result. When it dawned on me it was the base line and THERE WAS NO LINE FOR HVX POSITIVE RESULTS, I gave an audible sigh. What a great feeling it was. A real life saver or a reprieve of the death sentence for those three hosta. And here is Winter Snow yesterday--now I can enjoy her.

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mocassinlanding, how did the HVX test come out?

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mocassinlanding, how did the HVX test come out?

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