The BEST online Hosta nurseries
Well, after discovering this forum and all the wonderful pics about a month ago I've repeatedly gone out and ordered from various Hosta online retailers. The plants are really rolling in now and the difference in quality, size and speed of arrival is significant.
In the conifer forums last year I created lengthy and detailed 'retailer ratings' for the few dozen conifer nursuries I ordered from. I won't do anything like that here, time constraints won't allow loading up hundreds of photos(at least not this year). Also while my budget for Hostas is probably above average, I'm sure there are plenty of forum folks here who order Hostas like men and women possessed. I will however mention when exceptional orders arrive with details and pictures so that if nothing else, others may find these same great businesses and provide some 'stimulus' to the good ol' American economy.
My first, clearly notable retailer was 'Green Mountain Hostas'.
'Green Mountain Hostas' shipped nicely sized, healthy hostas with an enormous inventory to choose from. Many of the hostas had 4-6 leaves already and almost all had what I would call large to large+ root systems. Shipping was exceptional(FREE above $100!) and fast and their prices seem to rate average to slightly below average. That said, for the size hosta they offered(bareroot), the value ratio here is very good. I can easily recommend them to both the weekend gardener or the non-hardcore hosta collector(like me!).
If you only made one Hosta order a year though, so far I can recommend none other then Hallson Gardens. After hearing about them on a previous post, I placed a nice sized order and the plants quickly arrived in a nice sized box. Upon opening it, I found neatly wrapped in paper bags ENORMOUS hostas with their root systems wrapped in wet newspaper. The sheer size of both the root systems and leaves really hasn't had any comparison so far via online retailers. Many of the plants had 5-6 leaves or more, 2-3 eyes and just gigantic, healthy root systems. The size of the hostas required immediate planting - the root systems were so large if I crammed them into 2 or 3 gallon pots, they would still be crowded. Plant after plant was this size, with many of them becoming some of the larger specimens in my young collection. Prices were average to below average in my amatuer opinion and shipping was also top notch(3-5 days from time of order). All in all, it's hard to say better things about a company, Hallson Gardens has really raised my own personal perception of what a good online hosta retailer really can offer. Go find out yourself.
The old picture is worth a thousand words thingy...
-Will
Comments (51)
talynnp
13 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years agoRelated Discussions
Best Online Nursery?
Comments (11)I think I've bought from virtually every online rose seller..lol...its an addiction that has resulted in over 100 rose bushes. These are my favorites: For Container Roses... 1)Chamblee's Rose Nursery: They have low prices, their plants come in trade gallons, and are very healthy 2)High Country Roses:Priced fair, 1 qt containers, quick shipping, healthy 3)Rogue Valley Roses: Excellent selection. Sells all roses in band size containers (3x3x6) and if you buy for roses you get to choose a free rose and get a bonus mystery rose! Bareroot: All these are about the same price, and I've never had a rose from them fail... 1)Spring Valley Roses: all are own root 2)Jackson & Perkins / Wayside Gardens: I've always rec'd large, healthy plants...mostly grafted though...which I'm not a big fan off. Also, I know that J&P has all their roses on clearence right now! Good luck!...See MoreOur Best Hostas mislasbelled at a nursery
Comments (24)I give everyone the benefit of the doubt that the advise they give is well intentioned and aims to help the new people who might not know about hosta problems including the HVX virus. It took me years and years to listen to Ken about growing Hostas on the driveway and in the sun. I've been really happy that I finally listened. The adivice and warning about HVX is important to know. The bottom line is that it is a personal choice what we do with that knowledge. I suppose I'm unconventional in my garden because I move my plants around all the time and at the slightest whim. My aim, possibly different than most others, is that my garden look full and pleasing to me this year, right now. I like my plants to grow well but having the absolute perfect conditions and the largest size is not that important to me. I write this not as advice to others but as a confirmation to anyone who might think like I do and choose to go in their own direction. It's your garden - do what you like. As far as HVX goes, I take it very seriously. I had at least one or two that had the virus before I'd ever heard what it was. I destroyed them and the few they contaminated by me not knowing enough to be careful. Since that time I do occasionally buy from Box Stores or local nurseries where I know I've seen HVX plants before. I just try to be careful with those plants. I'm not the most organized person so some day I will no doubt slip and should one of the plants have HVX it might cross to another. I'll live with it. I think HH put it very well and said you should be very, very careful. If you are it's your choice. I think Bkay made an important point about all the other things that can go wrong with the hostas. Right now tree roots, voles and cutworms have passed HVX on my worry list. Neimtodes are a mild annoyance since they don't show up until late in the year. Here are a few of my mislabeled plants and a few I bought knowing I was risking the HVX I 'willed' this plant to become cupped for many many years. It never did and I bought another Abiqua Drinking Gourd. I like this one anyway. The Canadian Nursery was not Hosta Choice Took me a couple years to realize this wasn't Fringe Benefit since I could never find a good picture of Fringe Benefit. Eventually, because of a picture of OBL from hostafreak I identified it. I'm very happy with this mistake. I knowingly bought this plant and took the risk. You can't beat the price and I've keep it in one place, no moving around. So far so good. It's one of my best light centered hostas. The leaves are thick and the it keeps the dark green color even in the sun. This was from a local nursery where I'd seen cases of HVX in the past. I checked that it was from a different supplier than the virused ones were and took the chance. I hadn't bought this plant from mail order because I'd heard it was hard to grow (it's not). Seeing the large size plant in a pot at a resasonable price seemed worth it to me....See MoreBest place to buy hostas on-line?
Comments (15)Hi All~ I order from many on-line/mail order sources and do have high regards for Hallson's, Naylor Creek and Glenbrook. I have also gotten some nice plants from White Oak. I mostly lurk here but noticed a comment that I must reply to. I too have gotten an order from Viktoria at Glenbrook this year (8 plants) and strongly disagree with omoelegba's conclusion. All my plants were of an expected size and overall quality. There was a white powder on a couple of my plants, but it was obviously a fungicide. I congratulate Viktoria for being proactive in her application of a fungicide to any cuts made during division to ward off any possible problems. I have gotten to know Viktoria over the last few years and have even visited her nursery a couple of times. All the plants I purchased at her nursery, at her vendor booth at First Look, or thru mail order have been of excellent quality and have thrived in my garden. I hold Viktoria in the highest regards and feel that she stands behind her plants 100%. I do not mean to jump all over omoelegba for your opinion, I just wonder if you contacted Viktoria directly to voice your concerns. I am sure she would've explained the powder and your mind would've been at ease. Also, please do share about how the plants grow for you... my guess is that they will thrive as long as they get the care they need. Finally, I might ask if the plants you ordered were newer to the market (might explain the "puny" size and the expense). Most newer plants do cost more and will be on the smaller side, even from the other on-line sources. Just my humble opinion~ Cheers, Kathie...See MoreThe poll: what a great thing for m. aureomarginata!
Comments (24)ci_lantro; I am glad someone picked up on my Far Out sense of humor. Anyone remember that 'toon in the papers? And speaking of sense of humor, moccasinlanding told me about idiothe and idiotshe; duh! Apologies accepted? Seeing the last 3 pics of grown out MAs I now can see the hosta that I bought yesterday is NOT. Dang it, now I have to go hosta shopping again. I hope Chris saves a couple for me. Les...See More
Cher
13 years agofirefightergardener
13 years agoI wanted to add another online hosta seller. I've been comfortable buying plants(and other things) from Ebay for years and now I've found that Ebay can also be a fantastic source for hostas. While some sellers certainly seem to be sending small plants with 2-3" root systems and a couple of leaves, there has been a couple standouts, most notably the order I received today. The seller is know as 'tnifong1'. Besides excellent, very affordable quick shipping, the plants are(to my new eyes) MONSTROUSLY large. Most plants had several divisions, some looked much bigger then box store plants commonly in 1 and 2 gallon sized pots and a few were ridiculously large(see pic). Relatively cheap prices(about 5-8$ a plant), this large size and shipped safely, they even include a nice little metal tag for each plant. The one negative might be that he/she doesn't offer your 'cutting edge' hosta very often but at least for a new hosta collector like me, it's a grrrreat source!
This plant was like $7...!
Ken, about 400, lost count - and doing a poor job of documenting. Lots to plant, man, my knees hurt bad... I think I squat more then a major league catcher.
-Will
Here is a link that might be useful: Ebay hosta seller(GREAT SOURCE!)
tepelus
13 years agocoralb
13 years agoin ny zone5
13 years agoI get great hostas from Land of the Giants Hostas, see the following Olive Bailey Langdon and Elvis Lives plants, both close to full size :
i-like-to-grow
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13 years agoWhat a great thread! I can't wait to get my order from Hallson's in a month or so. It'll be my first order with them, but I hang out on their forums and Chris is incredibly knowledgeable and helpful. I've heard (and expect) great things.
For whoever asked about Made in the Shade--I ordered from them last year and they were great to work with (good communication, etc.) but I did think their hostas were on the smallish side. Still, they were well packaged, did well after I planted them, and I don't have any real complaints. You might get bigger, better rooted divisions elsewhere, though. Just my experience and opinion. (Still, very nice and helpful people.)
I also highly recommend Land of the Giants. I live about an hour away and have only purchased from Jeff in person, but I know that many of his plants are field grown and he'll dig out an enormous division on purchase. The hostas I got from Jeff last year have all done very well. Here's 'Vulcan,' purchased there last May. This was just after planting.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years agokskaren
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