Welcome to the forum and to our little support group/enablers group!

I'm in MN, so if you consider that "nearby", come for a visit!

Just like Melissa, I'm from Minnesota too, but welcome to our forum. Your life does sound busy, but as we all will attest to... the more hosta you have, the less lawn you have to mow, so a hosta addition can really be a time-saver in a strange sort of way. Glad to have you aboard. Lois

Welcome Louis,where are you in Illinois?
I live in Oregon.
You will love all the new friends you are going to meet over here on this forum, one of the friendliest.
Be forewarned,we will encourage you to buy as many hosta as you can, and then some.
cAROL

I'm out in California, but I lived in the Chicago area for my first 32 years, does that count? We're all neighbors here. Welcome!

-Babka

Freeport here. Welcome !!! 38 hugh! I was that some time ago. We need some young people to continue to carry on for us olders.

Connie

tree necklace" or "hosta moustache" Love your discriptions!

Central Indiana here. Not a gardener but like you, hostas are beggining to grow on me. I planted 3 this spring, but they aren't doing so well. Of course, I'm of the "dig a hole and stick the plant in" type. If it doesn't thrive on total neglect, then it is clearly too fussy of a plant for me.

Carol, Oregon Illinois? 61061? If so, we are neighbors, I kid you not.

boilerme, I know exactly what you mean by neglect. Folks on the succulent forum said to practice "benign neglect," and I loved that term! :o)

Connie, I am a half-hour from you, in Mt. Morris!
Lois, amen to less mowing! I have pans....big plans.....

For you folks in MN, that is not so far...maybe longer than "a jaunt," but near enough to be neighbors! Besides, we're all neighbors at GW, right?

Thanks for the warm welcome! When we bought this house it came with a seriously overgrown patch of noid hostas that were sending their new growth up through landscape fabric. (This place sat empty for three years) I have divided those a little, gave some away. Last year I made my first intentional hosta purchase, a pair of June hosta to color up a tiny space on the north side of the house. Then I bought a "hosta grab bag" from Gurney's, and although some are really beautiful i am going to be unhappy with them because they have no names!!! My kids used to call me The Identificationist because I was always asking What is this tree? This flower? This bug?

This year I bought three Touch of Class, my second intentional hosta purchase. I look forward to many, many more! :o)

P.S., if anyone knows a source for the true H. plantaginea I would be very grateful. I really wanted them for a design a did for our church but had to settle for Royal Standard. Nice hosta, but not what I wanted.

greenhaven,Yes,yes,61061
You would be more than welcome to join us for a progressive hosta walk this Tuesday,starting at my house.
e mail me.
cAROL

Welcome to the hosta side of life. If you don't mind mail order, Hallson's is great for disease free hostas. He cares, and you can find a plantaginea there most likely.

Thanks, anitamo! I did, indeed find one there!

Carol, I am five miles west in Mt. Morris. Imagine that! I sent you an email. Wow.

I can't wait to get some nice hostas in my shade garden, so I can pull up the prolific violets I am allowing until my other stuff gets plugged in.

Hi Greenhaven! And welcome. I'm in Crystal Lake but I will drive to the corners of the earth to see hosta gardens. Please join us on Tuesday, July 7! We don't have to visit your garden if you don't want - but we go from one to the other - many ideas borne this way. Plus, hosta people are the best - that's why it's called the Friendship Plant.

Westy (Carole) cdwestg@att.net

Welcome from a fellow hosta-holic in southern illinois in carbondale. If you ever get "down south" give me a buzz. I love to show people my addictions.

Hi,
I used to post here a lot, now I lurk and research more than post...but I'm from Normal, Il. Grew up in rural Lena, Il and my family is all from Lena & Freeport.

I had a collection of about 120 named hosta at my last house and left every single one. This is only my 2nd summer at this house, and I'm starting over with my hosta collection.

LOL about the hosta tree necklaces!!!!
Gayle

Hi,
It's great you found this friendly enabling forum!!! LOL
We do enable so keep reading and enjoying the post. You will have 100 varieties by the end of next summer. Seriously!

I am in Lansing, IL. I have made wonderful friendship from some of the people on this forum. Some of us are e-mail buddies and some are like sisters to me.

Enjoy and come to the mini walk on July 7th...contact Connie,Westy (Carole) or Carol.
Gloria

Hi, all! LOTS of Illini on this forum, apparently! I told Carol in an email that I have to work on Tuesday, until 2 pm. If you are getting started after that I probably would join you!

This does seem like a great and friendly forum! A couple others I have visited are bicker-y and/or snobby. (Not Roses, though...generally they are awesome, too!)

hi....

welcome to the hosta forum... I don't post a lot on here but have been reading for about 2 years. My wife and I are in our early thirties and live in Pontiac, IL. We began buying hostas last year and now have 79 in the ground with a huge wish list to boot. There is a ton of great info here, so take advantage of it. Be careful, as hostas are so addicting!!!!!!!!! Have fun

Hi Greenhaven! Welcome to a great forum, it's the only one I ever seem to get to anymore. I don't post much but do a lot of reading. I live in the woods behind Carol (Just one more hosta). She is Oregon, I am Dixon, believe it or not. People are great on this forum and even better when you meet them in person. You aren't far from us, we don't have to have a walk to "view" hostas. LOL

Dixon, huh, Nancy? Cool! Wow there are a lot of you in my backyard! I can't wait to see some of your gardens. I am studying Landscape Design, but sometimes a thing just doesn't sink in until you get to see it, touch it, smell it.