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hosta flowers. love'em or not?

12 years ago

I know there is probably a good reason for them and maybe they aid in creating new cultivars and such, but I could do without them. I do not find the flowers attractive at all. JMHO. Be nice!

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Comments (16)

mosswitch
12 years ago
I love the flowers! Especially the big white fragrant lily flowers of the plantaganea group, the deep purples of some of the species NOIDs, the double purple of Fuji Botan, the tall scapes of Regal Splendor that positively glow against the woodsy background, the raspberry color of Raspberry Sorbet and Raspberry Sundae, and even the profuse pale lavenders of the Albo Marginatas en masse. I grow many hostas just for their flowers!
thisismelissa
12 years ago
I'm generally not a fan, but I do love the purples that top the small gold varieties.

I think after the tour is over on Wednesday, I'm gonna snip a lot of scapes.
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One certainly can’t blame you for cutting flowers that interfere with the presentation of a fav hosta….. I generally cut the petioles once all the flowers are spent….. I will leave any petioles with flowers for the bees. I don’t have tons of flowers for bees so if they want the hosta ones, they can have them! Lol 🐝 Hosta_maker, I have never noticed the cellophane layer on flowers, but I certainly start this year. How interesting! Love all the flowers you posted….all those reds and purples! Yay! Old_dirt, Sweet Home Chicago is a prolific bloomer….really nice! Foxfire Palm Sunday has a really interesting bud head…..roundish, reminds me of Queen Josephine which I don’t a picture of. Did you post your NOIDS in that category? They have very pretty flowers! debra
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hosta_junkie
12 years ago
I enjoy the flowers - especially for the butterflies and hummingbirds that visit them.
franknjim
12 years ago
I like seeing them closeup.

Ivory Necklace
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Blue Boy
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Deane's Dream
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Samual Blue
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bkay2000
12 years ago
They've never impressed me before. Guacomole has changed my mind and has me looking forward to my plantaginea blooming one of these days.

bkay
tepelus
12 years ago
It depends on the hosta. I like most of the flowers, especially those that are fragrant of course or are a deep purple or have a spidery look to them, but I hate the ones where the scapes are so long and flowers so heavy that they flop. I leave them on because the bees really like them and it gives them another source to nectar.

Karen
ademink
12 years ago
I love the flowers...so do my hummingbirds. Moonlight Sonata is blooming now..smells like heaven!
arcy_gw
12 years ago
Ditto on the humming bird attraction. Also when you live in the world of shade that is my yard you learn to appreciate all flowers no matter how small!!
hostaLes
12 years ago
Golly - I wish I had invented an ATV Crawler so I can view hosta flowers easier. They make a great arguement for potted hostas. Get down and view the freshly opened flowers of ventricosa. WOW! Even tiny Stiletto with it's feathery flowers that mimic its leaves in shape and wiggle are gorgeous.

Les
mosswitch
12 years ago
Fuji Botan flower

Here is a link that might be useful: Fuji Botan
mosswitch
12 years ago
The bloom spikes are as tall as me, absolutely stunning in full bloom.

Here is a link that might be useful: Fuji Botan
ci_lantro
12 years ago
I don't have a lot of hostas yet but I'm working hard to change that. Of the ones that I have, most I could do without the blooms and having to tidy up afterwards but there are exceptions. Big Daddy's bloom is pretty spectacular. Twist of Lime puts on a good show as well as Good As Gold. Royal Standard is another one & with such wonderful fragrance. I bought it several years ago just because I thought it was pretty. I think it was the second hosta that I ever bought and had no idea that hostas can be fragrant. I added So Sweet, HoneyBells, Fragrant Bouquet & Fried Green Tomatoes last year and I'm eager for them to bloom since all are supposed to be fragrant. Just added Moonlight Sonata to my Wish List!

Guess I should introduce myself. I'm Ally and I'm a blooming hostaholic in central Wisconsin. I usually hang out over in the Cooking forum but lurk in here quite a lot and sometimes over in daylilys.
oliveoyl3
12 years ago
Leave 'em until they're done blooming, then remove. Love the brightness of blooms in the shade & the hummingbird attraction. If only I could catch a photo of a hummer going inside those large blooms...
in ny zone5
12 years ago
I leave the flowers on established plants. On yet small new hostas I cut them off to let them use all that energy to form more eyes and roots.
Bernds
Pieter zone 7/8 B.C.
12 years ago
I LOVE the flowers on my hostas. I am partial to the fragrant flowers, but I love the colours and contrast on 'Raspberry Sorbet' flowers, the Nerine like petals on 'Ray of Hope' and 'Rollercoaster Ride' flowers. The rich, deep purple of the flowers on 'Sea Octopus', the abundance of scapes and blooms on a stand of 'Golden Tiara' are appreciated not just by me, but also one of my Rotties, she LOVES to reach over and eat the tops of the flowering scapes on a large stand of GT I have in one area, while my male Rottie has a prefernce for its leaves...

Pieter
hostaLes
12 years ago
Hi Ally, and welcome to the Hosta Forum. You know what? I find that if I leave the dried scapes (the stems the flowers are borne on) until spring it helps me find where my emerging eyes are so I don't stomp on them when cleaning up. They they just snap off easily. And we all have spring clean up to do in our gardens (thank God - I live for it every year!)

Les
(cAROL, I think I am going to follow your lead. You have no idea how ofen I delete lES because I hit the caps lock key instead of shift)

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