And how much water will you give them and how much alfalfa and bone meal and how much compost will you pile on?
I don't think that can be answered. But, I have never planted what would be a slow, medium and fast grower in identical situations.
I got in the mail about mid June as a one eyed wonder....it now has 2 strone eyes and a curled leaf of a third. I have hopes that I will find 3 eyes in the spring. The hosta is Dick Ward.
I guess a fast grower grows about twice as fast as a slow grower....IF you have a spot where that fast grower is very very happy.
Describing how fast a hosta grows is like saying what is the color blue like?
Linda C

Go the the Hostalibrary.ord and check mature size estimate. It takes about 5 years to reach maturity, 1yr a couple of eyes then doubling until you reach the 5 year point. This is no more of a direct answer than Linda C's but it is a way to make some calculation. She addresses variables but if you don't know when to say will it has reached maturity and at so called maturity it will still get larger but the rate decreases.

Now you will start to get exceptions to this method of judging where you are in the process and when you get there where ever there is!

For a more precise answer, who knows, God knows?

I'm getting on my own nerves, shut up, OK.

Oh, Linda, I know that a LOT of other factors play a role in how fast the plant will grow ... it's the same way for most plants, IME. :) But getting an idea of what is considered "fast" vs "slow" [under good conditions] is a plus -- provided that there is some 'rule of thumb' to go by. Especially for newbies, it can influence what plant(s) one chooses. Otherwise, the growers may as well leave that "information" off the tag.

There really is no precise answer. It is a relative thing. If you plant a fast, medium and slow hosta under good conditions you can expect a fast grower in 5 years to be a heck of a good looker. A medium plant will be about 2/3 what the fast is, and a slow grower will be about 1/2 to 2/3 what the medium is. There is some shaky sentence structure there, but I hope it gives you an idea.

Unless you are only planting a garden for the next 2 years, the difference between 3 years and 5 years to reach mature size doesn't really matter.
And additionally the speed with which a hosta grows depends very much on what you start with...a little bit of a tissue culture snip or a division of a mature plant with roots growing out the bottom of the pot.
Not sure what you are looking for. I wish I could say that a hosta labeled a fast grower will reach 3 feet in diameter in the 3rd year while a slow grower will only reach one foot....but that's not the way it is.
All things being equal a fast grower will PROBABLY reach a mature size sooner than a slow grower. But these forums are full of people saying that "such and such hosta was not a fast grower for me, was it for you"...so in the world of plants, no things are ever equal, neither quantativly nor qualitatively.
Linda C

as with children ... which they will soon be if you become fully addicted..

they will grow as fast as they will grow ... what more do you need to know .????

would you buy and plant all maples/willows/poplars... because you only want fast growing trees.. ??? i hope not.. if you want to grow hosta under them ...

buy them.. plant them.. buy more... that's the hosta equation ... all other issues are irrelevant.. IMHO ...

ken

Here's what I believe to be a practical way to look at this problem.
Based on my own experience, here's an example of the development of Blue Angel...a giant hosta which is considered a fast grower and which should reach size 35"high x 84" wide at maturity.
First year: 3 eyes, size 14x22
Second year: 8 eyes, size 17x28
Third year: 22 eyes, size 19x46
4th year: 30 eyes, size 25x55
5th year: 45 eyes, size 33x57
6th year: 51 eyes, size 27x65

As you can see, the number of eyes and the size of the hosta give you an indication of the growth rate.
This particular hosta has not reached maturity yet...it may be another 3 years or so before it does.

Papou

BUT....my Blue Angel has been pampered and cosseted for 4 years and is no where near 55 inches wide. In fact an Elegans planted a year later and rated as a slow grower by some in about half again as big.
And what's maturity? The point at which a hosta will grow no larger? Or big just enough? And the size at maturity also depends on many things...light, water, soil etc.
Linda C

elegans and blue angel .. are mature when they put out a leaf that is as big as your arms out as wide as they can go with you fingers touching.. the size of a beach ball ....

7 to 10 years ...
ken

There is a spot on the form for registering a hosta to indicate the growth rate. You would think then that the AHS would have some sort of standards posted somewhere, but I can't find anything on the site.
Pam

Linda,
I'm assuming that the particular hosta has grown properly...meaning that it received a good home when planted...it was fertilized...especially when it's young...it received adequate water as it grew...and it's development was not altered by moles, voles, deers, rabbits, etc....
In my book, an hosta reaches maturity when it has grown to its potential. We all know that any hosta will always keep growing after maturity but very little...almost not noticeable.

Papou

Both the elegans and the the Blue Angel are planted within 15 feet of each other. We had an awful spring this year...but I would assume it equally affected both plants.
But the Elegans is much larger....much!!
I'll take my yard stick and get pictures later.
Linda C

A different point of view, very unscientific.

Say you water well, have all equally healthy plants roughly of the same age when you buy them, the voles and frosts etc. don't get them.

In a year or two, you are pleased with the growth rate of the "average" growth rate hosta. It is nice and plump.

The "slow" growth rate hosta can be a disappointement. It may still look much the same.

The "fast" growth rate hosta is a "yikes" plant. You realize that unless it was planted alone, you underestimated how much space it was going to gobble up in a short time. And you thought you planned and spaced so well.....Time to move it or the neighbors, and better sooner than later.

~Bunnycat

Paul, to answer your question regarding growth rate, it all has to do with the Hostas' heritage, or in other words what species it comes from (if it's a hybrid)
Google "Hosta Physiology by Robert Solberg" He wrote a wonderful paper in 1996 that explains in layman's terms why some Hostas grow faster than others, and also explains when the best time to fertilize each group is, and how much to fertilize. I used to refer to this article often, but I have read it so many times now I pretty much have it memorized lol.

Thanks Rox. I have learned something important from you today.
I have to get that paper from Bob Solberg...

Papou

You are welcome Papou!
Rox

I am reading this post many years after it was written. This is wonderful information - I've learned so much from all of you.

Any link to that article by Solberg?