Mulch renewal is ALWAYS required. I remind myself that vanished mulch has improved the soil.

Your hostas are looking beautiful, so fresh and healthy. BTW, Goodness Gracious is a fabulous hosta, grows like a weed. Don't believe that size estimate. When I bought mine it was listed as "medium", and it's at least a large - and still getting bigger every year.

Thank you for your comments and especially the heads-up on GG! As usual, I place them too close together ... mainly because I am too impatient to wait for the “empty space” to fill in as they mature so I kind of pack them in.

GG has been a good grower for me the last few years and I love the large leaves, their shape and colour.

I composed this thread yesterday but it didn’t show until now. I kept looking for it but it was a no show until I checked just now on my phone. Strange as that has not happened before.

Your plants look gorgeous and I like the fresh mulch! I agree about Goodness Gracious, mine is getting huge! I will try and take some pics this weekend after I do a little weeding.

Linda

Beautiful, Jo!

You're off to a lovely start!

They will be taking off in no time. In a lot of ways, watching then emerge and unfurl is the best time of year. What a great garden --and gorgeous pictures....camera is working well!!

So nice to finally see photos of your gorgeous hosta, Jo. You must be thrilled with them.

Beautiful! And that Goodness Gracious really grabs my attention too... I’ll be looking to add that one.

Love your photos, Jo! Your Liberty is a beauty, I don’t have one, wishing I did. I also wish I had more room ; )

Yay! Spring finally showed up in your part of the world. Your hostas are growing by leaps and bounds and seem to be making up for lost time. ...Is this a new garden for you? If so, you've made a lot of progress quickly.

That is strange when a post doesn't show up right away. I had that happen to me once, also.

Wonderful! It always makes me speechless to see how quick they grow when spring finally arrives. You are not the only one who does not like empty spaces :-) I always put potted hosta between the planted to cover every little piece of land...

Beautiful, I want one of each exactly like yours!

EVERYTHING looks so pretty!..isn't it great that winter is over?..

Thank you for all your encouraging and kind comments!

Sandyslopes, you were wondering if this was a new garden... actually, no. No new beds, unfortunately. I do move things around when crowding is bad in spots but these hostas have been in their current locations for 3 years or more now. Spring's renewal is my bliss!

Karin, lack of space got me into growing additional hostas in pots. I was running out of space but the hosta fever was running high so I had to keep buying new ones. ;-). Right now all the potted hostas are massed together in three places - right out in full sun - to speed up the growth process. Soon, some will be "planted" lol amongst the ones living in the various beds. Lack of shade prohibits me from leaving certain ones in their locations during the summer but it's fun to re-arrange the hosta landscape whenever I feel like a change.

Love the look at your hostas, they look wonderful.

Wow, all looks so beautiful. Liberty is stunnig. GG has nice waves, love it. How big is your yard?

Saija

Jo your hostas look so lovely! Isn't this the best time of year!

Saija, this yard is the smallest I have ever had; however, this is the first year I may actually appreciate its size (somewhat) as I am getting older, lol. It is long but not wide, 42' x 110'. No sidewalk on our side so that's a bonus. The back garden is only approx. 28' deep if I count the 8' fence sections.

I have created garden beds on all sides of the house though (can't allow small space to curb my gardening spirit) and hostas dominate each bed except for the front island. Very hot, all day sun but the Albomarginatas, Lancifolia, June(s), blue June sport, Antioch and now Rainbow's End all do fine in there. Amazingly all of them don't go ugly as they should under relentless sun and rare watering.

Thanks, Michelle! How are things growing at your end? Did the nasty winter affect any of your plants adversely?

By the way, I received and tried to respond to your email but it would not send. I had gotten busy and forgot to try again. I am sorry for that oversight. You had asked if I had gone to Crooked Creek - I never did make it out as planned. Missed meeting Vanessa/Cottage Garden too :(

Grass needs mowing, sedum to be replanted...somewhere...(rolling of the eyes) rose bush to plant - again...somewhere. An impulse buy last year.

But first things first...kitty and I finishing up my first cup of coffee.

Been up since 6 am but forum always comes first, lol. Next thing you know, hours have passed and I go "huh? it was just six minutes ago!"

I can relate..I had some coffee while staring out the window (very productive - "rolling of the eyes")..then I went out for a stroll to check things out..as if something could drastically change since 9pm last night..now I'm back in for more coffee and staring lol..gardening is hard work..

Beautiful hostas! I love Orange Marmalade--mine is so yellow right now. All of yours look fabulous--must be all the attention you and kitty give them.

I love that corner with all the variety!! The colors really pop against the brown fence. I would be content to sit and gaze at that view all day too :) Everything looks great - I am tempted by the GG and Spilt Milk. I have not seen those anywhere locally.

Nicholsworth, I burst out laughing so hard! at your humour that I startled the kitty...who is now curled up beside me on the couch..trying to nap.

Thank you Miles, more chuckles .. and I'm happy you recognize the signifance and importance of our roles, kitty's and mine. ;-). Isn't OM grand?!

Jo winter on PEI this year was terrible. Lots of cold temps and then freeze and thaws. We never got any amount of snow either. My hostas are waking up but its been a slow process in the more shady beds. Spring has been unusual here as well with up and down temps and some nights of heavy frost. No worries on the response to my email. I reached out to Vanessa on fb and asked her opinion and she highly recommended Crooked Creek. I just completed my order to them and it was a long one. Not sure where i am going to put the hostas when they come. LOL!

Love the pic with the view of the garden and your kitty enjoying the view with you! Everything looks wonderful! It's always nice to relax and enjoy the view!

Jo, we have the opposite kind of yard problem - with 5 acres the temptation to dig up a little more has me well over the too much to take care of line.

We had the same rotten winter, though. It was way below freezing half of April, and a lot of the hostas have weird leaf tips.

What cheery greetings, thank you, Karin! Your peonies are so far ahead as mine are still in tight bud form. If that's a Maxima I think I have one! Also pink, a red double whose flower head is so packed it's amazing the stalks don't snap in half. My goodness, weather-wise you seem to have had it all already - let's hope the rest of the growing season is a bit more tame at your end. I don't want to jinx it but it seems that the long delay of any growth here, especially the emergence of hostas, may have been a good thing.... so far. I don't recall any frosts this month at all!

Michelle, good that you contacted Vanessa :-)! I wouldn't be surprised if a good number of her beautiful hostas came from Crooked Creek. I don't think it's far from her place. A long list of new hostas you say? Can't wait to see what you ordered! I picked up two minis so far - couldn't resist at $20 per! I've always paid more than that around here. Happy gardening!

MadPlanter, 5 acres!!! lucky you - what prime real estate for the largest hostas you can get your hands on because you will never have to move them! You must have a glorious view all around. I don't recall a frost since pips started poking through this month but only less than a handful have a bit of tearing along a margin here and there...or a small hole, one that doesn't look like a chew mark but rather a debris puncture. So far so good....touch wood, lol.

Threedogsmom, GG and SM are really easy goers here and get better and better looking each year if that's possible. Not fussy and seem to enjoy the extra sunshine they receive without any ill effect. I'd recommend them anytime!

Thank you for all the kind comments. I know how much I enjoy looking at all your pictures - it pleases me to no end to know you enjoyed some of mine. And it encourages me to take better pictures. :-)

Thanks for showing us your beautiful garden and your hostas (which are doing fantastic)! It took a little longer to begin growing at your home than in mine, but you've caught up in a flash! I see you're making sure you are utilizing every space available in your lot. I too have a property about the same size. With the tree root issues I have, I'm always trying to figure out how to display more pots.

I'm getting the idea that the reason I don't accomplish as much as I think I should is because I don't get up at 6 a.m.! But then, is a gardener's work ever done!

I heard through the grapevine that Goodness Gracious doesn't tissue culture that well. So anyone who finds it should scoop it up!

After a lousy spring, hopefully everything will continue to grow and it will be a wonderful garden season.

Thank you, NHL for looking! Lol on the rising hour ... It's not everyday I wake that early but it's the best time I discovered to visit the garden where birdsong is plentiful, the lighting optimum, minimum traffic noise, and the plethora of greens abound. Most peaceful time to enjoy a coffee or tea.

I am glad to have caught up finally! I've been trying to get the potting chores and relocation/dividing/transplanting hostas, etc. done before the summer heat gets here. Lots of forget-me-not seedlings to weed etc.

Your twilight is doing great! I'll have to show you...

Are you kidding me . . . you thanking me! It's a joy to see your garden. No thanks required!

That 6 a.m. time does seem to have a lot of benefits. I should try it sometime!

Please do post a picture of Twilight this season. I would love to see it.

Yes Jo, that is Maxima :-) Unfortunately it ALWAYS starts to rain when this one is flowering. They open up and it's like a sign for heaven to throw down as much water as is available...an hour later Maxima hangs the heavy heads and I have to go outside in the middle of the rain and cut them to have them at least for 1-2 days in a bucket. The no name pink is earlier and I have a red one that's later, but Maxima gets all the rain...

Weatherwise we really had it all in a very short time, but no late frost this year :-) It was just from zero to 28°C, 4 weeks of sunshine and the garden exploded. Thursday it started to rain for nearly 24 hours and I noticed so many signs of slugs and snails that the times for good looking hosta are over...The hail marks and cuts from last week are drying and there are a lot of spots on the leaves and the strong wind rips open the cuts...Only those protected by trees still look good...but that's nature...I can say that for a period of 4 weeks I had perfect looking hosta :-)

Speaking about early times...I always get up early (I'm used to it and seem to need not so much sleep) and have coffee in the garden, so I can take the peace of those hours with me for the rest of my often stressful day.

Karin, LOL driveway. Your really use every space you got. I would sent you peace of land if that would be possible.