Land of the Giants Sagae All photos courtesy of Rob Mortko.
Ken O’Dell
H
osta are one of the easiest perennials to grow, adding unique texture and coloring to your garden. From tiny two-inch tall miniature hosta to taller varieties that can grow to three feet, there’s a huge selection to choose from. On our farm in Miami County, Kansas we have plenty of room for giant hosta. They are stunning in size, wonderful in flower and much appreciated when they cover the ground so weeds cannot grow. I have over the years planted about 2500 hosta on our farm in a several acre wooded area. I have mulched pathways that are meandering through the wooded area with giant hosta in the background, medium size hosta and smaller hosta in front. Of the 250 varieties of Hosta I have planted in our gardens over 100 varieties are of the large and giant size, designing my own Land of the Giants. Here are a few giant hosta that you might consider planting in your garden. Blue Angel. A Paul Aden hosta. Perhaps the very best of the giant blue leaf hosta. Fast growing, with April 2012 / The Kansas City Gardener
large blue leaves that measure 12” wide and 16” long. Thick texture to the foliage. Mounding habit to 36” tall. Lavender flowers. Blue Umbrellas. A Paul Aden hosta. Giant hosta to 36” tall with blue to blue-green leaves that will reach immense proportions. Lavender flowers in summer on 36” tall flower spikes. Fast growth rate. A long time favorite. Brother Stefan. An Olga Petryszyn hosta. Maturing to about 22” tall, Brother Stefan appears larger because of the thick, heavily corrugated, puckered leaves of gold with a wide green margin. Near-white flowers. Dawn’s Early Light. An Olga Petryszyn hosta. Early spring foliage is bright lemon-yellow and shows up well at night or in deep shade. Leaf colors darken to a chartreuse coloring during the heat of the summer. Corrugated and ruffled leaves on a beautiful hosta growing to about 20” tall. Lavender flowers. Empress Wu. The largest known hosta available. A giant to 48” tall and a reported 96” wide when mature. Makes a tremendous focal point. Huge, thick, dark green, deeply veined leaves form a massive upright clump. Pale pinkishviolet flowers. Great Expectations. A Paul Aden hosta. We have several of these fantastic hosta growing in different flower beds around our farm. We
have amended the soil with plenty of humus and this large growing hosta has grown to about 28” tall in several of the flower beds. Great Expectations is “the attention getter”. Large leaves with creamyyellow to white centers and green jetting into the centers are very attractive. White flowers. Guacamole. A large, colorful hosta to 24” tall with very showy leaves. Fast growing. Huge, apple green leaves develop dark green margins and brighter chartreuse centers in summer. Large, fragrant near-white flowers. Guardian Angel. Large blue-green leaves are ruffled and folded, and centered with a grayish-ivory variegation pattern most intense in the spring. A large hosta to 28” tall. Sport of ‘Blue Angel’. Light lavender flowers. Olive Bailey Langdon. Beautiful round green leaves are margined in wide gold coloring. A giant hosta growing to 30” tall with near-white flowers in dense clusters on 36” tall flower scapes. Sagae. Huge, wavy, frosted grey-green leaves with yellow to creamy-white margins. Lavender flowers. A very large hosta to 28” tall. One of the “top ten” hosta of all-time. Pure elegance. Sum and Substance. This could be Paul Aden’s greatest hosta introduction. It is for sure a world wide favorite. Leaf color varies with sun exposure from light green to
chartreuse to gold. Huge leaves to 18” long and 14” wide. Highly slug resistant. Light lavender flowers. A giant hosta to 30” tall when mature. Sun Power. A Paul Aden hosta. Brilliant gold leaves are somewhat wavy and of better than average substance. Color is brightest when grown in some sum. Upright vase shape, arching habit of growth. Light lavender flowers. A large hosta to 24” tall. Visit local retail nurseries and see their giant hosta selections. You can plant hosta in April, July, November or just about any month that you can get a shovel in the ground. You’ll get best results with morning sun and dappled afternoon shade. I always mulch my hosta immediately, water them well, and use a time-released fertilizer. Not much else is needed except to enjoy them. During the Friends of the Arboretum spring plant sale May 3–5, we will have special help from Rob Mortko, Kansas City’s own ‘Hosta Guy.’ Bette Stockdale and I will be assisting Rob to show the giant hosta offered from our very own Land of the Giant Hostas. We hope you come see us. Ken O’Dell is a long time volunteer at the Overland Park Arboretum and a lifetime member of the American Hosta Society. www.americanhostasociety.org. 25