Sunday, June 02, 2013

Of the Three Giants

Sunday, June 02, 2013   Mark and Gaz   27 comments

Of the three (potentially) giant hostas in the garden...
Hosta 'Jurassic Park'
Jurassic Park - looks like this 'dinosaur' is going to take awhile before it becomes a giant beast....that is, if it is indeed as large growing as it is reported to be. Looks like we'll just to wait several years and see.
Hosta 'Empress Wu'
Empress Wu - slowly sizing up and it is starting to look promising. Not immune to slugs and snails I'm afraid. Again it needs several more years before its potential size becomes more apparent but so far so good.
Hosta 'Sum and Substance' - oops, I should have taken off that twig before taking this photo!
Sum and Substance is still the one that is reigning supreme in our garden when it comes to size. And slugs and snail seems to leave it alone as well which is a great bonus!

 Mark :-)

Posted in: Hosta , Plant profile

27 comments :

  1. danger garden3 June 2013 at 05:39

    After admiring 'Sum and Substance' in friends gardens I finally found a huge one at our grocery/everything store for a great price. Grabbed it fast and I'm so glad to have it. Mine does seem to attract twigs as well.

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    1. Mark and Gaz3 June 2013 at 15:00

      Nice one Loree! S&S seems to size up quickly too, seems much faster than the other two.

      Delete
  2. Alison3 June 2013 at 06:28

    I planted Sum and Substance last fall, and it is so far looking good. Not a very big clump yet, but the leaves are a good size. So far this year the slugs have left my Hostas alone.

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    1. Mark and Gaz3 June 2013 at 15:02

      One extra thing we appreciate about S&S is that it's not prone to mollusc attack and the leaves remain pretty much pristine for the entire season. Expect it just get better each year :)

      Delete
  3. Mr Paul3 June 2013 at 08:15

    Its a good job the slugs and snails leave sum and substance alone because it looks pretty tasty to me:)

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  4. Lisa C. D.3 June 2013 at 10:06

    My Hosta Jurasic Park grows slowly too, but I planted it last year and it was only a baby, so I´ll have to wait even more than you. Nice hostas. I´ll have to find Sum and Substance too.

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    1. Mark and Gaz3 June 2013 at 15:03

      We only planted the Jurassic Park last year so perhaps yours and ours could be the same age and size up at the same pace too :)

      Delete
    2. Lisa C. D.4 June 2013 at 00:27

      I´ll watch your hosta then, to see if mine grows at a similar rate :)

      Delete
  5. Sunray Gardens3 June 2013 at 11:37

    Great photos and love the Hosta. You are very into the giants I see. They sure fit in with your beautiful foliage gardens.
    Cher Sunray Gardens

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    1. Mark and Gaz3 June 2013 at 15:05

      Thanks Cher! These big leafed hostas helps add to the atmosphere of a jungle style garden, and a nice hardy lot too!

      Delete
  6. Nic3 June 2013 at 13:04

    'Sum and Substance' seems to be the most successful "giant" hosta here as well. Oddly for a Michigan garden - many people here seem to grow little besides a massive collection of hostas - I appear to have only one small area in my garden where they thrive. I have mostly filled it with Hosta plantaginea because I love the fragrant flowers.

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    1. Mark and Gaz3 June 2013 at 15:06

      Such a reliable plant too that Sum and Substance.

      Delete
  7. Deanne Fortnam3 June 2013 at 13:21

    Yes S & S is a fantastic hosta. The best of the big ones for me. I also love Hosta montana 'Aureomarginata'. A beautiful, bold, big plant that commands attention.

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    1. Mark and Gaz3 June 2013 at 15:06

      I agree with you Deanne! That Hosta you mentioned looks good too, will keep an eye on it.

      Delete
  8. outlawgardener3 June 2013 at 15:20

    Sum and Substance is one of my favorites! I've three, two in large pots and one in the ground and they've all put on quite a bit of size fairly quickly! It's good to see 'Empress Wu' as everyone has been talking about her and her huge size but I haven't seen her available in nurseries yet.

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    1. Mark and Gaz4 June 2013 at 10:30

      Sum and Substance is such a good doer in the garden indeed Peter, can't sing it enough praises. Hopefully you'll get hold of an Empress Wu soon, although I think it will still take several years for many of us to see if she will live up to her hype...

      Delete
  9. Gerhard Bock (Succulents and More)3 June 2013 at 18:40

    I have hosta envy! I've tried and tried but our climate just isn't really suitable for hostas (not cold enough in the winter; too dry in the summer). I couldn't even get 'Sum and Substance' to grow, and it's reputed to be one of the easiest and most sun-tolerant varieties!

    However, I have one variety left that is doing very well: 'Climax'. The funny thing is that I didn't even buy it; I received it as a free plant with my last hosta order. The other plants in that order have died, this one not only has survived, it has actually thrived.

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    1. Mark and Gaz4 June 2013 at 10:33

      Funny how that turned out Gerhard, that the unintentional freebie turned out to thrive while the one you actually bought didn't. Glad to hear that at least you have one doing well.

      Nevermind the hostas you can't grow in your climate, think about the wonderful aroids you can grow there instead to give that lush leafy look to your garden :)

      Delete
  10. scottweberpdx4 June 2013 at 02:06

    Love the big Hostas...the only one of those I've seen in person is 'Sum and Substance'...and it was impressive. I've heard a few people say they were underwhelmed by 'Empress Wu', I think she must take longer to really settle in and bulk up. My fave of the bigger Hostas is 'Big Daddy'...but I'm partial to the blue leaves :-)

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    1. Mark and Gaz4 June 2013 at 10:41

      It seems Empress Wu are one of those hostas that take their sweet time when it comes to sizing up, and inadvertently some gardeners get disappointed with its pace of growth (or if it actually lives up to its reputation). I actually don’t know anyone personally that have a specimen of it that has attained giant proportions already.

      Big Daddy is a nice blue leafed Hosta indeed Scott! I think we have one somewhere...

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  11. Anonymous4 June 2013 at 07:44

    Sum and Substance might just be the hosta that gets us growing hostas. Is it always slug-free or does it have to get to a certain size before they leave it alone?

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    1. Mark and Gaz4 June 2013 at 10:43

      Sum and Substance comes highly recommended from us Helen :) It seems to be always 'Slug free' in our garden at least. We have several dotted around and even the smaller specimens remain untouched.

      Delete
  12. Tom5 June 2013 at 00:28

    I love Sum and Substance. I have yet to ever see Empress Wu with any appreciable size, I guess it's just too new? I can't wait til SOMEONE finally gets one big enough to show off.

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  13. ricki5 June 2013 at 00:40

    I fell hard for a giant specimen of 'Sum and Substance' at Joy Creek and went to some trouble to seek it out. When I went back to visit it at JC, it had been taken out, and I keep forgetting to ask them why. I love mine...can't imagine getting rid of it.

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  14. Janet/Plantaliscious5 June 2013 at 13:42

    Magnifique! I do love hostas, particularly before the wretched slugs and snails get to them...

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  15. Candice Suter.....Sweetstuff21 June 2013 at 00:52

    I love the reference to Jurassic park! LOL Your plants would fit there nicely.

    ReplyDelete

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