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April 1998
Hosta & Ornamental Grass Enthusiasts Newsletter
AAA Ornamentals @ http://www.hostas.com
Vol. 1, No. 4, April, 1998
Thank you one and all for continuing to visit our site and for the many
nice comments that I receive for it. Our popularity is growing steadily. We appreciate any
comments and suggestions that you may have regarding www.hostas.com.
Well, spring fever hit with a vengeance this past Thursday. Sunny,
middle 70's, arrrgghhh, I was able to leave work by 10:30 am. Time to trim back the
ornamental grasses! Have you done yours yet? 'Karl Foerster' already had 6 inch leaf
blades, with 'Overdam' keeping running neck and neck. Korean Feather Reed grass was
already sprouting. Blue Oat Grass, Blue Fescue did not even look like the winter hit them
(we had more like a zone 7 winter than a zone 5a this year).
Spring nursery duties are piling up faster than I can shake a stick at
them. I will be starting to divide hostas next week for pots and initial mail order sales.
I think that I should have been a farmer.
One of the initial mistakes in gardening is planting plants too close to
each other. Hostas are not an exception. But one may say, well Greg, what about the north
side of your garage, huh?? I purchased 70 different varieties that year and planted them
all in one new 20 x 20 garden bed with a shade cloth overhang. As they crowd, I dig,
split, move, etc into other areas. It was kind of like a mini propagation area waiting for
the crops to come. But seriously, make sure you know the size you hostas and grasses will
get at maturity if you do not want to move them. Space accordingly.
Hostas really make a real lush environment. I have the side south and
west perimeter of our pool area laced with hostas. They really add charm to the secluded
fenced in area for swimming. The south perimeter is about 50 feed long. It is solid with
hostas. You may find it interesting that this complete area was initially from only 7
hosta clumps. Hostas are a wonderful plant to use as a resource for more plants in your
landscape design and to give away to friends.
What's New on our Web-Site??
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'Grass Comparison Matrix' compares 16 different characteristics of
grasses. This page came about from a question from a visitor to our web-site. After
several reviews from this garden friend, we came up with the present design. The page
takes about 45 seconds to load, but I believe it will be of some great value to you. If
you have any questions still unanswered from this page, please e-mail me so that this page
can be as useful as possible. You can find this new page at http://www.hostas.com/grasses/index-grasses.html.
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'Ornamental Grass Spring Clean Up' reviews the easy spring time
maintenance needs of ornamental grasses. I've captured on digital pictures real spring
samples of grass cleanup. You can find the informative page at http://www.hostas.com/grasses/spring-cleanup.html.
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'Grass Genus' page describing the different genus of grass that is
in my collection. This page should help is understanding the differences in the grasses in
different grass genus. 21 different grass genus are listed (mostly complete). This page
can be found at the following address http://www.hostas.com/grasses/grasses-genus.html.
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'Welcome Page' for new visitors. I created a new welcome page
which describes most aspects of our web-site integrating in the text links to all major
sections. I believe the a narrative of the site may be helpful for some people trying to
catch all of the good stuff fast. You can find this page at http://www.hostas.com/welcome.html.
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'Advertisements Off!' for several months I had advertisement
banners featuring other web-sites through the LinkExchange network. I felt this was taking
away from the home-grown appeal to our web-site. So, all advertising banners have been
removed, hurray!
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'Other Gardens' accessible via our home page is a new area where
pictures submitted by other gardeners are displayed. During March about 27 new pictures of
hosta cultivars have been added. Check out these beautiful pictures at http://www.hostas.com/other-gardens/index-other-gardens.html.
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Other Notes of Interest
When the first hostas were brought to Europe their hardiness was not
known. They were first grown under glass. Then, after experimentation, they found that
they are an incredibly hardy perennial!
Hosta Pick of the Month
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Formal Name: Hosta 'So Sweet'
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Picture: http://www.hostas.com/images/hostas/sosweet.jpg
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Incorrect Names: N/A
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Description: (Aden) Variegated, wide white margin on green base.
Leaves are glossy 7" long, 4.5" wide. Plant mounds to 14 inches, 20-24 inches
wide. Scape extends over the mound by about one foot. Very floriferous, medium,
purple-striped, fragrant flowers in August. Shade to 3/4 sun.
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Comments: This is a wonderful specimen plant. I have a special
attraction to hostas with shiny leaves, they are cool. 'So Sweet' is no exception this
rule! Additionally, it is also fragrant. I think that the capstone of this plant is the
wide white margin which cuts deeper into the center of the leaf in places. Shiny,
fragrant, wide margined = specimen hosta!
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Height: 14 inches
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Color of Flowers: Purple-striped
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Next month will be featuring Hosta 'Krossa Regal'.
Ornamental Grass Pick of the Month
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Formal Name: Miscanthus sinensis 'Gracillimus'
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Common Name: Maiden Grass
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Picture: http://www.hostas.com/images/grasses/grac01.jpg
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Name Meaning:
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Description: Warm season grass, needs full sun! 'Gracillimus'
tends to weep or arch creating a very graceful plant form. Foliage is a medium green,
narrow blades, creating a very fine texture. Flowers are copper (even seemingly becoming
dark burgundy) and appear in late September, earlier if summer was very hot.
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Comments: Of course, I like very grass I have, otherwise I would
not have bought it. What is nice about 'Gracillimus' is that it is big yet very tight, and
as mentioned above with a tendency to weep or arch. Cool! The plumes are something to wait
for. Pictures and descriptions do not give justice to their beauty. If you have not yet
looked at the link to the picture, please so, your missing something!
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Native: N/A
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Zone: Classified as marginally hardy in zone 4a in a six
year study by the department of Horticultural Science at the University of Minnesota.
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Sun: Full sun.
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Size: 5-6 feet tall, 2-3 feet wide, vase-shaped habit.
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Plume: This plant is a late plumer, so if it gets hit with an
early fall frost, it may not plume. The plumes are absolutely gorgeous being almost dark
burgundy.
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Next month will be featuring phalaris arundinacea 'Picta' (Ribbon
Grass).
Gardening Tidbit
Sedges have edges and rushes are round, grasses are hollow and rush all
around - author unknown.
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