Worldless Wednesday -Bring your rake!

Why are there so many variety of hosta?

Tonight we had a friend over for dinner, he is a regular at our house on Tuesday nights. He glanced over and saw my Hostapedia sitting on one our end tables. At first he asked me if it was a joke, but when he realized it was the real deal he glanced again at it. For those who don't know, the Hostapedia is 1125 pages long and weighs a little over 12 pounds. It's huge, and I'm surprised my end table hasn't collapsed under the shear girth of it. After his laughter cleared over my owning a Hostapedia he asked me a really good question. He asked me why there were so many varieties of hosta compared to other plants. I'm sure he doesn't know or care that daylily varieties are also numerous (and I'm sure other plants), but it also really made me think. Why is it that there are so many varieties of hosta? I am not a scientist, I am just a home gardener (with a hosta addiction). But here are some of the reasons why I think there are so many varieties of hosta.

1. Hosta do not come true from seed, so if you plant a hosta seed, it will likely not look like it's parent plant. So hostas create their own different varieties without human help.
2. Humans step in and purposely cross pollenate flowers to try to create new breeds of hosta. Even though you never know what you will get when you cross pollenate, it's easy to do.
3. Hostas will create their own sports.
4. The science of using tissue cultures to create even more new, unusual hosta varieties has progressed far over time.
5. Hostas are a very popular and easy to grow plant, therefore there are lots of collectors always looking for new varieties.

I know I am overlooking some obvious reasons, so why do you think there are so many varieties of hosta?

Even small trees are beautiful in fall

Today I took a peek in the backyard. I wanted to see just how many leaves have fallen in the last couple of days. It had been raining on and off for days, and I figured (and was right) that quite a few leaves would have been knocked down by the rain. However, it wasn't all the leaves that caught my eyes...it was this bright red pop of color amongst all the yellows of fall. There amid the hostas lies a Japanese maple. When I think of fall, I think of all the large maples and their beautiful hues or orange, yellow, and red. However, I forget that my little Japanese maple puts on a beautiful fall display of color that far outweighs some of the large trees. So what beautiful surprises have you found in fall?

Worldless Wednesday

Planting Lily Bulbs

Before I even start digging in the ground, I always make labels for my plants. Before you get the wrong idea about me, let me tell you this is the only time in my life I am organized. My plants are all labeled, but I have piles of things on my desk. I use a brother label and aluminum plant markers to label my plants. The brother labels are the TZ variety, which is weather resistant.
Here is one of the lily bulbs I am planting today. These are very nice sized. I am trying a new lily nursery this year, called B&D lilies. So far I am impressed with the size and health of the bulbs. These get planted 4-8 inches into the ground depending on the size of the bulb. Unlike what most people believe, lilies do not require full sun. I have very good luck growing them in even my partially shady yard.
This is a OT lily I planted last year. It is almost 6 feet tall. I guess that means it's happy:)

Some things grow and thrive in cold weather

Despite the cold rainy/snowy weather we've been having here in Wisconsin some things continue to grow and thrive. I noticed this fungus (may be Dacrymyces palmatus) growing on a stump my neighbor has in their yard. It was so bright it was hard not to notice it. Up close it almost looks like something from the deep blue sea.

Pineapple Sage

I wish that pineapple sage didn't bloom so late in the year. It has beautiful reddish orange blooms, that are reminiscent of saliva. The hummingbirds love it, and even when not in bloom it smells wonderful (like pineapple). The only problem here is Wisconsin is that it is a very late bloomer. In fact mine just started to bloom earlier in the week. This morning the temperature outside was 25 degrees, so I thought for sure it would be dead. However when I checked it this afternoon it was still alive and kicking. It is on the warmest side of my house, but I would be very surprised if it last through the rest of the week.