Re: H. 'Tortifrons' in a dish of water

Hi Ray, All,
 
That dish-of-water was more like a tray of water. I first described that method in 1992 in The Hosta Journal, Vol. 23, No. 2, pp. 53-57. A dish (saucer) may not hold enough water!
 
I had the plants in plastic pots in a rapid draining mix set into poly seed trays (without holes) filled with water. I came up with this idea when a different (and irreplaceable) hosta came down with foliar nematodes. In the seed tray it went and Cygon, Terrachlor, and other chemicals were added into the water. The nematodes could not survive that mix for long. I have these sick house trays in an area where birds and pets can not get to it (screening). Keeping these chemicals confined in this manner will keep them from getting into the environment (they are disposed at a proper disposal site run by the county) and the hostas (when disease free) are repotted in sterile mix and put into a quarantine area for observation and eventual planting out in the garden. I no longer use this method with H. `Tortifrons' because it has grown into a huge clump and is happily at home in a large pot where I can watch for slugs a.s.o.
 
In any case, being in the shade house, the water did not warm up too much (maybe 100 degrees max.) The hostas love to sit in warm water and the roots elongate and grow out of the pots like crazy. Don't put those black trays in full sun! It must be in shade which reduces evaporation and keeps the water form getting too hot. I used two pots per tray and found that the overhanging leaf crowns shade the trays and also keep the water temp down so some overhead sun is ok if the leaf crowns are large. When they are too small, well you know, shade is a must.
 
WGS
 
 
 
----- Original Message -----
From: RBRSSR@aol.com
Sent: Sunday, February 10, 2002 7:55 PM
To: hosta-open@mallorn.com
Subject: H. 'Tortifrons' in a dish of water
 
In a message dated 02/06/2002 8:30:04 PM Central Standard Time, CBCTPLANT@aol.com writes:


I had followed your (George Schmid) prescribed method of keeping it in a
dish of water in the sun all summer. It had flourished in those conditions


Is there more to the prescribed method? Seems like the water would get too hot???   
Just thought I would ask before I cooked one. I guess one would have to watch the water level pretty closely, to keep it from drying out???
Ray Rodgers, Bartonville, IL, CIHS, Zone 5

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