History of Hostas

The History of hostas begins in Japan. Hosta is a known as giboshi in its country of origin but it is also sometimes spelt as giboushi in some regions. Hostas grow rampant and wild in Japan. Although the plant is also native to Korea and China it is in Japan that you will find the most varieties. Most hostas are descended from two smallish varieties that originate in Japan. One is Oba Giboshi, which describes hostas with ripple leaves and green centers. It is known as H. Montana in western cultures. The other is Ohatsuki Giboshi, which features green centers with cream-colored edges. This is the variegated version of hosta that most of us know as variegated hostas today.

Hostas have only really become popular in the last twenty years. However there were some landmark events in the plants history that are notable.

In the 1940s a nursery called Savory Garden that was run by Bob and Arlene Savory in Britain perfected the yellow gold varieties. These hybrids were more sun loving and included varieties like the bright yellow Lemon Lime and Golden Tiara.

In the early sixties a British gardener named Eric Smith managed to create a number of hybrids that resulted in the powdery blue shade loving hostas that people love to collect today. These hostas are known as the Tardania Hybrids.

Hosta fanatic Eunice Fisher first established the American Hosta Society, which now boasts over 350,000 members in 1969. Eunice Fisher is also responsible for publishing of the first hosta book for gardeners and collectors, Hosta: The Aristocratic Plant for Shady Garden in 1969. Two more editions of this seminal book on hostas were published 1973, 1979.

In the late 1970s Mark Zilis and Walters Gardens developed the first hosta tissue culture lab. This led to two of the biggest companies in existence for hosta growth and distribution. That is Walters Gardens Inc. and Q and Z nurseries.

In the late seventies through to the late eighties Paul Aden and Klehm Nursery were also responsible for the wide spread popularity of hostas. The catalogues used to published hosta prices and pictures during this time helped distribute information from Eunice Fisher's book as well as name very popular hostas such as Sum and Substance and Great Expectations.

In the late seventies another gardener named Mildred Seaver perfected yet another type of blue variety of hosta which are often referred to as the Sea Series. The hosta Spilt Milk is a nice example of the best of her work. It is grey blue with a white speckled film. The passion for the blue hostas that Seaver created was spread further by the clever mail order marketing of Hatfield gardens which was a seminal company when it came to distributing blue hostas across North America.

Today hostas remain the #1 perennial in the United States. You can find them almost anywhere. From large Home Improvement stores to your Mom and Pop Garden Center. In the last few years many nurseries have decided to offer hostas online. Ebay, Daves Garden and hundreds of Hosta Business websites now offer beautiful hostas to the public!