It is that time of year when the H. ventricosa starts blooming in my garden. When I first started my garden, I didn't have lots of plants and any plant that was not wanted found a new home in my garden. I received lots of hosta ventricosa for the garden from a friend. H. ventricosa is an older all green hosta that is not as exciting as the newer cultivars of hostas. It now is my favorite in the garden for the beautiful purple color of the flowers. When you have hundreds of this hosta in bloom it adds lots of color in the garden.
H. ventricosa is a tetraploid (having double the number of chromosomes of the typical plant). This is the only hosta known to come true from seed. Seeds are produced without fertilization by a process known as apomixis. This means you will have lots of seeds to grow more ventricosa and have a plant that is good for breeding other hosta cultivars. H. ventricosa grows as a mound and is consider a large hosta growing to about 22 inches high and as much as 50 inches wide.
When planted in a mass planting, it makes a great ground cover and looks stunning when it blooms. Ventricosa is an older hosta and one that you may have to special order to find. If you know someone who has this plant you can collect seed to start your own.
Happy Gardening and have a Great 4th of July!
The Creative Gardener