Other Names:  Plantain Lily, Funkia

Group/Class:  Shadowland® Collection

Brand:  Proven Winners

Description:

This bold variety features long, heart shaped, medium green leaves with chartreuse jetting and creamy white centers; white flowers on tall scapes appear during early summer; a versatile, colorful addition to the garden or landscape

Ornamental Features

Shadowland® Love Story Hosta features dainty spikes of white tubular flowers rising above the foliage in early summer. Its attractive textured heart-shaped leaves remain creamy white in color with distinctive green edges and tinges of chartreuse throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Shadowland® Love Story Hosta is a dense herbaceous perennial with tall flower stalks held atop a low mound of foliage. Its relatively coarse texture can be used to stand it apart from other garden plants with finer foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Insects

Shadowland® Love Story Hosta is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Shadowland® Love Story Hosta will grow to be about 16 inches tall at maturity extending to 24 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 3 feet. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 30 inches apart. Its foliage tends to remain dense right to the ground, not requiring facer plants in front. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant does best in partial shade to shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. This plant does not require much in the way of fertilizing once established. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Shadowland® Love Story Hosta is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden. Be aware that in our climate, most plants cannot be expected to survive the winter if left in containers outdoors, and this plant is no exception. Contact our experts for more information on how to protect it over the winter months.