Plant, Tree & Shrub Library

Other Names:  Plantain Lily, Funkia

Description:

A sun tolerant selection, perfect for adding texture and color to summer garden beds and landscapes; thick, heart shaped leaves are chartreuse with medium to heavy corrugation; fragrant lavender flowers rise above foliage in the midsummer months

Ornamental Features

Sum and Substance Hosta features dainty spikes of lightly-scented lavender bell-shaped flowers rising above the foliage in mid summer. Its attractive enormous textured round leaves remain chartreuse in color throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Sum and Substance Hosta is a dense herbaceous perennial with tall flower stalks held atop a low mound of foliage. Its wonderfully bold, coarse texture can be very effective in a balanced garden composition.

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

Sum and Substance Hosta is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover

Planting & Growing

Sum and Substance Hosta will grow to be about 3 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 5 feet. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 4 feet apart. Its foliage tends to remain dense right to the ground, not requiring facer plants in front. It grows at a medium 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. 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.