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Hosta June is a unique shrub with very beautiful, often glossy leaves of various shapes and colors. Periodically, he gives shoots from which new young bushes grow. The plant is distinguished by unpretentiousness, for which it is valued by both experienced flower growers and amateurs.
Hosta June has consistently been ranked number one for over 10 years in a survey by the American Society of Hobbyists.
Description hosta June
Hosta June is one of the most beautiful hybrid varieties. In fact, this is a whole group of varieties that forms more than 10 attractive varieties with different leaves – from bright yellow to deep green, grassy and bluish:
- Leaves in the shape of a heart.
- Narrow, pointed shape.
- Ovate, bluish-green foliage.
When Hosta June blooms, it produces white or pale lavender double flowers with little or no fragrance.
Peduncle height up to 90 cm, flowering begins in mid-July and lasts until mid-August.
The flowers are not very decorative: in the photo and in the description, June’s hosts are especially emphasized by lush, dense leaves with a matte or glossy surface. The bushes are often low – up to 30-40 cm, rather sprawling – up to 50-60 cm in diameter. More often they prefer partial shade, and in the south it is necessary to shade more carefully so that the plant does not get burned.
Winter hardiness of June is quite good – it can be grown in climate zone 4 (can withstand frosts down to -35 degrees). This is the entire Central part of Our Country, with the exception of the Komi Republic, as well as the southern regions of the Urals, Siberia and the Far East.
Sports Hosta June
Compared to other species, the June host has an interesting feature. Mutating kidneys with altered genes periodically appear on it. They produce slow growing shoots that are significantly different from the original plant. These varieties are called sports.
They do not form an independent variety or species, but if they are separated from the mother bush, you can get an interesting variety. Moreover, the sooner this is done, the more likely it is that the shoot will take root and really retain the changed signs (new color of the leaves, the nature of the surface, and others).
June Fever
Hosta June Fever produces beautiful yellow leaves with a green border, triangular in shape, with a pointed tip.
This variety of hosta decorates the garden with bright leaves, looks spectacular against the background of a darker lawn.
The foliage of hosta June Fever is very dense, due to which the bush completely covers the ground. Therefore, it is used in carpet plantings to hide open ground.
ednless summer
Another attractive sports host is June. The bush is small, up to 30 cm high, but spreading – up to 50 cm. The foliage is bright yellow, attractive.
Hosta June Endless Summer is shown on the left – a yellow border is visible on large leaves with a green center
Junes Gold
Hosta Junes Gold is an ornamental, graceful shrub with lemon yellow wrinkled leaves. There is a green border around the edges, making this hosta look like a real exotic plant.
Like many other types of hostas, Junes Gold prefers shady places.
Oli time
A small shrub produces wide leaves with a wrinkled surface and an original yellowish color.
This sport, received from June, attracts attention with an unusual pattern on the foliage.
May
A miniature variety of Hosta June with small light green leaves.
Hosta Mei looks especially beautiful against a dark background.
Ripley effect
One of the most unusual sports is June. On a dwarf bush grow long, narrow leaves of a wavy shape.
The leaves of this hosta are yellowish, with a narrow green border.
English sunrise
A very beautiful variety of June hosta, the photo of which is presented below. Gives greenish-yellow heart-shaped leaves with a pointed tip and a wrinkled surface.
Bush English Sunrise is small, but miniature and compact, with very dense foliage
Kiwi Gold Star
A low shrub with green-yellow leaves with a wrinkled surface.
A pale green border of a darker shade than the leaf itself is always barely visible along the edges.
Kiwi Classic
Another interesting sport with elongated heart-shaped leaves. The bushes grow small, but they perfectly decorate the site in combination with other varieties of June hosta.
The leaves of Kiwi Classic are light yellow with dark green edges.
Apple Candy
Apple Candy is June’s seemingly unobtrusive sports host. Looks attractive in combination with bright green shrubs and flowers.
Apple Candy leaves grow with original lemon yellow edging
Aisha
Unlike many other sports, June Aisha produces bright green leaves with a glossy, shiny surface.
Dense leaves and stems are practically not affected by diseases and pests
Frosted June
Frosted June is a low shrub with distinctive greenish-yellow leaves. They are quite dense, so they perfectly resist various pests. The bush is compact and symmetrical.
The edges of Frosted June leaves have a thin, light yellow border.
Green Fever
This June sport is a dwarf shrub with yellow leaves.
The foliage of the plant is quite large, glossy and very dense.
June Spirit
June Spirit also produces small shrubs with pleasant foliage in shades of green, bluish and yellow.
The surface of the leaves is matte, for lovers of gentle calm tones
Justin
A variety of hosta June with very interesting, bright foliage.
Bright glossy leaves with spectacular coloring immediately attract attention
Orange Star
Orange Star is a small shrub with glossy, dense leaves with a wrinkled surface.
Bright leaves of yellow color and dark green edges will decorate even the most inconspicuous corner in the garden.
Application in landscape design
Thanks to this variety, the June sports host is easy to fit into the design of any garden. It is often used in:
- carpet landings;
- rock gardens and rockeries;
- multi-tiered flower beds, mixborders;
- borders along the road and to separate flower garden areas;
- flower beds (usually at the edges, since many varieties of June are dwarfed);
- in the far corners of the garden to cover empty places;
- on rocky beds;
- rows along the coast (you can create a multi-tiered composition).
Various sports hosts June will favorably emphasize both bright flowers and beautiful shrubs, as well as nondescript perennial grass at first glance. Therefore, in design it can be combined with a variety of plants:
- garden geranium;
- peonies;
- daylily (preferably undersized);
- higher hosts (Blue Mammoth, Dino, Jade Cascade);
- forget-me-nots;
- astilba;
- perennial conifers (thuja, juniper, dwarf fir).
Hosta June makes a good backdrop for garden geraniums and many other flowers.
Breeding methods
June can be propagated by seed, but is most often propagated by cuttings and dividing the bush. Moreover, the latter method is considered the simplest and most effective, but only for adult bushes aged 4-5 years and older (it is better not to disturb the seedlings at all or plant them with cuttings).
The optimal time for reproduction is almost the entire season: spring, summer and autumn 1-1,5 months before the onset of the first frost. To divide the June hosta bush, you will need to sharpen a shovel and knife well. The sequence of actions is as follows:
- The earth is cut out along the trunk circle in such a way as not to touch the roots (they lie to a depth of 30-40 cm).
- Then the hosta bush is lifted along with the ground and the soil is shaken off, hitting the plant several times on the surface.
- Next, straighten the root hairs and take a sharp knife.
- Several sections are cut so that each of them has at least 3 kidneys.
- Transplanted into the same soil at a similar depth of about 30 cm.
Landing algorithm
Hosta June is purchased in specialized stores. When buying, pay attention to the rhizome – it must be healthy, without damage and have several buds. You can plant it in the second half of April, when the snow has completely melted, and night temperatures no longer drop to 0 degrees.
When choosing a place, pay attention to:
- decorative (how well the bush will fit into the overall design);
- shading – there should be a slight shadow from shrubs or trees;
- protection from strong winds;
- lack of stagnant water – it is better to plant on a small hill.
Despite its attractiveness and exceptional variety of varieties, June is very undemanding to the soil. It can grow even in poor soil. Before planting, they dig up the ground and apply a bucket of humus and a full complex fertilizer per 1 m2. Then they act like this:
- They dig a hole of small depth and diameter (30 cm each) so that the roots fit freely in it.
- Lay 5-7 cm of a drainage layer of small stones.
- Half fill with soil. If the soil is infertile, you can mix rotted manure with compost soil in equal amounts and add half the peat.
- Add a few pinches of sand, mix and water abundantly.
- Root the hosta, fill in the remaining amount of soil and water again. In this case, the root neck of the bush should go to a depth of no more than 5 cm.
June hostas are best planted in a semi-shaded area.
Growing rules
The host is not capricious, but rather demanding on watering. It is important to ensure that the surface of the soil always remains moderately moist (but excess water is also harmful). To make your task easier, you can water it abundantly in the spring, then on the eve of summer and mulch the roots with hay or straw – then the layer will protect the earth from drying out.
Top dressing is applied 3 times, starting from season 2:
- In early April, you can fertilize with nitrogen (for example, urea) – this will ensure the rapid growth of shoots and foliage.
- In mid-July, when the first flowers appear, add superphosphates and potassium sulfate.
- In mid-August, add a similar composition. After this period, no top dressing is necessary.
Even minimal care allows you to get a lush, beautiful June hosta shrub
Preparation for winter
June sports are resistant even to severe winter frosts down to -35 degrees. Therefore, the bushes do not need special shelter for the winter. In autumn, plant care includes the following actions:
- The last time to feed at the end of August.
- Give abundant watering a month before frost.
- Remove all flower stalks immediately after flowering, cutting them with pruners or garden shears.
Diseases and pests
Most varieties of Hosta June have very dense leaves with a good protective layer that prevents pests from entering. Sometimes a plant can become infected with viral and fungal infections, as well as insects, for example:
- root collar rot;
- virus HVX;
- black weevil;
- aphid.
It is quite difficult to cope with infections – it is better to remove and burn the affected leaves and shoots immediately, and if this does not help, you will have to destroy the entire bush. To effectively combat fungi, you can use any fungicide – for example, Skor, Bordeaux mixture, Topaz. Insecticides are used to control insects, for example, Karbofos, Decis Profi, Green Soap.
Hosta June is rarely exposed to diseases and pests.
Conclusion
Hosta June is a bright, attractive and very unpretentious plant that produces mutating shoots with new traits. Thanks to this, flower growers in the future can create large compositions based on these varieties. They will perfectly fit into any garden and literally transform it due to its unusual, often exotic appearance.
