I must give thanks to the patron goddess of Squirrelhaven, Inertia, for her guiding influence and wisdom. If it wasn't for Inertia, I would have needlessly removed and destroyed a healthy Hosta 'Striptease.' Last year I thought it was diseased with Hosta Virus X. I should have removed the offending plant immediately, but I did not. Then, in July, I suspected more of my Hostas were diseased with HVX. Instead of panicking, I ordered some HVX Immunostrips. After receiving my HVX test kit and using it on several of my Hostas, including 'Striptease,' I found that they were all clean! Yes, I didn't have HVX. I was instead suffering from Horticultural Hypochondriac Syndrome By Proxy (HHSBP).
That is a strange thing for me, as I am not a hypochondriac as regards my own health, or the health of my children or pets. I can only chalk it up to another malady, Obsessed Gardener Syndrome (OGS). Yes, I'm afraid I must admit that I worry more about the health of my garden than about the health of my loved ones. But I ask, is it wrong? If I have concerns about kids or pets, I can call a health professional, or bring them in for a checkup. Or, more frequently, the children's grandmothers bring things to my attention. The garden and its plants are reliant on me and my paltry expertise. Yes, I could call the Chicago Botanic Garden's helpline or the one at the Morton Arboretum or I could bring in bits of plant for them to see, but I have to be on the alert for problems in the first place. Gardens need their gardeners to be aware of the myriad problems, insect infestations, and diseases that threaten their well being. I think, in this one instance, I can be excused a little paranoia. When I discovered the availability of a test, I immediately sent for it. I can't help it if I had the mantra "better safe than sorry" ingrained into me since childhood. At least Inertia was watching over the garden and saved me from a mistake. And yes, I'm feeling much better now.
29 comments:
What a delightful post -
I am so glad that your hostas do NOT have a Hosta Virus.
I am glad that you didn't remove it - and I think we all suffer from OGS from time to time.
Warm regards
Karen
I'm sorry to hear that you suffer from HHSBP and OGS. That's not contagious is it? And if it is I can't catch it just by reading a post of someone who has it, can I? And if I can, there is also an antidote for it, isn't there? And if there is, please send it along in your next post. Thank you.
Sometimes procrastination pays!
Inertia is indeed a good garden friend. I'm desperately scouring my memory (with non-abrasive powder, naturally) to come up with an example from my own experience, but can't. But I do respect Inertia!
~ Monica
I have to agree, better safe than sorry. You have time & energy invested in your garden. That doesn't make you HHSBP, just a good gardener. :)
I don't suppose I should ask if you've read about the contagious virus that infects a lot of tricyrtis hybrids, like Blue Wonder and Raspberry Mousse?
Don
Hey, that's great news re the hostas. I'm toying with the idea of planting a few around the pond, if I can find a green and white variety that performs well in hellatious heat & humidity.
I wish iboy hadn't mentioned a tricyrtis virus, now I have to go look that up.
You have me wondering about the possibility of virus in my hostas. I think mine are just pouting from only 1/2" of rain in August and September has given us only 1/2" as well. There is hope yet...
Where did you get your test strips?
Excellent post! Glad your Hosta hasn't acquired anything serious. I don't find them the easy to grow plant that they have been touted to be. But it could be
clay and limestone is not hospitable to them!
Gail
Hi MMD, hoooHA, that was a good one, a classic. Inertia goes by a different name here and in the gardens of the clan, Semi School. Your name is so much funnier though the gardening philosophy is the same! Since all of our hostas look like (insert euphemism for poopy here) we would not be able to even worry about a virus. The echinaceas did get one and are now gone, but vigilence is key. Does the test cover all viruses or just specific to hosta? I was at Zany's last week, where were you? ;->
I imagine a lot of hostas get misdiagnosed. Natural color changes can fool anyone. It like RRD in roses.
Marnie
I'm glad that you were able to keep your wonderful hostas. It may be easy for some gardeners to just give up on their plants, but there's no way I can bear to do that. Cheesehead was just teasing me the other day about a peony he had wanted to get rid of. I wouldn't let him, this year it's twice as big and was covered in blooms.
I'm glad to know inertia can be a good thing at times--I've suffered from far too much of it this summer! Glad to know your hostas are healthy and that you didn't tear them all out before you tested them.
Whew, you can't be too careful. It was good to test your hostas to get the correct diagnosis instead of just guessing. You can sleep better and so can the hostas!
Carol, May Dreams Gardens
Whew! Am I relieved! Now, hand me an aspirin and an ice pack. ;-)
MMD, I can identify completely... do you think iowa boy was being serious? (More homework to check up on - tricyrtis virus?!)
How lucky that there's a virus test you can use on your hostas, MMD - so you don't have to worry and dither but will know what to do.
It's kind of unfair, isn't it? If a parent or an Obsessed Gardener rushes a somewhat sick kid to the doctor or takes a possibly sick plant to the Morton Arboretum and nothing is wrong, she/he's may be labeled as an overwrought, over-protective person.
If he/she doesn't rush the kid in or dig up the hosta and the child turns out to have strep instead of a cold, or the virus-ridden hosta infests the whole bed, then he/she is a negligent parent/gardener.
It's good to see that you beat the no-win system!
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
MMD, I think you were just being a careful gardener. :) I remeber you posting about the possibility of a Hosta virus and ordering the testing strips. At the time, I thought what a dilligent gardener to go to all that trouble.
Inertia seems to be my middle name now that the end od garden season is here.
How great Inertia is - aka let nature take care of itself! ;)
That's a fine looking Hosta - mine are like lace curtains - shredded to pieces by slugs. And each year, I vow things will be different...
Thanks, Karen! It's good to know I'm not the only one (slightly) obsessed.
Flydragon - I'm afraid that HHSBP & OG are contagious. The more you read about diseases in people's gardens, the more you start to worry about them in your own. The cure? Think happy thoughts, quarantine new plants, & check with the experts before doing anything irreversible.
Pam - if procrastination paid, I'd be a billionaire!
Monica - it's a good thing that you can't think of any examples. I, by contrast, can think of a half dozen things off the top of my head.
PGL - can I quote you on that? "PGL says MMD is 'a good gardener.'" ;^)
Don - good thing I don't grow those Tricyrtis! I'm still worried about a virus that attacks Lilies & Polyganatums.
Cindy - plant the Hostas in the pond. I've seen that they will grow like that. That may be the only way to keep them from frying in your garden.
Lisa - click on the highlighted "Immunostrips" text. That links to the website where I ordered them.
Gail - try growing Hosta in containers. I have a couple in containers & they do very well. I put mine in the ground for the winter, but I don't think you'd have to do that.
Frances - this test is just for HVX. There is no test yet for Aster Yellows. That's one disease that really has me scared. I had to yank half a dozen plants, Echinaceas & Asters, that were infected.
Marnie - Hostas are notorious for throwing sports, so that does make it more difficult to determine whether there is a problem. I'm just glad that there's an objective test for them.
Cinj - sometimes Inertia is the gardener's best friend, particularly with plants that need time to mature, such as Baptisias & Peonies.
Rose - I think we all suffer from that late summer ennui. Aren't you glad it's autumn & you can start raking leaves?
Carol - I can't say that I've lost sleep over the garden, but I have had nightmares about it.
Shady - there are so many plant diseases out there. If your plants look healthy, don't worry, be happy.
Annie - yes, it's a damned if you do, damned if you don't thing. I prefer to be cautious. I'd rather be called overprotective than negligent.
Beckie - now is not the time to rest! It's time to get planting - there's always room for more Scilla & Snowdrops.
VP - how ironic that you think my 'Striptease' looks good! It's one of the rattier looking Hostas in the garden because most of the rest of them are slug resistant. I feel a Hosta post coming on.
Glad to hear your hostas are all healthy and HVX free! Those test kits are pretty slick, aren't they?!
Glad to hear you're virus free! That would be a shame to have to tear out even one hosta.
MMD, I believe my Mazukatse (sp) has the virus. They have mottled flowers and they're not supposed to. These were replacement plants for something I'd ordered that "they" were out of. Anyway, I'm going to get rid of them and contact the company. Too bad.
YAY! Glad your hostas don't have the virus! I didn't know about the kits. That's pretty cool.
I am the master of garden paranoia too. When something goes wrong, I always think I am the culprit for a plant's demise. Glad to read that others share my "affliction"!
Striptease is a pretty hosta - so glad she and her relatives were spared, and that none were suffering with the dreaded HVX!
You had me cracking up several times during this post. . . um, not that I can relate or anything. . . no, not me!
Seriously though, I do suffer from OGS, but thankfully, not HHSBP. I do sometimes suffer from FTW (forgot to water,) and this has resulted in the untimely demise of more plants in my garden than all the garden bugs and diseases combined.
Josh - I'm loving this test kit. I wish they had a test for everything.
Dave - I would disagree, but you haven't seen some of my non-slug resistant Hostas.
Shady - sorry to hear that! At least you've discovered the problem before it spread.
Kylee - I'm very happy to have piece of mind again.
Beth - you've got to learn to start blaming the weather & critters. Works for me.
Garden Girl - I have a chronic case of FTW! That's why my only houseplants are Cacti.
Wow... I didn't even know that such a testing kit existed! I'm going to have to go check that out.
Blackswamp Girl - "Piece of mind? Priceless." I found out about the Immunostrips from a Dutch Hosta website.
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