• Hostas are availabe in green, blue, gold and variegated varieties.Hosta image by REDGIE W. from Fotolia.com
  
  Home gardeners collect hostas for their showy, heart-shaped foliage and dramatic, midsummer flower-spikes. Hostas feature green, blue, gold or variegated rosettes of waxy leaves, and new species appear year after year. Yellow hosta varieties range from bright lime miniatures that are almost luminous in deep shade, to large golden specimens that tolerate some direct sun. Golden leaf hostas are versatile, tough perennials that make lively accents for shade, sun or mixed borders.
  
  

Variation in Golden Leaf Hostas

• Hostas are incredibly adaptive plants, with over 2000 cultivars currently available. Some hosta varieties grow as large as four feet across, while miniature hostas may be only inches in diameter. Golden leaf hostas exhibit all the variation of the species in general, with some varieties growing to 2 feet across and 18 inches tall, and others packing a small, but powerful, punch of intense color. Golden leaf hostas tolerate more sun than the deep-blue or green varieties and adapt well to perennial borders, but they also accent deep shade gardens with their unusually bright foliage. Leaf texture on golden hostas can be rumpled, smooth, waxy or lined, and most send up flower spikes in July or August, many of them strongly fragrant.
  
  

Large Golden Leaf Hostas

• 'August Moon,' a highly sun-tolerant giant golden hosta, attains a height of 20 inches and a spread of 30 inches. Leaves emerge lime green in very late spring and mellow to a deep yellow as summer progresses. Seersucker 6-inch heart-shaped leaves and bell-shaped lavender flower-spikes in late July or early August make this vigorous cultivar a former award winner. 'Sum and Substance,' another award-winning golden giant, quickly generates amazing mounds of sun-loving foliage 5 feet wide by 3 feet tall, achieving its richest color in full sun. 'Sun Power' features unique twisted leaves that come to a sharp point and ripen to a bright yellow when exposed to morning light.
  
  

Midsized Golden Leaf Hostas

• 'Gold Standard,' a fast-growing midsized staple in sun and shade, features lime green leaves edged with a deep blue-green border. The centers of the 'Gold Standard' leaves gradually change from light green to brilliant yellow as the season progresses. Similar in size and coloration to 'Gold Standard,' 'Inniswood' sports heart-shaped, waxy leaves with bright gold centers and a deep green edge. The spiky leaves of mid-sized 'June' stay bright yellow in shade, but turn white in full sun, and the thin darker green edge provides a unique contrast. 'Striptease,' a sport of 'Gold Standard,' features tri-colored leaves with a dark green edge, a gold center and a thin white stripe separating the two.
  
  

Dwarf Golden Leaf Hostas

• Dwarf golden leaf hostas make popular accents for deep shade. Easy to tuck into a small dark space, they punch up the color of shade gardens where foliage often dominates by midsummer. 'On Stage,' a smaller golden cultivar, achieves a maximum width of 24 inches and offers a bright yellow leaf with a wavy green margin. 'Maui Buttercups' forms compact rosettes of cup-shaped rumpled gold leaves. 'Pure Heart,' a tiny true miniature, features leaves with a rich gold center and a deep blue edge.