"Frank" wrote in message
om...
Zone 7 - Cape Cod

I bought a healthy looking specimen three years ago which, judging by
the stalks, had just finished blooming robustly. I planted it in 3/4
sun with a southern exposure and watered carefully.

Each year in that location it has come up smaller and has never
bloomed.

This year I finally decided to bite the bullet and move the sad little
remnant to 1/4 sun with a northern exposure.

When I dug it up, the crown separately immediately into 6 little
plantlets. I had only prepared one hole. After some internal debate I
decided to plant them all in the hole in a ring shape, more or less as
they were before the transplant.

Although it's early days, they now seem to be flourishing. Each has 4
to 6 leaves, already a definite improvement over last year.

What I'm wondering is, should I leave them as is or should I consider
separating them into separate holes, possibly in the fall.

Separately, I would appreciate any suggestions as to how to get this
variety to bloom.

I would have planted each section of the crown in its own hole, reducing the
competition for water and nutrients. Hostas do best in soil that has been
amended with organic matter and that stays evenly moist, but not wet. I
would give them some fertilizer now and move them in the spring. There
seems to be a trade-off between fast growth and flower production on one
hand, and retention of color and avoidance of sunburn on the other hand.
Planting in more sun generally yields more flowers but the leaves can get
burnt and the color can fade. The blue hostas don't seem to do well at all
in the sun. You might want to read the comment posted he
http://plantsdatabase.com/go/3421/ as one poster seems to have experienced
the same problem that you report