Hostas were first "discovered" by European plant explorers in Japan, Korea and China several centuries ago. Of course, many types of hostas were already familiar to local people in those areas. The map below indicates the approximate native locations for the 43 recognized species of hosta. As you can see, the vast majority of hostas in the wild come from Japan.

Although many of the species were identified long ago, new forms of species, varieties and even named cultivars are still originating directly from these areas of Asia.

In the mid-1980's Barry Yinger made plant exploration journeys to parts of Korea resulting in the identification of the species, H. yingeri and H. jonesii.

For a list of hostas which have come from Japan in recent decades, Click Here.