In the 1960s, hostas began to draw significant interest from an increasing segment of home gardeners and collectors. By the end of the decade, it was time for an organization to be formed that would promote the genus to a wider public. On July 7, 1968, a group of hosta enthusiasts met at Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania to form The American Hosta Society.

Alex J. Summers was elected the first president of the group and soon became the editor of the first newsletter. Eunice V. Fisher was the first secretary-treasurer. The organization grew in membership through the early 2,000s and currently has members in 46 states, 7 Canadian provinces and 14 other countries. Click Here for a list of AHS Presidents.

In the late 1980s, AHS decided to make a determined effort to register as many of the named cultivars as possible. The registration process is intended to be sure that there is a central, public record that describes the unique traits of each different hosta cultivar. Click here for a list of some of the cultivars that were registered by AHS.

Many early cultivars were created before the registration system was put into place and some hostas came from foreign lands. So, the AHS took it upon themselves to register many of these older cultivars on behalf of the often deceased hybridizer or originator.

Other major activities of the AHS include publication of The Hosta Journal, the annual national convention, official display gardens and various awards. More detail on each of these may be found by clicking on the header bar below.

Note: The "The" at the beginning is officially part of the name, The American Hosta Society. However, the abbreviation "AHS" is commonly used and not TAHS...go figure.

Click Here for the website of The American Hosta Society.