Question
I am new to gardening... I have lots of hostas in my yard.  When their flowering is over, do I leave the stalks alone, or clip them off?  Thanks.

Answer
Hi Nina,
Thanx for your question.  When hostas quit flowering you can cut off the blossom stems or if some of them look like they are setting seed (some are sterile and will not set seed) you can let the seeds ripen and collect them in the fall.  If you prefer to cut off the spent blooms it will not harm the plant.  You can clip off the spent stems down to around the middle of the leaves.  If you want to grow hostas from seed you need to know that if they are hybrids (which most of them are) the resulting seedlings will not in general, come true to the parent.  Think genetics.  A hybrid is a mix of many different varieties so the seed you collect from a hybrid is not going to look, in general, like the parent plant.  But, you could get some new surprises.  That's how the big boys and girls in the hosta world keep coming up with new cultivars.  If you are interested in growing hosta from seed let me know and I will be glad to give you info as I have done that and have several adult plants now, from seed in my yard.  I hope this helps and feel free to post a followup if you need more info.
thx,
Tom