Hostas 101

Being from the Pacific Northwest where shade is everywhere from the dense trees, I have fallen in love with hostas. They are so versatile and lush and their different shades of green are seemingly endless. I have wanted a shade garden for years and years now and still don’t have the perfect spot for one, but I do have hostas and for now that’s good enough for me. This hostas 101 post is dedicated to all things Hosta.

About Hostas

• PERENNIAL (one of my favorite things about them. They grow so big and lush and can easily be divided. FREE PLANTS anyone?)
• Zones 3-9
• Partial shade to full shade
• Slightly acidic soil – pH 6.0
• Do well with moist well drained soil
• Known for their thick green foliage but do send out tall flower shoots mid summer. Blooms can be white, purple or pink
• depending on variety can be anywhere from 6″-3′ tall and wide
• Have fleshy roots and short rhizomes making them easy to divide and propogate….more FREE PLANTS!
• Can be susceptible to some fungus. Slugs and snails love to eat them. Deer and bunnies can also be a problem
• Do best in shady borders like alongside homes, fences or underneath trees.
• Can also be grown in containers. (Varieties like Blue Mouse Ears, Tiny Tears or Cracker Crumbs… such fun names!)
• Also called Plantain Lilies
• Leaf colors vary from variegated to lime green to blue

Maintenance

• Like to be well watered but don’t like sitting in water. Plant in raised area or somewhere well-draining. (All plants want to be in well drained soil if you ask me)
• Apply fertilizer in the early spring when they start poking through the soil
• Use slug repellant to protect their leaves ie:crushed up egg shells or slug bait
• Remove dead of diseased leaves throughout the season but especially in the fall when they have been spent. Cut back to the ground when leaves appear dead. Leaving mushy dead leaves is a breeding ground for fungus
• Cut black flower stalks after they bloom to help encourage more growth

Dividing and Seeds

• Can be grown from seed but are most commonly divided (full plant divided at roots) to produce more plants
  • Seeds saved and grown from Hosta plants will not produce the same variety of Hosta usually
• Divide plant at the root ball in the early spring or late fall. Hostas are hardy and tend to recover easily the next season from dividing
• Plant divisions at the same depth as they were before dividing and water well

Favorite Varieties

Interesting Hosta Facts

• Most widely grown perennial in the United States
• Native to Japan, Korea and China
• More than 3000 varieties

Check out some of our other plant 101 posts like Tulips, Lily of the Valley, Peonies, Zinnias and Aster