How to Grow and Care for a Hosta Plant

Hostas are hardy plants with beautiful foliage. These robust plants survive in shady areas, but who knows? They may live longer than those who care for them! Hostas are simple to care for but cut back in the early winter to keep pests away.

It’s easy to see why hostas are so popular; they look beautiful. They are ideal for gardening because they don’t need much care and have many leaves. This makes them an excellent plant for new and experienced farmers looking to keep things simple. Check out our comprehensive growth guide to learn everything you need to know about hostas.

What are Hostas Plants?

Hostas are versatile because of their shape, size, colour, and texture. They can endure freezing temperatures and thrive in various garden settings, including patios, borders, containers, rock gardens, and shade.

Although there are various options for larger or smaller ones, most are between 1 and 3 feet wide and tall. Leaves might be bright green, blue-green, or various shades of white. Hosta leaves come in many different forms and sizes. They can be small, smooth, ridged, heart-shaped, or anything else.

People recognize these plants for their distinctive leaves, but from summer to the start of October, they also produce lovely blooms in pink, purple, light blue, and white. Birds that disperse pollen, such as hummingbirds, enjoy the blooms; some types even smell pleasant.

Types of Hostas

Once you start looking into hostas, you can’t stop. There are small hostas that grow only 4 inches broad and enormous ones that grow up to 6 feet wide, so you can select one to suit your small rock garden or large border. Here are a few.

June: The golden leaves with bluish-green borders form clumps about 12 inches tall and 24 to 30 inches broad. With its pale lavender flowers, “June” is one of the hosta varieties that can tolerate greater sun.
Guacamole: The “Guacamole” hosta grows from one to two feet tall to two to four feet wide. Its leaves are apple green, with blue-green margins and many veins.
Curly Fries: Long, narrow, curly green leaves grow in groups 10 inches tall and 20 inches wide. The flower’s colour is lavender.
First Frost: The blue-green leaves of the “First Frost” hosta are notable for their creamy margins. The leaves start out yellow but eventually turn white. The 16-inch-tall, 2- to 3-foot-wide clusters feature light purple flowers.
Stained Glass: 18-inch-tall, 3- to 4-foot-wide clusters of glossy, golden leaves trimmed with dark green. The blossoms have a beautiful lavender tint.
Blue Mouse Ears: This small plant, known as “Blue Mouse Ears,” can grow 8 to 12 inches tall and wide. Its leaves are blue, just like the name, adorned with lavender flowers.
Empress Wu: It can reach a height of 5 feet and has 2 feet of bluish-green foliage. The hosta is named “Empress Wu.” Place this stunning plant in the middle of your yard.
August Moon: The ‘August Moon’ variety features large heart-shaped leaves that are either chartreuse or bright yellow. The flowers are tiny and purple. This variety is around 20 inches tall and 3 feet wide.

How To Plant Hostas

Dig a broader and deeper hole than the plant’s root ball. Reduce the density of the dirt in the planting area to allow the hosta roots to expand outward.
Plant several hostas in a row, as far apart as you want them to be when they grow up. Hostas are excellent at making empty places look better.
Place the plants in the hole so that their crowns, or bases, are flush with the earth surrounding them and any new leaves are visible above the soil.
Place hostas in pots with the same depth as the dirt.
Water the dirt surrounding the plants well to help the roots settle.

Where To Plant Hostas Sun or Shade

Variegated hostas grow well in partial shade but thrive in full sun. Use compost or dirt that retains water and drains effectively for all of them.

Even adding organic matter, such as Miracle-Gro® Peat Free Premium Border Booster, Hostas can thrive in heavy yard soil. When planted on a border, they look fantastic with ferns and Brunnera.

When you put the Hosta in a planter, you can choose how much sun and shade it receives. You can move hostas into pots but require more frequent watering because they dry up quickly.

How to Care for a Hosta Plant

Once established, hostas will care for themselves if they grow up in the correct location. In pots, keep the compost from drying out. In the spring, use a slow-release fertilizer to improve soil fertility.

Copper bands around your plants will prevent slugs and snails from damaging them.

After the flowers have faded in the fall, cut the flower spikes back to a manageable height. Once a year, apply compost, well-rotted manure, or leaf mould to make your soil more fertile and safeguard your plants.

How To Grow Hosta Plant from Seed

Hostas grown from seeds are usually plain green and lack any unique characteristics of their parent plants, so few gardeners bother growing them from seed. Many of them are infertile, so they do not have any eggs. You can, however, simply plant the seeds and observe what happens when your plants produce seed pods in the summer.

The seed pods are ready for harvesting when they start to turn yellow. When the seeds are ready, they will be black inside the pods. Place them in a warm location to dry and defrost.
Wet the seed-starting mix and place it in tiny pots. Use the seeds’ thin wings to remove them. Plant four or five seeds in each half-full container of earth.
Place the jars somewhere warm (about 75°F) and cover with a clear plastic lid or dome. The soil must be kept damp. The plants should grow in 10 to 20 days.
Use a grow light or position your pots in an area that receives early sunlight. After four or more leaves have sprouted, you can decide which ones to preserve.
Plant the seedlings in pots filled with mineral-rich compost or potting soil. If you delay this step because the seed-starting mix lacks minerals, the plants will require fertilizer.
After the frost risk has passed, leave the plants outside for a week to acclimatize to the cold. After that, they will be distributed to the appropriate locations.
For a simpler method, let the seeds sit outside during the winter, like plants. In the fall, plant the seeds in pots and bury them so deeply that they are below ground level. You may notice their increase in the spring.

Potting And Repotting Hostas

Growing tiny hostas in pots looks wonderful. Choose a pot with at least two or three inches of clearance around the root ball on all sides. Check to see if the container has drainage holes; install some. Make sure to use a new, high-quality potting mix that contains compost. Once the roots are less tight, position the plant so the top is level with the ground. After soaking the dirt with water, lightly cover it with mulch.

Hostas grow best in shaded areas. Water the plants when the ground has dried up to an inch deep. After a few weeks, following the package guidelines, feed the plant with a balanced fertilizer, such as 10-10-10.

When roots begin to emerge from the bottom of the pot, or it becomes difficult to water, you know your hosta has grown too large for its pot. When this happens, use a fresh potting mix and transplant the plant to a pot with at least two inches of extra space on all sides. You can divide your hosta into multiple plants and place each in a different location to produce more.

FAQs

Q. Where do hostas grow best?

Hostas grow best in partial shade or early morning sun. They prefer rich dirt that drains well. If you find a location where there are no other roots, these wild plants’ roots can thrive under trees.