How To Plant Hostas & Hosta Varieties In Sun & Shade

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Patriot Hosta in my rock garden with Praying Hands Hostas in the middle of a potted Dragon Begonia plant.
Patriot Hosta in my rock garden with Praying Hands Hosta in the middle of a potted Dragon Begonia plant.
 
 
 
Golden Tiara Hosta, Patriot Hosta and Sun Power Hosta.
Left to right: Golden Tiara Hosta, Patriot Hosta and Sun Power Hosta.
 
 
Transplanting hostas in my garden. 
 
Sun Power Hosta, a Dragon Wing Begonia and a Patriot Hosta.
Pictured left to right, Sun Power Hosta, a Dragon Wing Begonia and a Patriot Hosta.
 
 
In the front of my rock garden are Praying Hands Hostas and in the grass, Golden Tiara Hostas.
 

 

All you need is consistent watering and partial shade during the day

Hostas are one of my favorite outdoor plant varieties.

Since our  move, planting hostas has been at the top of my to do list. 

 
Over the years I have found hostas so easy to plant, grow and maintain.
 
I’ve planted hostas in the ground, in rock gardens and even in pots, and they are always such a breeze to take care of and will reward your efforts with the most beautiful foliage.
 
Don’t be fooled by the robust look and magnificence of these garden beauties.
 
They require very little effort on your part.
 
It’s as simple as consistent watering and an area that offers at least partial shade during the day— and that’s pretty much it!

 

Outdoor yard decorations

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Hostas are perennial blooms— the gift that keeps on giving 

Begonias are my favorite annual plant. They bloom at their best as a shady lady, but do not return season after season.

Hostas, however, are perennials. They lie dormant in the fall and winter months, and return to bloom again and again each spring.
 
Hostas originated as a plant variety with about 40 species from China, Japan and South Korea.
 
Today there are over 8,000 crosses of this incredible plant; definitely one to please any gardener!
 
 
 

Wide foliage

Hosta plants offer foliage that spreads wide, along with miniature types that scale small.
 
Mature species can grow as giant as 96″ across and 60″ tall, with smaller versions that can be as tiny as 2″ tall and 4″ to 6″ wide.
 
Miniature hostas plants are great for walkways and paths, rock gardens and container planting.
 
The larger species in rows can completely fill a flower bed, or even offer a replacement for shrubbery during their season.
 
 

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Best Ground Covers For Full Sun Or Shade Garden Areas
 

 

Both the small and large hostas varieties offer clues to their size by their names.

 
Some of the larger hosta names include Bigga Luigi (as big as 25″ H x 80″ W), Big Daddy (as big as 25″ H x 66″ W), King Size (as big as 48″ H x 84″ W) and my favorite, Empress Wu (as big as 60″ H x 96″ W), with leaves can than can span as large as 25″ across!
 
Smaller plants include names such as Baby Booties (as small as 5″ H x 19″ W), Bitsy Gold (as small as 8″ H x 21″ W) and Blue Mouse Ears (as small as 8″ H x 12″ W).
 
 
Large hosta, Empress Wu. Photo: Monrovia.com
Large hosta, Empress Wu. Photo: Monrovia.com

 

Medium size Sun Power Hosta plant.
Medium size Sun Power Hosta plant.
 
 
The hosta plant pictured above has been with me for over four years and was transplanted from my old house as a container plant.
 
She was previously planted in full sun. This year she is planted in a part shady area where she has experienced her largest blooms thus far— and it’s only May!
 
 
Medium variety Patriot Hosta. 
Medium variety Patriot Hosta. I split this one to yield two hostas in my garden.
 
 
A small Praying Hands Hosta transplanted from my old house as a container plant.
A small Praying Hands Hosta transplanted from my old house as a container plant.
 
 
A small hostas  variety,  Golden Tiara Hosta.
A small hostas  variety,  Golden Tiara Hosta.
 
 
I have three Golden Tiara Hostas in my garden (pictured above).
 

 

Hostas are also differentiated by their leaf color and thickness.

 
Snails and slugs are common perpetrators to the leaves of this plant.
 
The thicker and more blue-color the leaves, the more texture and resistance to these little predators.
 
I’ve used this pet-safe bait HERE to ward off these damaging leaf eaters.
 
Hostas leaf colors are available in shades of blue, gold, chartreuse, streaked and multi-color patterns. There’s even a white leaf hosta known as Feather White.
 
Some hostas produce a long stem of purple or lavender blooms during their season. I’ve been rewarded with as many as 3-4 blooms from my plants during the spring and summer months each year!
 
It’s definitely worth a trip to your local garden store to discover the vast array of hostas plants available.
 
My local garden store of choice is McDonald Garden Center, where I can even find hostas that produce fragrant flowers!
 
 

Go away pesky snails and slugs! Do not eat my hostas!

 

 

3 tips to get pesky snails and slugs to go away!

1.  Treat for snails and slugs (product details HERE) throughout spring & summer and into the fall when their egg-laying season is occurring.
 
2. Bury an empty tuna or cat food can filled with beer, attracting the pests to the beer instead of your plants.
 
3. Create a circle of crushed egg shells around your hostas to deter snails & slugs.
 
 
 
Golden Tiara, small hosta plant with lavender blooms.
Golden Tiara, small hosta plant with lavender blooms.
 
 
The above picture was taken this May 2017. At this time, only one of the three Golden Tiara Hostas in my garden are producing blooms.
 
If you have a shady place in your garden and can commit to providing a daily dose of hydration, it will be hard to beat the easy personality and low maintenance of a hosta plant.
 
 

Thriving hostas in a rock garden

 

5 tips for growing hostas

1. Water every other day in the spring & daily in the summer months.
 
2. Feed every two weeks (my favorite plant feed HERE).
 
3. Plant in a place where there is full to partial shade.
 
4. Trim all the way down during the fall months (buds return in the spring).
 
5. During more sever winter weather, cover each trimmed away, vacant hosta space with hay.
 
 
 

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Hostas Low Maintenance Landscaping For Beginners

 

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This article was first published on iPersonalShop.com on May 30, 2017.

 

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99 Comments

  1. We bought our house a year ago and the porch is surrounded by huge hostas. I love them. But im not too good are planting around them. Anti green thumb over here.

    1. Just water them on a regular and they will reward you! They often get bigger by the season and make the perfect ground cover. You may not need to plant anything else around them.

  2. I’m so bad with plants. I just bought one from Aldi, and I’m hoping these tips will help me keep it alive.

  3. Hostas are my fave! Your yard looks gorgeous! I’ve never thought of using rocks in place of mulch, I don’t like the look of mulch or the upkeep. Rocks are genius! Thanks for the idea!!

  4. I seem to kill every plant I buy. My husband brought me home a big Hosta and I Accidentally left it outside on my porch and now it’s bleached and dying. So sad. Hoping it magically revives lol.

    1. No worries, Brittany. Your Hosta should return again next year. Just water daily in the summer, starting this year, and it may return before the summer ends (fingers crossed).

  5. Love this! I’m all about low maintenance plants and perennials! I need to look into getting some hostas!

  6. I love hosta as it is so easy to control, however, the solid green hosta does become hard to control.

  7. I’m a new homeowner, and I am so glad I found this blog post! Thank you for all the useful info!

  8. I’ve never heard of Hostas before, they are so pretty! I love your whole rock area it looks so beautiful and your dog is adorable ????

  9. Great tips! I just bought a new home and I am looking forward to making my yard a happy place for me and my dog to relax.

  10. The Dragon Begonia plant is very pretty. I need a low maintenance plant as I tend to for get to water them.

  11. I really enjoy planting and maintaining a flower garden but I think it is time for more perennials with a few annuals thrown in. I love hostas and there are so many different to choose from.

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