Hosta Plants Can Florish For 25 Years Or More

You’ll see hosta plants flowering in many home gardens during the months of July and August.
These easy-to-care-for perennials, also called plantainlily and, formerly funkia, are related to daylilies. Most grow best in light shade, such as ground covers around trees and shrubs. They make interesting borders and beds in areas that get little sun. A few will tolerate full sunshine.
When established, hosta plants can flourish in a garden for 25 years or more, with little care. They are bothered by few insects or diseases.
There are many hybrids of these plants, with leaves in an assortment of colors from blue green to true green and in-between shades, with variegated foliage. Some leaves are bordered in white or cream. Leaves can be 15 inches long and up to 10 inches wide or only up to 5 inches in length.
Flower scapes grow a foot or more above the foliage, depending upon the variety. Blossoms resemble miniature lilies. They can be white or many shades of lavender.
You can set out plants in the spring or fall. Some gardeners favor spring plantings so that the roots will be well established by fall. Springtime is also an ideal season to thin overcrowded plants. It can take two years for new plants to start flowering.
Spade up the soil for new beds 8-10 inches deep. Work in compost, peat moss or well rotted manure, plus some bone meal. Just before the plants start flowering, mulch them with well rotted manure or compost to give them an extra boost and to conserve soil moisture and smother weeds. Be sure they get water as needed.
Flower stalks can be cut to make graceful indoor arrangements in a tall vase.
Remove the foliage after it has been hit by frost, in the fall. When the ground is frozen, protect new plantings with a winter mulch. This can be pine needles, composted oak leaves or other organic matter that won’t pack down under rains or melting snow.
In the spring, when new growth shows, remove the winter mulch and fertilize the plants with well rotted manure or other organic plant food.
Night working slugs, snails and earwigs are some of the few pests that are attracted to these plants. They eat holes in the foliage. Check the leaves occasionally for signs of them.
To find out which of these pests are doing the damage, use a flashlight to check the foliage at night.
An organic method for trapping slugs and snails is to set a saucer of stale beer at ground level near the plants. They will be tempted by the fermenting beer only to drown in the liquid.
Trap earwigs by crumpling newspaper into a can or a flower pot and laying it on its side near the plants so they can hide in it by day. Shake them out into a container of water mixed with a little household detergent.