Hosta Plant Care

Hosta Care - Hosta is an exceptionally good perennial for shade. Hostas are popularly known for their herbaceous perennial and are hence immensely preferred for their attractive foliage. Some of them even have beautiful flowers, sometimes fragrant too. The height of the hostas usually varies from 2 inches to 4 feet.

Planting Hostas and Caring for them are extremely important to get the best performance from them.

Here are a few tips that can be followed for planting and caring of hostas.

Hostas are best grown in well-drained soil that is slightly acidic in nature. However they need to be watered regularly in order to get a wonderful appearance.

Hostas grow ideally well in shade and can partially tolerate the sun. The site for hosta plantation should be chosen in such a way that it is protected from wind because wind can cause the browning and desiccation of the leaves. The plants might although recover themselves from the damage caused by wind, but the leaves that will develop after this wind damage will no longer be so attractive as it was in its initial stage. Along with wind protection, the hosta plantation site should have ample provision for air circulation.

During late summer or spring the hostas should be divided and transplanted. It may always not be necessary to divide the hostas but it is advisable to do so as this increases the number of plants. Hostas can be divided primarily in two ways. While dividing, Hostas can either be cut in such a way that a section from the clump, including the roots is sliced away, or the entire Hosta can be lifted from its roots and then divide the clump into several plants separately.

While planting, the plant and its roots should be kept moist. A hole as per the size of the root ball and almost one and a half times wider, should be dug in which the hosta should be placed. The crown should be at the soil level and should not be buried in the hole. After the summer transplantation has taken place it needs at least one season in order to resume its above the ground growth.

Applying excess amount of nitrogen fertilizer can cause damage to the plant by softening the foliage which can readily wilt and is exposed to foliar diseases. The intensity of the variegated pattern can also be diminished due to excess nitrogen application. Therefore the amount of nitrogen should at the most be one eighth pound of real nitrogen required for a 125 sq. ft. bed.

In order to reduce the growth of weed, slow down the water loss and inhibit soil compaction, loose mulch can be applied during early summer. The depth of the mulch should be 1 inch, otherwise if the layer is thicker it can promote the growth of slugs. Watering ehough in the mornings so that the mulch surface dries up before evening can help in gathering the mulch, hence improving the air movement. To protect the newly planted plants, winter mulch is also very helpful and just before the new growth of spring the winter mulch should be removed along with the debris.

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