Planting DesignDiscover the right plants for your garden.
Shadowland ® ' Miss America ' hosta . Photo by : Proven Winners .
Hostas are popular foliage plants be intimate for their leeway of shady arena , but they do require some sunlight . Sometimes call funkia or plantain lily , hostasare attractive , easy - care , long - lived perennial providing garden interest from spring to fall . They offer a range of sizes , folio Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe and coloured foliage , as well as spikes of majestic or white bell - same genus Funka flowers that are sometimes fragrant .
2025 Hosta of the Year:
Shadowland ® ' Miss America ' .
On this Thomas Nelson Page : Basics|Care|Planting|Varieties|Seasonal Calendar|Design Ideas|Common Problems
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HOSTA BASICS
Zones:
3 - 9
Height/Spread:
Mature plant size of it variegate from 6 to 8 in tall and 18 to 24 inches encompassing , to 48 inches tall and 6 feet wide-eyed , with many sizes in between .
Exposure:
mottled or fond shade ; all hostas need some sunlight . Blue , green , and vary hostas will do well in somewhat bass shade , while white-livered and aureate ones need more light to bring out their colors . Those with more substantial foliage can tolerate full sun in cooler zones , if given enough regular urine .
Foliage:
Varies ; legato , venose , waxy , cupped , heavily pucker , ruffled , or curled and twisted . opt from a wide variety of hosta leafage colour , patterns and shapes :
CARING FOR HOSTAS
Watering:
Keep systematically damp . contribute mulch to avail reduce fluctuations & debar dry conditions . Water deep to encourage the roots to grow further down into the soil . Those exposed to more sunshine will require more water .
Division:
Deer:
Deer devour genus Funka ; regular use of different repellant can facilitate , or install deer fencing.(Learn to keep deer by . )
Slugs and snails:
The best bar is to remove weed and decaying leaves from around hostas . Consider potpourri such as’Hudson Bay’or’Wheee ! ' , from the Shadowland ® series , that have thicker leaves , giving them substantially slug resistance .
Containers:
When get genus Funka plants in skunk , drainage is crucial . Make certain the container has drainage hole and that the potting mixing you use promotes drain . Water container - mature plant more oft and land them into the garage or another protected place for the winter . larn more onhow to get free of slug and escargot .
PLANTING HOSTAS
When to plant:
works in saltation when raw shoots appear . This is also a good time to separate and transplant established clumps . However , early fall is also an option , peculiarly if you need your plant to look more build come saltation .
Where to plant:
mostly , hostas prefer to be out of lineal sunlight . Most will bear morning sunshine , but demand shade during the hottest part of the mean solar day . They are often plant beneath trees , but do n’t care competition from shallow - root trees .
How to plant:
moil a wide planting hole , as hosta rootage can maturate to one foot cryptic and two feet wide . disentangle the plant ’s root and stay them atop a mound of grunge created in the center of the hole . Backfill and water soundly . spare etymon plants should be soaked for several hours before planting to rehydrate the root .
Soil:
Hostas grow best in good loamy grime that is enriched with organic topic , such as compost .
HOSTA VARIETIES
Photo by : Proven Winners .
SHADOWLAND® ; ' MISS AMERICA'—Buy now from Proven Winners
Height/spread:
19 inches tall , 55 inches widely
Flowers:
This striking large hosta has striking variegation with medium greenish , heart - shaped leaves with bold white centers and soft green streaks . close - white flower with lavender markings rise on improbable stems , making this a standout in any shade garden .
2025 National Hosta of the Year
SHADOWLAND® ; ' HUDSON BAY'—Buy now from Proven victor
24 column inch tall and panoptic
This eye - catching hosta boast expectant tricolour leaves with a bold , broad spicy sharpness , vibrant apple green streaks , and a creamy white center that earn it stick out out all season .
2024 National Hosta of the Year
SHADOWLAND® ; ' baseball field LAKE'—Buy now from Proven Winners
17 column inch tall , 45 inch full
Large hosta with thickset , corrugated , dismal , heart - work leave with wavy margins .
2022 National Hosta of the class
SHADOWLAND® ; ' WHEEE!'—Buy now from Proven Winners
11 - 18 inch marvellous , 28 - 30 inch all-embracing
Ruffled green leaf with ointment gross profit margin are compact than other hostas , take it more insubordinate to slug harm .
2021 National Hosta of the yr
SHADOWLAND® ; ' COAST TO COAST'—Buy now from Proven Winners
Up to 30 inch tall , 36 inches wide
Pale violet flowers flower recent summer
fatheaded , wavy foliage pops in a interracial bed or container . Chartreuse - sensationalistic leaves transition to lighter gold in summer .
2020 National Hosta of the Year
SHADOWLAND® ; ' AUTUMN FROST'—Buy now from Proven success
12 inch tall , 24 inch spacious
Striking nipping blue leaves with broad , shiny white-livered margin that fleet to creamy white .
SHADOWLAND® ; ' EMPRESS WU'—Buy now from Proven Winners
3 - 4 foot tall , 5 - 6 ft wide-eyed
The largest known hosta available !
2023 National Hosta of the yr
Photo by : J. Paul Moore .
‘ MINUTEMAN ’
24 inches tall , 36 inch spacious
Often confused with ‘ Patriot ’ . Both have irregular , wide white margins on deep dark-green leaves .
‘ SUM AND SUBSTANCE ’
A sun - tolerant , giant hosta . leafage colour depends on sun exposure — prosperous with more light-headed , chartreuse with less .
exposure by : Manfred Ruckszio / Shutterstock .
‘ GUACAMOLE ’
18 in tall , 48 inches wide
Chartreuse - gold leaves , dark security deposit and classifiable veining . The golden folio color becomes brighter if grown in more clear .
Photo by : Peter Turner Photography / Shutterstock .
‘ JUNE ’
12 inches improbable , 30 in wide of the mark
Heart - shaped , gray - grim leaves with yellow and yellow - green diversification are fatheaded and less likely to find slug damage .
' HALCYON '
The bright gray-haired - blue leaves of this variety are known for retain their color well .
pic by : Blidagentur Zoonar GmbH / Shutterstock .
‘ BLUE MOUSE pinna ’
12 in tall , 12 in wide
A miniature hosta with thick , curl leaves that look like computer mouse ear . This small Funka is a unspoiled choice for containers or rock garden .
SEASONAL CALENDAR
Spring:
Hosta shoots emerge in early natural spring , with the leaf unfurling a few weeks after and reaching their matured sizing by recent spring ( the cognitive process takes 6 - 8 weeks in totality ) .
Summer:
Most hostas bloom in mid- to late summertime , for about 3 weeks . After flowering , new buds begin forming at the base for next spring .
Fall:
Hosta greenery begins to die back in response to freeze , first turning gold , then dry out out and droop .
Winter:
plant enter a winter dormancy , leave driblet and plant seem lifeless . During this meter , the roots are hive away zip for leaping .
HOSTA GARDEN DESIGN IDEAS
The wide orbit of sizes among hosta plants inspires a variety of uses , from a prominent focal point to edging or ground natural covering . Hostas contribute the all - authoritative element of texture to a garden , and a solicitation with change foliage color and SHAPE is visually interesting even without flowers .
Ideas for using hosta plants in your garden :
What to implant with hostas : Many plant grow well with genus Funka , such as : spring lightbulb , fern , wildflower , astilbe , golden hakone grass , lungwort , bugloss , run heart , euphorbia , andhellebores .
COMMON HOSTA PROBLEMS
Hosta Virus Xcauses mottle foliage food coloring , browned spots , or leaves that look lumpy twisted . It is spread from one works to another by contaminated tools or hand , so always clean and sterilize tools . Infected plants should be toss out of , not compost . Learn more fromMissouri Botanical Garden .
Hosta scorchcauses leaves to turn yellow and crispy at the edge . Plants grow in full Sunday and poor filth are more susceptible . Protect hostas from acute sunlight , particularly during the warmth of midday and water early on in the mean solar day . Remove scorched leave and count transplanting to a shadier fix in your garden .
Frost damagecan impress hosta plants during early spring . Plants will seem wilted and crease . If frost is in the prognosis , spread over your hostas and water well . Remove any frost - damaged foliage as it is susceptible to diseases . Plants will often produce a second flush of parting after frost harm .
Foliar nematodesare tiny nematode that invade the tissue of hosta leaves , creating yellow and browned discolouration between leaf veins . Foliar nematodes spread primarily via water , but can also be transferred between plants by unsterilized garden tool . To prevent their spread , ward off overhead lachrymation and sanitise your tools . Infected industrial plant should be destroyed ; do not compost .
Last update : August 20 , 2021
