What are the best conditions for hostas to grow well?

Question

Lots of sun? some sun? no sun?

Answer 1

Alot of the answers here touch on it... Hosta in its native environment is an understory plant. That is it grows beneath larger plants (shrubs and trees). It also tends to grow long creeks or rivers. Subsequently it is a plant that prefers part-sun to shade, and moist soil conditions. As has also been touched on, hostas adapt to a variety of garden conditions... depending on the variety even very adverse locations. The main factor though is water. If you keep the soil moist enough, most varieties will adapt to pretty strong sunlight. The down side to keeping the soil very moist, is the increase of slugs and snails which view hostas as 'McDonald's'.

The ideal spot is morning sun and moist soil.

If you've got a more difficult spot, do check with your local independent nursery and see what varieties they have, that might adapt to the location. Hostas are America's number one perennial. In recent years many many varieties have come to the market giving us a tremendous selection (not always inexpensive though).

I hope that this helps
Good luck-

Answer 2

There are so many different varieties of Hostas now, some very sun tolerant. If you don't know what variety you have, you could take a leaf to a good garden center/nursery and ask, or search on line.

Most older varieties of Hosta prefer mostly shade. Almost all will bloom at some point, usually in the id to late summer.

Answer 3

You should plant the hosta in an area that is shady and protected from the afternoon sun. Mix the soil with some compost and make sure that the soil mixture is loose. You can also add some slow release fertilizer. After planting, hostas prefer moist soil.

Answer 4

Hostas have an underground tuber. they're amazingly resilient and you may plant them whenever you like as long through fact the floor isn't frozen, even nevertheless the midsection of a drought is probably no longer an spectacular time. I had to bypass some Hostas in an exceptionally heat August. They did basically high quality. they'd have performed extra useful if it replace into cooler and damper, yet i replace into taking them from Cape Cod sand to the coolest of a glacial esker (sand with little cobble stones) so the soil in neither place replace into extremely sturdy and the timing replace into notably undesirable, yet they did ok besides. you may have not have been given any problems in NH. counting on how close mutually you plant them, they could fill in in a 12 months or 2.

Answer 5

generally hostas don't like bright sun but it has been my experience that they will adapt to full sun environments....I planted my hosta in full sun, they looked terrible for a few months but they are beautiful now and even have sprouted little flowers

Answer 6

They like to be on the shady side. Lighter color hostas can tolerate more sunlight, but they don't like to be in the very sunny spot also. Plant them in the moist soil.

Answer 7

No sun, I have some and planted them under a tree and have almost killed them because they still get too much sun light the tree is too tall to give adequate shade!

Answer 8

I've got mine in the front of my house. It gets a little morning sun but that's about it. It does very well there.

Answer 9

As little sun as possible. Definite shade plants. They hate bright sun. Otherwise, they're virtually unkillable. I have a friend who dug hers out and they kept coming back. She poured gasoline on them, set them on fire, and they came back. Amazing plants.

Answer 10

I agree, they like the shade, and damp soil