Hosta blue planting and care in the open field

Hosta is a popular plant with a dense rhizome. It can often be seen in shady courtyards and parks. This perennial with large foliage can become the highlight of a flower bed, decorate a summer cottage or garden. The blue hosta has an unusual blue-gray foliage. Even florists use it to create unusual bouquets. The host is loved by landscape designers and is often used to decorate flower beds.

Characteristics and description of the plant

The blue hosta is a ground cover plant and can protect itself and neighboring cultivated plants from weeds. In its natural environment, it grows in the Far East, Korea and China. It is considered sacred to the Japanese and has been cultivated in gardens for thousands of years. Previously, the tradition did not allow residents of eastern countries to import the host abroad, therefore in Europe they learned about this perennial only in the XVIII century.

The blue host looks very unusual. Its leaf is heart-shaped and large enough. An interesting blue-green color to the leaf plate is given by a wax coating. It becomes less visible when exposed to sunlight. The plant blooms in September. In the photo of the host, a plant with bright foliage, in a blooming state, seems to be a real queen of the garden. Inflorescence - bells collected in a brush of lilac, white or lilac color. Bloom lasts from June to October. When all the buds wither, the peduncle must be removed.

Using hosts in landscaping

Hosts are versatile plants for shady areas. They get along well with most plants and are undemanding to care for. The plant is not picky about the soil and tolerates the lack of light well. Hosta is combined with ferns, aquilegia, lungwort, astilba and other flowers. The composition of this perennial and coniferous plants, as well as group planting next to fountains, artificial waterfalls or around a pond, has a special charm. Thanks to the many varieties, you can use your creativity and combine different plant forms with each other, coming up with unusual combinations. Different varieties of blue host and low green shrubs look good together. Large bushes are often planted on curbs and paths, combining them with tall plants. Beautifully flowering perennials beautifully set off the unusual color of the leaves of the blue hosta. You can grow the hostu as a container plant by moving it around the garden.

Blue hosta: planting and care in the open field

Planting hosts in the spring begins with the selection of a place. When planted in a sunny area, the leaves lose their bluish tint and become just green. Therefore, you should choose partial shade. Perennial prefers places under the crown of large plants or trees. Where to plant the blue host? It develops poorly on sandy and loamy soils. The ideal soil is slightly acidic and moist, but a thick layer of drainage should be placed in the planting hole. A place for the plant should be chosen protected from drafts. When planting in groups, the distance between the plants should be at least 80 cm. Water them only at the root, otherwise the leaves can be damaged.

Planting pit preparation

Before planting hosts in the spring, the soil must be loosened 30 cm deep, and then mixed with a complex fertilizer to stimulate the growth of the root system. Then the soil is removed, a small hole is dug, twice as wide as the root system of the plant. The root collar should be flush with the soil when planting. The roots are straightened during planting, after which they are covered with soil. The earth is rolled up, mulched with bark, the blue hosta is watered abundantly.

Top dressing hosts

The plant acquires a decorative appearance in the third year of life. The leaves turn blue at two years old. In fertile soil, it will be necessary to feed a perennial no earlier than a year after planting. In autumn, it is enough to cover the soil around the plant with compost. If the plant lacks nutrients or it grows in poor soil, fertilizer is used for feeding in granules, scattering it around the bush.

You can feed the blue hosta until mid-summer, otherwise it will only increase the green mass, and not bloom, and will not have time to stop growing before the frost begins. The soil around the plant is constantly moistened so that the foliage retains its decorative effect and does not begin to darken around the edges. Watering should be done in the early morning, lifting the foliage. Then the ground is mulched - this will allow you to retain moisture inside. To make the perennial look neat and not lose its shape, young peduncles are removed. In late autumn, the leaves are cut: new ones will appear in the spring.

Blue host varieties

In the photo of the host, the plant is blue, often stands out against the background of other perennials. Therefore, landscape designers love to use it for their work. This perennial has many interesting varieties, and several different blue hosts can be planted in the garden at once.

The classic varieties include:

1. Halcyon is a bush with embossed heart-shaped leaves, up to 50 cm high. Flowers are of a lavender shade. Prefers partial shade, but withstands a sunny location.
2. Blue Angel is a large plant, up to 90 cm high, with a 40x30 cm leaf. Prefers partial shade. The leaves are corrugated, very large, with a bluish bloom. The flowers are like hyacinths, lavender in color, and have a pleasant scent.
3. Love Pat is a slow growing bush with dense blue leaves. Height - 60 cm, lavender flowers.
4. Blueberry Ala Mode is a blue hosta with a white border around the edge of the leaf. The name translates as "blueberry ice cream". The bush is medium in size, leaves are rounded, corrugated.
5. Queen Of The Seas - a plant up to 60 cm high, can grow on the sunny side, flowers do not smell. The leaves are wavy, with denticles at the edges, dense and beautiful.
6. Canadian Blue is a Canadian blue hosta, a compact variety. The size of the bush is 30x40 cm.
7. Parisian Silk is a short but wide bush that prefers a shady location. The foliage is round, silvery blue. It blooms for a long time, with pink bells.
8. Smoke Signals - the bush is distinguished by upward-looking pointed leaves. Can grow in direct sunlight.
9. Blue Mammoth is a large plant with very beautiful wide rounded leaves.
10. Neptune is a cultivar with unusual pointed, corrugated foliage. Loved by pests, especially slugs.
11. Blue Dolphin - heart-shaped leaves with deep veins.
12. Pewterware is a bush with dense, gray-green rounded leaves.
13. Big Daddy, or Big Daddy, is a blue hosta variety, according to the description of which it can be seen that it belongs to one of the strongest and most hardy. It can be up to a meter wide and 60 cm high.The leaves are rounded, wrinkled, very dense and matte. Develops slowly, prefers shady areas. In a sunny location, the leaves lose their color a little.

Reproduction of blue hosts by dividing the bush

Reproduction of blue hosts is possible by dividing the bush, cuttings and seeds. The bushes are divided during transplantation in the fifth year of the plant's life. This allows them to maintain their shape. The best time for separation is early spring or early fall. The host dug up and cut the rhizome, leaving one or two sockets on each plot. The cut points are sprinkled with crushed charcoal. Damaged and rotten roots are removed, and the plants are planted in a permanent place. Hosts usually take root within two weeks. Therefore, it is advisable to have time to plant them before the temperature drops.

Cutting hosts

Propagation by cuttings allows you to preserve the plant variety. This method is used in the summer, from June to July. Shoots with leaves are used as cuttings. The sheets should be shortened by one third to reduce the evaporation of moisture from the surface. The cuttings are sheltered from direct sunlight and constantly moisten the soil around.

Seed propagation

Seeds appear after the plant has faded. In place of the buds, a box remains from which the seed can be collected. The disadvantage of this breeding method is the loss of the variety. Hosta seeds do not differ in strong germination; before sowing, they are soaked in growth stimulants and treated with a pink solution of potassium permanganate. The soil is also disinfected to destroy fungal spores and other pathogens of various diseases. You can do this by calcining the soil in the oven or by treating it with the same potassium permanganate solution. Soil for sowing seeds is made up of baking powder and peat. It should be breathable and lightweight. The host is sown superficially into moist soil using disinfected containers. A thick layer of drainage is placed on the bottom. The seeds are lightly sprinkled with a substrate, covered with foil or placed in a greenhouse and placed in a place protected from direct sunlight.

Seedling care

The optimum temperature for seedlings is + 20-25 ° C. The first seedlings appear after 2 weeks. Then the greenhouse is transferred to a well-lit place and periodically ventilated, accustoming the plants to an open space. It is important to monitor the moisture content of the soil and not allow it to dry out. At the stage of the first pair of leaves, the seedlings are picked by placing them in different containers. The pots are placed in a large tray of water and watered through it. The top layer of the soil is covered with sand and the moisture is monitored. When young plants get stronger, they begin to harden, lowering the air temperature to +18 ° C. Hosts develop very slowly and almost always lose varietal qualities when propagated in this way.

Pest hosts

The blue hosta is most commonly damaged by snails and slugs. They eat the succulent leaves and spoil their appearance with their silvery footprints. The main means of dealing with them are traps and bait in the form of granules. Small rodents can spoil the rhizomes. To protect it, it is better to squeeze it in a container with a net or scatter poisonous bait around it. Pests especially often attack the host in winter. If the plant does not have fresh leaves in the spring, this may indicate that insects have damaged the root. To check, it is dug up and examined.

Hosta does not need special shelter for the winter, but some experienced gardeners try to protect themselves by mulching the soil around the plant. If the soil is damp, such places become ideal breeding grounds for field mice. They dig holes around and spoil the root system of the plant. Caterpillars are another danger to blue hosts. They can destroy a bush overnight. Special chemicals are used against these insects - insecticides. A dangerous pest that destroys hosts is a nematode.These worms live in the ground, but can crawl onto plants and feed on leaves. Lesion marks appear as brown streaks on leaf veins. Aphids can also settle on the blue host. Then small spots appear on the leaf plate, similar to pin punctures.

Diseases of hosts

Among the common diseases of these perennials, fungal ones are in the first place. They are fought with fungicides. Plants can become infected with viruses. Signs of damage are yellow spots and dots on the leaf plate. It is useless to fight viruses, the diseased plant is dug up and destroyed, otherwise the virus will spread to neighboring trees and shrubs. An instrument that has come into contact with a diseased plant must be disinfected.

Phylostictosis is a disease caused by a fungal infection. It is often found in perennials weakened by heavy wintering and when the top freezes during recurrent frosts. The lesion marks look like large merging brown spots with a grayish coating.

Blue hosta can also get anthracnose. The infection affects plants weakened by a lack of nutrition and an excess of moisture in the soil. The disease can be cured with systemic fungicides.

Liven up your garden with colorful greenery, and take a host as your assistant. It is unpretentious in planting, care and cultivation. This plant is popular in landscape design, because its leaves have different shapes and colors, depending on the variety.

Description, varieties and varieties

The beauty of this plant is in the leaves, not the flowers. From green to gold and white, from long to rounded and heart-shaped - this is what the hosta is. Planting and caring for it in the open field is very simple - another reason to pay attention to this perennial.

Hosta will be a wonderful garden decoration from early spring to late autumn.

Having decided to start growing hosta, see how it looks in the photo. Choose the species you like from about 3000 varieties. According to the colors of the foliage, they are combined into 5 groups:

• green;
• blue (with a bluish tint);
• yellow;
• variegated (this includes hosts motley and bordered with light color);
• mediovariegata (leaves are light, with green edges).

There is a huge variety of hostas.

For those who grow hostu in the open field, the classification of varieties by size is also familiar:

• dwarf (up to 10 cm);
• miniature (10-15 cm);
• small (16-25 cm);
• medium (30-50 cm), the most numerous group;
• large (55-70 cm);
• giant (from 70 cm).

The main species, which are also used for breeding:

1. Wavy. It looks like a ball of dense wavy green-white leaves.

   Hosta wavy

2. Bloated. Looks especially good in garden landscaping. Light green round leaves are lined with stripes.

   The host is bloated

3. High. It grows up to 90 cm. It has large green leaves.

   Hosta high

4. Curly. Its leaves are wide, with a white edge.

   Khosta curly

5. Plantain. Up to half a meter high, the leaves are bright green, glossy.

   Khosta plantain

Among the host, there are chameleon varieties that change color during the summer season. Some species of this plant are difficult to classify because their leaves are blurred in color. And foreign breeders have bred tricolor hybrids. There are plenty to choose from!

Landing hosts

The optimal time for planting hosts in the open field is early spring or late August or early September. It is not worth postponing to a later time. Choose the material for planting carefully. The roots should be elastic, 10-12 cm long. It is best if the sprout has 2-3 buds.

Advice. If you bought a hosta, but it is too early to plant it, store the sprouts in a cool and dark place at t + 5-10 ° C. A basement, bottom shelf of a refrigerator, or an insulated balcony will do.

Hosta is traditionally considered a shade-loving perennial.But there is a pattern: the lighter the foliage, the more sun the plant needs. Dark green and blue varieties must be planted in the shade. For growing light hosts, partial shade or even a sunny place is suitable. Make sure that the plant is not in direct light, otherwise burns on the leaves cannot be avoided.

The host can be planted in the shade or partial shade

Light, well-drained, moist soil is good for planting and propagating outdoors. The holes should be made wide, about 30 cm deep. The distance between them should be from 30 to 100 cm (depending on the size of the plant).

Fill each hole about 2/3 with compost, peat, form a mound. Place the roots of the seedlings on it, but so that there are no empty spaces. Spread them out, cover them with fertile soil, compact. Finish planting with abundant watering. Mulch the roots with chopped bark or peat. This will help retain moisture. Repeat the watering procedure several more times every 3-4 days.

Advice. The buds of the plant during planting should be at ground level. If necessary, add additional soil under the root.

Plant care

Although not a demanding host, planting and caring for her requires adherence to the rules.

1. Weed and periodically loosen the soil.
2. Remove old leaves and young flower arrows. This will make the bush look neater. The exception is well-flowering varieties.

   If you remove the flower arrows, the hosta bush will be more luxuriant.

3. The hosta loves moisture, so it needs regular watering, about 2 times a week.
4. This perennial is frost-resistant. But if the winter is too cold, take extra care by covering the plant with, for example, agrofibre.
5. In one place the host can grow up to 20 years. However, after 3-4 years, young daughter roots should be separated from the bush so that it does not grow too much.

Fertilizing and feeding hosts

How the plants look in your garden depends on the care, including the intensity of fertilization. The hosta looks more decorative, which is fed 3 times per season:

• during the growth period;
• during flowering;
• after him.

The host needs feeding several times a season.

For these purposes, fertilizers with nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus are most often used. Compost and humus are also useful for hosts. It is better to bring them in in the fall. Organic fertilizers are preferable to mineral fertilizers. The "golden rule" of leaving is not to overdo it. Too frequent or abundant feeding can provoke a burn.

Plant propagation

There are 3 ways to propagate hosts:

• division;
• cuttings;
• growing from seeds.

The bushes are usually divided in May or late summer. The smaller the split off part is, the longer it will take for it to grow. Another method of propagation, cuttings, involves the separation of a sprout with a part of the rhizome from an adult bush. Cuttings are planted in open ground immediately, watered and shaded.

Dividing the hosta bush

Growing hosts from seeds is a laborious and time-consuming process. The germination rate of the material is 70-80%, therefore, before sowing, it must be treated with growth stimulants. Another way is to keep the seeds in the cold for 30 days. It is also important to ensure that the soil and planting containers are sterile. Before sowing the hosts, the pots must be disinfected with potassium permanganate or alcohol.

Seed propagation should start in April or May. Pour drainage into containers, then soil mixture, water it. Spread the seeds, sprinkle them with soil on top (layer thickness - 5-7 mm). Slightly press it, cover the container with glass or film and place in a shady place. Hosta germination temperature is + 18-25º C. In such conditions, seedlings appear in 2-3 weeks.

Hosta seeds

At this time, caring for young seedlings consists in moderate watering and removing condensation. Keep the sprouts in a lighted place, away from direct sunlight.When the first pair of leaves appears, dive the seedlings. The soil in new containers should be ¼ covered with sand. For watering, place the pots in a deep bowl and wait until the top layer is damp. Temper the sprouts: temporarily remove the glass or film, and after about a week, remove them altogether.

If the air temperature is already above + 18º C, leave the seedling containers in the fresh air for a short time. Experienced gardeners warn: despite proper care, the hosta develops very slowly. In addition, she often loses the characteristics of the variety.

Diseases and pests hosts

Khosta rarely gets sick, but one of the most typical ailments for her is phyllostictosis. Yellow-brown spots appear on the leaves. Affected plants need to be burned and the soil disinfected. If you notice gray rot or sclerotinia on the leaves, apply fungicides.

Phylostictosis hosts

Pests that make large holes in the beautiful foliage of hosts are slugs. To scare them away, cover the soil with something sharp: rubble or broken shells. Beer baits also help. Place containers with this drink around the bushes, and every other day, select slugs from them. Use insecticides to control insects (caterpillars, grasshoppers).

Hosta: Combination with other plants

Hosta leaves create harmonious combinations with brunner, heuchera and ferns. These plants look advantageous against the background of conifers. Also try compositions with primrose, geraniums, hornbeam. Make a beautiful landscape with lungwort, anemone, foxglove, astilba.

Hosta on a flower bed

There is an opinion that it is not necessary to combine the cultivation of roses and hosts. This is explained by the fact that they have different lighting requirements. However, in landscape design, this combination is quite common. In these cases, gardeners recommend planting the host on the north side of the bush.

Hosta in landscape design

There are many options for using this perennial in landscape design. First of all, the hosta is a ground cover plant for shady places. She creates coziness in gardens, stylized as nature. If you still decide to combine the cultivation of roses and hosts, decorate with them, for example, the shore of a reservoir.

Hosta in landscape design

Use this plant to decorate garden paths, lawns framing. When growing hosta in pots, decorate your patio or gazebo with it. It is also good for vertical flower beds. Phlox or daylilies will be a good addition in this case.

Whichever way you choose to decorate your garden is unlikely to be disappointed by the host. Rather, on the contrary: seriously and for a long time will conquer with its charm and unpretentiousness.

Growing hosts: video

Hosta varieties: photo

Hosta (aka function) is a popular perennial, which even a beginner can grow. But for this you need to know some rules for caring for this plant.

The main advantage of the hosta is its large, elegant leaves, which amaze with a variety of colors and textures. And no less attractive are racemose inflorescences of small funnel-shaped flowers. However, these plants only look spectacular when grown under certain conditions.

In some host varieties, the flowers are not very attractive, so the emerging peduncles are immediately cut off so that they do not overshadow the beauty of the leaves.

Hosts love moisture and shade, but at the same time they can easily tolerate drought. In the wild, they grow mainly along the banks of rivers and streams, on mountain slopes and forest edges. This must be taken into account when landing a host at a summer cottage.

In Japan, the hosta is considered a sacred plant. The stalks of its leaves are used as food as a delicacy.

Choosing a landing site

Hosts are also grown in containers, but still they are more often planted in the garden in open ground. After all, these plants are not afraid of frost and do not require special care.

Hosta can grow without transplanting for about 20 years, so the choice of a place for this plant must be taken responsibly.Hosta feels best in a semi-shady and wind-protected area (especially from drafts) - the north side of the house or the lowland near the pond will do. But keep in mind: the more variegated and brighter the color of the leaves of the plant, the more sun it needs. Otherwise, the foliage will be dull.

So, variegated hosts grow best in a place where there is shade at noon, and the sun shines in the morning and evening. And hosts of blue varieties are planted only in the shade: 2 hours of light a day is enough for them.

Blue Jay host prefers shady areas

The thicker the shadow, the slower the hosta grows, but at the same time its leaves are larger, and the bush itself is higher.

Soil for hosts

The hosta likes moist, humus-rich, neutral or slightly acidic soil with good drainage. But sand and heavy loam are not to her liking.

The most suitable time for planting hosts is spring, when the threat of frost has passed (usually at the end of April - first half of May). In this case, the soil is prepared in the fall: any organic fertilizer is scattered on the site (with a layer of about 10 cm) and the soil is dug to the depth of the shovel bayonet.

You can also plant hostu from late August to mid September. With a later planting, the plant may not have time to take root before the onset of frost. At this time, the soil is not prepared in advance, but only watered abundantly several hours before planting.

Landing hosts in open ground

Hosts (seedlings or delenki) are planted in holes 2-3 cm deeper than they grew before, the roots are straightened, sprinkled with soil and watered abundantly. After that, the planting site is mulched with bark or sawdust.

Before planting, do not forget to inspect the rhizome of the plant and remove all damaged, dry and rotten areas.

If hosts are planted in groups, the plants are placed at a distance of 30-80 cm (depending on the variety). And between the most spreading bushes they maintain a distance of about 100 cm.

Taking care of the host in the country

It is very important to water the hosts on time, as the soil around them should be slightly damp all the time. Please note: plants are watered with a small stream and exclusively at the root, since when water gets on the leaves, they deteriorate and become attractive to pests such as snails and slugs.

It is best to water the hosts in the morning before 11 o'clock. In exceptional cases - during the day, but only in cloudy weather. Otherwise, if water drops on the leaves, the bright sun can cause them to burn.

When watering, the soil should be saturated to a depth of 15-20 cm

Until the hosta grows, weeds are regularly removed around it and the soil is loosened. And when the bush becomes quite spreading (after 3-4 years), this will no longer be necessary. However, adult plants begin to lose their attractiveness over time, so their bushes are divided and planted.

If you planted the plant in fertile soil, then in the first 3-4 years you do not need to worry about feeding. And from the 5th year in late spring and autumn, organic fertilizer is used in the form of mulch. To do this, use compost, decomposed manure, mowed lawn grass, straw or peat.

If adult plants begin to bloom worse or turn pale, granules of a complex mineral fertilizer are scattered under the host bushes into the loosened soil, in which nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus are contained in equal amounts. Then the plants are watered abundantly at the root. Such dressings are carried out 2-4 times per season, while the last dressing should fall on the first half of August.

Currently on sale there are special liquid water-soluble fertilizers with macro- and microelements for decorative foliage plants. They are great for the host, as they not only help plants grow properly, but also improve the expressive texture and contrast of variegated leaves.

So that the hosts do not lose their beauty, they are fed during abundant watering or after rain.

After the end of flowering, the peduncles are promptly removed so that the bush does not become loose.In September, the host begins to prepare for wintering. At this time, the bushes can be planted. It is imperative to do this before mid-September so that the delenki have time to grow roots before the onset of autumn frosts.

For the winter, the entire ground part of the host is cut off (almost at ground level) as soon as its leaves turn yellow. This helps to remove the pests hidden in them. Additional shelter to protect against frost is not required, but plants can be mulched with leafy soil to preserve nutrients in the soil.

As you can see, taking care of the hosts is pretty straightforward. Moreover, they easily multiply not only by dividing the bushes, but also by seeds. Read about the last simple method here.

The host is called the "queen" of shady areas and seating areas in the garden. This is a real emerald in the front garden, in any flower bed. Planting hosts and leaving in the open field will not cause much trouble for gardeners or summer residents. The flower can be propagated by division, cuttings and seeds.

When to plant a host in open ground?

Planting begins in August and ends in September. These dates may shift depending on the weather and location of the region. It is necessary to calculate the planting time so that the hosts take root before frost. With the early onset of cold weather, young plants must be covered.

Most of all, the root zone needs winter shelter, on which brushwood or other suitable material is laid.

The host is divided and planted in the spring, before the leaves bloom. A plant with a root ball, purchased in a store or donated by friends, takes root better. Hosta can be stored briefly in the basement or vegetable section of the refrigerator until planting. They are planted in open ground when the threat of late frosts has passed.

Planting in open ground with seeds

Sowing hosta seeds is an opportunity to get a lot of seedlings and seedlings for landscaping a large area. The laborious procedure requires certain knowledge and skills. Unfortunately, seed-grown hosts do not always inherit the characteristics of the parent plant. This is especially true for variegated varieties.

Sowing procedure description:

1. Seed propagation is carried out in early spring.
2. Use a container, pot, or plastic box for germination.
3. Drainage is poured at the bottom, the container is filled with a light fertile substrate.
4. Water, spread the seeds, sprinkle on top with a layer of soil 0.5 cm thick.
5. Cover with glass or foil, germinate in the shade, at a temperature of 20-23 ° C.
6. The soil is often sprayed with water from a spray bottle.

Germination time varies from 7 days to 3 weeks. Usually shoots appear in 2 weeks. Seedlings are dived into other containers, quenched in the fresh air, but protected from direct sunlight. Seedlings develop slowly at first, acquire the characteristics of the variety only after 3-4 years.

Propagation by cuttings and dividing the bush

The most common methods for obtaining new plants are used when there is at least one bush at the age of 3-5 years. Propagation by cuttings and division is not recommended 1-2 years after planting. During this period, they give the opportunity to strengthen the underground and aboveground organs.

Dividing the bush and grafting allows you to get hosts of the same variety as the mother plant.

The best time for vegetative reproduction is in the spring, when shoots appear. The mother plant is carefully dug up, large lumps of soil are shaken off the rhizome, old and decayed parts are cut off. Cut the hosta with a shovel or sharp knife. Parts of a split bush must have buds and pieces of root.

Tips and Warnings:

• Only healthy plants are divided for planting.
• In the first few weeks, water is often watered, but without stagnant water.
• Hosts grow slowly after transplantation, especially variegated varieties.
• Young leaves in most cases have a solid green color.
• The characteristics of the variety are fully manifested after 2 years.

Cutting - the separation of a part with buds and a piece of rhizome - can be carried out from spring to autumn. Sometimes the procedure is unsuccessful, almost no roots remain, but there are buds, or there is no rosette, but there is a rhizome. Even such defective planting material is not thrown away. The cuttings are planted in the shade, covered with a cut plastic bottle. The missing organs gradually grow back, and full-fledged leaves are formed.

Proper care of a shade-loving plant

The hosta flower, in its homeland in Asia, is found in meadows, along the banks of rivers and lakes, on the shady edges of humid forests. It is recommended to create conditions for plants in the garden and in the flower bed that resemble their natural habitat.

Requirements for soil and location

You need a well-drained soil rich in moisture and nutrients. There are no special requirements for pH, moderately acidic and alkaline substrates are suitable. Variegated forms require shading at midday. Colored stripes and spots disappear in direct sunlight. Varieties with blue foliage also change color. Only monochromatic green forms retain their characteristics in the sun, but subject to good soil moisture.

Watering and fertilizing

The plant does not need frequent watering with sufficient rainfall and placement in a shady place. In the dry season it is necessary to water 2 times a week. The soil under the hosts should not dry out even in winter. In summer, you can pamper the leaves with an evening shower. Top dressing is also best done in the evening.

A young plant needs more care and nutrients, so fertilize it 2-3 times. In the spring, top dressing is carried out at the very beginning of the growing season. The next time they fertilize the soil during flowering. The third feeding is needed for plants after flowering. It is advisable to alternate the introduction of compost and complex fertilizers. Be sure to mulch the soil immediately after watering and feeding, but only without damaging the lower leaves of the plant.

Loosening, pruning, replanting

Hosta rhizome is located in the upper loose soil layer. Loosening is performed carefully so as not to damage the roots. Sometimes it is replaced by mulching after watering, then the soil retains moisture for a long time.

Peduncles are usually removed, but in beautifully flowering varieties, they are left and cut before the seeds ripen (if there are no hostas in the seed reproduction plans). Dry and damaged leaves are pruned throughout the season. Experienced growers recommend leaving the foliage in the fall to protect the roots from frost.

The best material for transplanting is plants with 2-3 buds and well-developed roots 10 cm long. The planting pit is made wide, because underground organs grow in a horizontal direction. The depth should be at least 30 cm. A mixture of compost, garden soil, peat and sand is poured onto the bottom. Can be sprinkled with a handful of wood ash to normalize pH and disinfect.

The planting hole is filled with a substrate at 70% of the height, and abundantly moistened. The host is positioned so that the roots are on the surface of the moist soil, the growth buds are at ground level. Sprinkle with soil, compact and watered again. In conclusion, a layer of mulch up to 2 cm high is poured. Peat or sawdust is used as a mulching material.

Care at different times of the year

During the summer, the hosta is regularly watered, dry parts are cut off, weeds are weeded. In the fall, after the first frost, the leaves begin to wither. You do not need to cut or pluck them. The foliage protects the soil above the roots from freezing. Additionally, you can cover the plant with agrofibre. In the spring, the remaining leaves must be removed (plucked).

Growing hosts in the garden - diseases and pests

The plant is little susceptible to disease, but it becomes infected from horticultural crops with phyllostictosis (brown spot). A heavily affected hosta must be destroyed, the soil must be disinfected with a fungicide.Against pathogens of fungal and bacterial diseases, they are sprayed with biopesticides.

Slugs gnaw holes in the leaves, they become less decorative. Regular inspection of plants and removal of pests is recommended. If you can't fight, then you can find planting material of resistant varieties in nurseries or flower shops. Slugs prefer soft tissues and are less likely to attack hosts with leathery foliage. Another option for fighting is to cover the soil around the hosta with fine gravel or crushed shell rock. With good care, the plant remains healthy and attractive for 10 years.

Hosta in landscape design

A shade-tolerant plant with beautiful leaves helps out in those cases when it is necessary to decorate the resting corners in the garden, the entrance to the gazebo. Blooming annuals and perennials look great against the background of lush greenery: bells, primroses, phlox. Varieties with bicolor and tricolor leaves are especially appreciated in landscape design. It is advisable to place such plants singly on the lawns, in small groups along the paths.

It is better to start growing hosts with varieties that have green foliage. They are less demanding in terms of conditions and care, they are easier to tolerate bright lighting and transplantation.

The host is great for mobile landscaping of the entrance to the house, terraces, gazebos. Plants in pots and containers are watered more often because the soil heats up and dries out faster. In the fall, remove old leaves and cover the container. At the beginning of spring, the protective layer is removed, the container is installed against the wall of the house.

Any use of hosts in landscape design should be considered in terms of the conditions that will be created for the plant. With proper care, the "queen" of the shade will not disappoint her fans, she will attract attention with a magnificent view of leaves and bell-shaped flowers.