Hey everyone, Hostas are the popular plant here in the pacific northwest. I'm writing to ask anyone who knows if hostas can handle full sun? My friend loves hostas and wants to plant them however the site where he'd like to plant is full sun I believe 8 hours of sun. Correct me if I'm wrong is there any Hostas that like full sun? I know they are part shade part sun, can they be planted in full sun? and if they can what does one need to do besides the usual watering and mulching?
I grow over 300 hostas and the amount of sun they get, varies. Some of the hostas that get a lot of sun here are Sun Power, Sum and Substance, Gold Standard (although it does burn eventually), plantaginea, Guacamole, Krossa Regal, Golden Tiara, Francee, Neat Splash and Stiletto. We have very little shade so I use shrubs and taller growing perennials to give some of my hostas a little shade on the west and south sides. The best your friend can do is stay away from the blue hostas and hosta leaves that have thin substance. Hostas with a lot of white will likely burn too. The golds hostas and those with thicker leaves seem to last longer before being burned by the sun. Lots of water and an annual top dressing of composted manure or plain compost should be all that's needed. A layer of mulch around the plants would be beneficial as well. Keep the compost and mulch away from the crown of the hostas or they may develop crown rot. Hostas don't like to be planted too deeply. Sue
Question for Sue... Pretty impressive that you have over 300 !! Wow. Could you tell me if you have any fragrant hostas? and are they REALLY fragrant? If so, what would you recommend that would have large leaves and smell quite pretty. I am located in the North Vancouver area. 2nd question...What else do you plant with your hostas - those that are in mostly full shade? 3rd - Any ideas of plants that are not just green in colour? I look forward with interest to your reply. joZ
Since thread is three years old maybe try e-mailing her directly. Otherwise try a well-stocked independent garden center with a full line of hostas. Some do have fragrant flowers, others are quite sun tolerant here if kept moist. Good companion perennials are shade tolerant and have contrasting leaf shapes, variegated Japanese forest grass is nice with blue hostas for instance. Many other possible combinations. Try putting likely candidates still in pots together at garden center to see what looks good.
joZ, I'm in sunny Richmond and have 3 different fragrant Hostas: Guacamole, So Sweet and plantaginea Venus. The first two are quite fragrant and their scent reminds you of Gardenias, the latter is just now budding up and is supposed to be more fragrant than the others with larger, triple blooms. One of my Guacamoles is in almost full sun -8AM to 6Pm @ summer solstice- and does very well there. Most of the fragrant Hostas do best with at least some direct sun. Most people think of Hostas as shade lovers, reality is they are shade tolerant. They really do like some sun, but not in the hottest part of the day. And they like water. For something large in Hostas look at 'Sum and Substance' -which does great in full sun here in the lower Mainland- 'Krossa Regal', 'Elegans' just to name a few. The largest fragrant Hosta would be the only fragrant species: plantaginea but for it to flower it needs sun and it flowers best apparently when it's hot. All fragrant cultivars, like the other two I listed above, are hybrids of plantaginea and something else and because of their lineage they do like to see some sun.
Thank you for your detailed reply. Have you, or anyone you know, ever smelled a Hosta plantaginea Aphrodite ?
No I haven't. But, as you can see from the attached picture, my Venus is not far off from flowering and I'm waiting with baited breath. I would fully expect that Aphrodite and Venus will have the same intensity of fragrance and based on everything I've read on them they have the potential to scent the whole area. I certainly hope I'll be able to smell them from within a yard or two once more than one bloom opens up. Guacamole and So Sweet both require you to pretty much come within a foot or so before you can smell them, Venus supposedly is quite a bit stronger. I'm keeping my fingers crossed to see the buds develop into flowers, it's getting a little late in the season and a goodly number of my Hostas are senescing already. I'm given to understand though that plantaginea is an early riser and a late sleeper, so there's reason to be optimistic. Venus is a new addition for me this year and I'm thrilled it is actually putting up these scapes, I was quite prepared to just have it settle down and establish itself this year and do the flowering stuff next year. I got mine @ Phoenix Perennials on #6 Rd here in Richmond in early May. It had been on my 'most wanted' list for a while and I didn't hesitate to pick out the choicest one when I saw a few 1 gallon pots of them. BTW, Dykhof's on Mountain Hwy had a few fragrant Hostas on hand when I was there about a week ago, but I don't recall seeing either Venus nor Aphrodite. There is an thread on another forum dealing with Venus and Aphrodite that you may find of interest, lots of pictures.
Re: Venus and Aphrodite Thanks for the pic and the info re Venus. You'll have to keep me updated. I'll be excited to read about the aroma. Reading won't quite be the same - but - oh well. You are obviously a good writer so I look forward to imagining it. Re: Aphrodite - I have requested it from Dykhof's. They are going to try to find it for me. Perhaps you might want to put in a request as well. Since I am not sure if this is my dream home I am considering planting it in a large pot so if I ever move I can take it with me. Additionally, most of the remaining space in my garden is either in the sun or totally out of the sun - nothing much in between. What are your thoughts about planting a hosta like this in a pot ? I look forward to your reply.
I'll let the link take you to some pictures which will give you the answer (which is that mine is in a planter/pot).
...and here I thought I'd found all the great hosta website. Thanks again for the valuable info and tips !!
Re: your website I just went to the link you provided. I want to compliment you on the wide variety of flowers and amazing pictures you have on your website. I can see that you have a real love for what grows in the garden. I am particularly impressed by your interest in lilies as I have started a love affair with them also - although I am just a newbie in the garden. Thank you for sharing.
Looks like we hijacked the thread here joZ. Thank you for the compliment, our garden is truly a labour of love, sometimes so much that other things that need to be done take a backseat.
Re: Aphrodite....I hope someone can help. I have had this for years (about 12 or so) and have divided it and it has become a large patch. HOWEVER it NEVER seems to come into full flower. It always buds up and then they open half way and then seem to melt away. Very frustrating. I think in about 15 stems I had one that opened all the way. My Plantaginea does well as do the honeybells.
