Plants
Hosta
Hosta · Asparagaceae
The hosta is the queen of the shade bed: hardly any perennial brings as much calm and structure to dark garden corners with its large leaves, often blue-bloomed or marked with white. In summer, elegant flower stems with bell-shaped blooms in white to violet rise above them. We stock hostas as established pot-grown perennials from the auction — once planted, they grow more magnificent year after year.
- Light
- Partial to full shade; blazing sun scorches blue-leaved varieties in particular.
- Watering
- Water regularly; the soil should never dry out completely, but avoid waterlogging.
- Care level
- Easy
- Botanical
- Hosta
The range of varieties is enormous: from miniatures like ‚Blue Mouse Ears‘ with palm-sized clumps to giants like ‚Empress Wu‘ that top a metre. Blue-leaved cultivars like ‚Halcyon‘ carry a waxy bloom, yellow-leaved ones like ‚Sum and Substance‘ positively glow in the shade, and variegated classics like ‚Patriot‘ bring white margins into the bed.
The ideal spot is part to full shade with fresh, humus-rich soil. A rule of thumb from practice: the more white or yellow in the leaf, the more light the variety tolerates — pure blue-leaved sorts lose their bloom in the sun and scorch easily. Hostas are happy under trees and shrubs as long as the soil is not root-dry.
The biggest issue with hostas is slugs, which can strip young shoots bare overnight. To avoid trouble, choose thick-leaved, more slug-resistant varieties like ‚Halcyon‘ or ‚Sum and Substance‘, or grow the hosta in a container. In a pot on a shady terrace it is remarkably rewarding and only needs light root-ball protection in winter.
A typical mistake is moving them too often: hostas need two or three years to establish and then get finer year after year. Old clumps can live twenty years and more. Dividing is only necessary for propagation — best done in spring as the shoots emerge.
In combinations the hosta is the calm anchor for everything delicate: ferns, astilbes and columbines only really perform in front of its large leaves. It has its place in floristry too — single hosta leaves are a popular, long-lasting foliage in summer bouquets. Important for households with dogs and cats: the leaves contain saponins and are toxic to animals.
Is Hosta toxic to children and pets?
- Children
- Mildly irritating
- Cats
- Toxic
- Dogs
- Toxic
Hostas contain saponins and are toxic to cats and dogs; children should not nibble on leaves or flowers either. In a garden with free-roaming pets, position plantings accordingly.
Typical symptoms: After ingestion: vomiting, diarrhoea and lethargy; in animals also loss of appetite. Contact a vet or doctor if larger amounts are eaten.
In an emergency:call the German poison control centre in Bonn on +49 228 19240 (24/7) — for pets, contact an emergency vet directly. This information does not replace medical or veterinary advice.
Overview: toxic & non-toxic plants for cats, dogs and children
Care
- 01Plant in part to full shade; variegated varieties tolerate a little more light.
- 02Keep the soil evenly fresh; water regularly, especially under trees and shrubs.
- 03Feed with compost or horn shavings in spring — that covers the whole season.
- 04Protect young shoots rigorously from slugs, or choose slug-resistant varieties.
- 05Let clumps grow undisturbed — hostas get finer with the years.
- 06In containers, protect the root ball lightly with fleece or leaves in winter.
Frequently asked
- Which hostas are slug-resistant?
- None is completely immune, but thick-leaved varieties with firm, often blue-bloomed foliage are eaten far less. ‚Halcyon‘, ‚Sum and Substance‘, ‚Big Daddy‘ and many sieboldiana descendants have proven themselves. Thin-leaved, delicate varieties, by contrast, are slug magnets.
- Are hostas toxic to dogs and cats?
- Yes. All parts contain saponins, which can cause vomiting, diarrhoea and lethargy in dogs and cats. It usually stays at gastrointestinal upset, but nibbling pets should still be kept away from hostas, and when in doubt call the vet.
- Can hostas be grown in containers?
- Very well indeed — in a pot they are also better protected from slugs. What matters is a sufficiently large container with a drainage hole, an even water supply and light root-ball protection in winter, for instance with fleece or against a sheltered house wall.
- Should you cut off hosta flowers?
- That is a matter of taste. The bell-shaped flowers are pretty, are even fragrant in some varieties like ‚Fragrant Bouquet‘, and are visited by bumblebees. If you prefer the hosta as pure foliage, cut the stems after flowering so no energy goes into seed production.