help with hostas

[greenbean20]

[image]http://www.mailorderplants4me.com/products/630[/image]

thats what my hostas look like yet i did not buy them like that. When i boguht them, they had huge leavs yet the next year, the grew like this, help please

[JoGreen]

Where are your hostas placed? In their natural environment, hostas thrive in part to full shade. Most varieties will thrive with just a few hours of morning sunlight. Other hostas with thick leaves can tolerate part-to full sun as long as you water them adequately. Blue varieties develop better color if grown in open shade, with no direct sun. Green and gold varieties will tolerate more sun, provided they receive adequate amounts of water.
Hostas are hardy in zones 3 through 9. The plants tend to grow larger and produce more intense, bluer and greener coloration in cooler climates. As a rule, hostas suffer fewer problems in areas with shorter growing seasons.
I do not know your zone however I hope this information will at least point you in the right direction.

[greenbean20]

my zone is 6, and they get full shade under 3 maple tree that have a huge conopy. i dont think the shade is the problem thoguh, does it have a disease or somehwhaT?

[JoGreen]

Answer:
It is possible it may have a disease. I have read about a hosta disease called crown rot that originally was prevalent in the more hot and humid areas of the US. It has since moved northward into other zones. Some of the symptoms of this disease are dry wilting leaves on your hosta plant.

Crown rot is a type of fungus which is not necessarily a disease. It can be quarantined by digging out the soil of your hosta plant about 8 inches down and then replacing it with new soil. All of your garden tools should be cleaned after doing this to prevent spread of the fungus to other plants and parts of your garden.

I was unable to access the recent picture of your plant so this is an educated guess. I would try this route as a first step and then go from there.

[reflectcelfer]

Greenbean20 -- you know your hosta.

Been planting, splitting, moving all forms of hostas and my experience suggests a few hours of early morning sun is a treat followed by a day in the shade. Filtered sunlight all day is also a perfect setting for this plant. And, on the topic of color -- seems the cooler, filtered sunlight plant is the healthiest and most colorful.
So, if your plant is looking "tired", I would gracefully offer my opinion this way: Remove, resoil with a rich top soil/peat mix, replant in a location providing 1/ filtered sunlight or 2/ early morning sun followed by full afternoon shade. If grubs appear, beer in a jar top or, light dose of pellets are suggested. Good luck and please follow-up with how things worked out. Always good to learn from our experiences.

I was logging on to ask about splitting hostas this time ot the year. I'm in the process of moving some plants and want to ask if this is an appropriate time to split. I have split many plants in the past however, only during the Spring when plants are 3 to 4 inches in height.

Any experience on this question would be appreciated.

[greenbean20]

o, i split my hostas in the fall, wehn they are about to go dormant, but either fall or spring is the best time, i have never tried spliting in summer.

P.S. thanks for the adice, i think its crown rot, im going to try your suggestion

[bluemoon]

I grow mine beneath 30' walnut trees. They bloom fully, each year, without added ingredients. I live in Zone 6, Pa.