The best hosta varieties
Hostas are classics in the shade garden. These easy-to-grow perennials come in a variety of colors, sizes, and shapes, but how do you choose the best hostas? We can help!
Hostas are shade garden staples
Hostas are classics in the shade garden. These easy-to-grow perennials come in a variety of colors, sizes, and shapes, but how do you choose the best hostas? We can help!
Ideal hosta growing conditions
Undemanding and cold hardy in zones 3 through 8, hostas do best when grown in well-drained soil and partial shade, although some exceptions do not mind full sun. Make sure hostas receive about 1 inch of water per week from a shower or hose to get the best-looking foliage without crisp edges. Two inches of organic mulch, such as small bark chips, can help conserve water but should be kept a few inches away from the crown to avoid rotting.
Hosta foliage is beautiful
Although hostas bloom from late spring to late summer with pale lavender or white flowers, the foliage is their main attraction, with blue, gold, or green foliage and many other variegated leaves. Try incorporating cool blue hosta with burgundy coral beads (Heuchera hybrids) into your relaxing backyard retreat. Or replace a blue hosta with a chartreuse one for eye-catching results.
Colorful leaves are exciting, but leaf shape and size are also a plus. Most hostas have heart-shaped or rounded leaves, but you'll also find some that are very narrow, others that are cup-shaped, and others that have wavy edges. So even hostas of the same color keep the garden lively. You may notice that younger hosts look a little different than the "older" ones. For example, a young 'Halcyon' has spear-shaped leaves, but in a few years, they become heart-shaped.
Large Hostas or Small Hostas?
Hostas come in a wide range of sizes to complement any shady garden environment. The biggest categories, like 'sum and object', make people stop and say, "Damn!" They make an excellent background for small plants or beautiful specimens. Medium to small hostas make a beautiful edging in borders and paths, while miniature hostas, such as 'Blue Mouse Ears', will command attention in a container.
With all these categories to choose from, where do you start? Start with a good hosta. There are hundreds available, and most are good choices. But the ones you'll find below are solid performers and top hosts that we consider our favorites!
‘Sum and Substance’ hosta
This large hosta can even hold its own with shade-garden shrubs such as bigleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea arborescens). Deep-veined leaves start pale green, turn chartreuse, and turn golden yellow as the weather warms. The more the morning sun can give your 'sum and substance', the brighter the gold will be. In shady gardens, the leaves stay green.
Hosta tip
Slow-growing large hostas like 'Cum and Stuff' can take 5 years or more to reach mature size. Light lavender blooms late summer Light 2 to 4 hours shade Size 30 inches tall 5 to 6 feet wide
'June' hosta
You will never be bored with this beautiful hosta. In spring, the leaf centers are chartreuse, then turn creamy yellow in summer. Grow 'June' in the morning sun and afternoon shade for the best color. In full shade the center is chartreuse and the blue edges fade.
Hosta tip
Snails seem to pass over thick-leaved June hostas and look elsewhere for dinner. Blooms white in mid-summer Light 4 to 5 hours of shade Size 15 inches tall by 30 inches wide.
‘Halcyon’ hosta
'Halcian' is one of the best blue hostas you can grow. The heart-shaped leaves have prominent veins that run from stem to tip to create a simple sophisticated-looking hosta.
Hosta tip
Rubbing a blue hosta leaf with your thumb and forefinger will cause some of the blue to disappear - this is called the "bloom". This waxy coating is washed away by heavy rains or scorched by excessive sun, leaving a green leaf. However, the next year the leaves will be blue again. That's why blue hostas need more shade than green or gold.
'Patriot' hosta
Irregular bright white edges of 'Patriot' is your shade tho Shining in the sky. 'Patriot' is a good choice for gardens with hot summers - it can take the heat, especially with two inches of mulch and regular watering, and still looks great.
Hosta tip
Some hosts, such as 'Patriot', emerge earlier in the spring than others.
Light lavender flowers in mid-summer 2 to 4 hours of shade Size 15 inches tall 36 inches wide
'Cutting Edge' hosta
Sometimes plain-green hosta is all you need. But why go with green hosta when you have the 'cutting edge'? Those wavy leaves are called "piecrust fringes." With age, the leaves become wavy and the edges curl to reveal a dusty blue color on the back of the leaf. Mature plants form a dense mound of wavy leaves that create a sense of movement in the garden.
Late Summer Blooming Lavender Light 4 to 5-hour shade Size 22 inches tall 27 inches wide
'Blue Mouse Ears' hosta
'Blue Mouse Ears' is one of the best miniature hostas you can grow. Small but mighty, this little dynamo has dense blue-green leaves that form a tight mound. Use it to edge a path or make it the highlight of a fairy garden. Look for the flowers in summer - they puff up like little balloons before they open.
Mid-summer lavender blooms Light 4 to 5 hours of shade Size 6 inches tall 12 inches wide
'Little Sunspot' hosta
'Little Sunspot' has a deep-green border that broadens as the plant ages. The morning sun will turn the center brilliant gold in the north, but full shade is best in warmer southern gardens. 'Little Sunspot' adds some extra punch to the front of the border with its beautiful variegation, and it multiplies quickly, so you'll have plenty to share with friends.
Hosta tip
'Little Sunspot' and many hosta varieties have pricking on the leaves - also known as "seersucker" - which gives the plant an interesting texture.
Early summer blooming lavender light 4 to 5 hours shade Size 10 inches tall 15 inches wide.
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