Hi! I recently finished a new bed, so that means I have the chance to try out new plants. I recently started looking at hostas, because they have nice flowers and leaves. Any suggestions for plants or tips for planting/care would be really helpful. I am looking for smaller varieties, or the dwarf ones.

Thanks,
Alex (Sedumzz)

Alex to the hosta forum!

Do you have shade for this new bed? Most Hostas don't like the late afternoon sun.

Hi Alex, welcome to the Hosta Forum

Your zone should enable you to grow some great Hostas, like Rose said you will need some shady areas, hosta's also do best with an ample supply of water. I would recommend visiting some hosta sites to get an idea what the plants will look like and their sizes. Some of the ones I like are: https://www.inthecountrygarden...

https://www.hostahosta.com

https://www.nhhostas.com

These sites will give you some good ideas, so that when you go to your local nursery's you will have a good idea what to look for.

Rose1656 said: Alex to the hosta forum!

Do you have shade for this new bed? Most Hostas don't like the late afternoon sun.

I have good afternoon shade, and some dappled sun in the morning. The area has some nice moisture.

Rj,
thank you for those sites! I will look around.

You can also check out
www.hostalibrary.org for a lot of information and pictures.

Have fun! They're addictive!

Welcome Alex some of the smaller ones I like are the mouse ears , Lemontini , Appletini, and Munchkin Fire. I would also mulch around the smaller and mini ones due to smaller root systems.
Show some pictures once you get going.

Ok, sure will!!! Super excited. I'm going to wait for spring, because I think it will be easier to decide what to get if I can see the leaves (They are dormant, at the nursery)

I have several that change colors as the season progresses.

Embroidery early spring

Embroidery late spring


Northern Exposure (bright yellow edges change to white during the season)

These two will lose the center veining throughout the season
Hollar Purple Flash


First Blush


War Paint changes to solid green later in the spring


Depending on sun exposure and heat, blues can lose the blue coloring on the leaves.

Wow, that's so awesome!!!

And as you can see by Roses pictures Heuchera and Japanese Forest Grass go great with Hosta.

Yes, you're right. Looks like Heuchera is added to the list of plants I should look for!

If you're just planting dwarves and smaller hosta, you might want to stay away from the shade grasses. They can spread into a big clump in no time. You don't want to block your view of your hosta. It does make a great border tho!

ooh, good idea.

Welcome to Hostas. It sounds as though you have very good conditions for growing good hostas. As to what hostas to choose, that's where it gets tricky. For new hosta gardeners, I would suggest some of the beautiful tried and true varieties. Some hosta nurseries will have lists of hostas to start with. You could also look at the "Hosta of the Year" lists. Most of them are good varieties.

I do recommend avoiding box stores because there are some hosta viruses out there and hostas from such places have a much higher incidence of disease than a good nursery will have. (Google Hosta Virus X and learn its symptoms).

Bear in mind that hostas will change a lot as they mature and one that you buy in a nursery as a one or two eye plant might look a lot different in a few years. They will take 3-5 years to attain full growth; so leave space and don't expect them to look mature the first year.

Don Rawson has some wonderful lists of hostas by a whole host of characteristics. Just take some of the characteristics with a grain of salt because a hosta that grows well for me might not for you. If a hosta doesn't seem to grow well, try moving it. Praying Hands, for instance does well in near-full sun and mine grew much better when I moved it. http://www.hostalists.org/

If you wish to look at my experiences, I've been tracking my hostas annually since 2008. Mine are mostly small-medium in size, but bear in mind that I'm in zone 5. The following link will take you to my hostas that start with 'A'.
https://violaann.smugmug.com/G... If you'd like to look at other hostas that I've grown, in the top left of the page there's a picture of a house > Garden > Hostas. Click on 'Hostas' and you'll be taken to the page that shows all my hosta galleries.

Keep in touch and show us pictures of what you grow. Good luck.