hosta

When to plant hostas?

Botanical name
Hosta
Family
Asparagaceae

Hostas are planted from March to April. They flower from June to August.

Hostas are perennial plants.

hosta
Photo: Qwertzy2~commonswiki · CC BY-SA 3.0

Hostas through the year

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Planting
Flowering
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  • planting
  • flowering

In short

Planting
from March to April
weeks 10 to 17
Flowering
from June to August
weeks 26 to 33
Propagation
division

Growing conditions

🪨
Soil
loamy
☀️
Sun
part shade
💧
Water
moderate water
❄️
Frost
overwinters outdoors
📏
Height
10 to 76 cm
⚠️
Toxicity
toxic to cats and dogs

Pests and diseases

Listed here is every problem for which the sources name this plant as a host. The problems are not listed in order of how common they are.

Slugs and snails

pest
Signs
Holes appear in the middle of the leaf rather than along the edge, young plants are eaten down to the ground, and there are slimy trails in the morning. On low-growing fruit there are gnawed pits. On hostas an eaten leaf stays visible all season, because no new one comes.
Prevention
Remove the hiding places beside the bed: boards, stones, dense weeds. Water in the morning and not in the evening, so that the night is dry. Spread a band of coarse sand or gravel around the bed. Cover young plants with fleece. Pick them off at night, which is still the most effective measure. Varieties with a thicker leaf are noticeably less eaten.

Vine weevil

pest
Signs
The half round notches along the leaf edges in summer are the work of the adult beetles and do the plant little harm. The larvae are the danger: white grubs with a brown head eat the roots, the plant suddenly drops its leaves and dies, most often between autumn and spring.
Prevention
Most at risk are plants in pots and troughs. In a bed the damage is rarer. At repotting check the roots and the compost and pick the larvae out. You find the adult beetles in the evening with a light, when they crawl over the plants.
What to do
Pick the adults off in the evening, set sticky traps indoors and change the compost, removing the larvae as you go. There is no insecticide. As biological protection, water beneficial nematodes into the compost at the end of summer, while the larvae are still small.

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Related plants

The plants below are in the same botanical family (Asparagaceae).

Sources about the plant: ASPCA Toxic and Non-Toxic Plants, GBIF Backbone Taxonomy, NC State Extension Plant Toolbox, Royal Horticultural Society, Wikidata. Checked between 14 and 28 August 2026. The problem descriptions also draw on: University of Illinois Extension, University of Maryland Extension, University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension.