Hosta

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Hosta is also known under this name as a function, in Latin the name of this plant sounds like this: Hosta. Hosta belongs to the lily family. This plant is a perennial herb that is intended for growing not only in water bodies, but also in rock gardens.

The hosts are home to Japan, Southeast Asia and the Far East.

Description of hosts

The hosta is endowed with decorative foliage, which is painted in various colors. Actually, it is worth noting that this plant is very popular and appreciated for its decorative foliage, as well as for its particular unpretentiousness in growing. It is noteworthy that the leaves of this plant are also quite diverse in their shape, as well as in size and texture. Hosta leaves can be either crunchy and smooth, or shiny, leathery and matte. Flowers can be bells, or rather wide open funnels, which will be in racemose inflorescences. The color of such flowers can be either white, lilac, or purple. Most often, hosta flowers are endowed with amazing aromas. It is noteworthy that the peduncles of this plant can reach one meter in height. Flowering of this plant begins around July-August and lasts until mid-October. It is worth noting that in one place this plant is able to develop favorably even for ten years. And also all types of this plant are also distinguished by a special durability: the decorativeness of the hosta can persist even for more than twenty years.

In total, there are about forty species in this genus, and in total more than two and a half thousand varieties of this plant have been obtained. Under natural conditions, the hosta prefers to grow along the edges of forests, in wetlands, as well as along the banks of various bodies of water: rivers and lakes.

The classification of this plant is most often made according to two parameters: the height and color of the foliage. In terms of height, there are miniature, small, medium, large and very large plants. The height of miniature plants will be about five to ten centimeters, and the height of especially large ones can even exceed sixty centimeters. It is noteworthy that a huge number of different groups stand out according to the color of the leaves, because the color of the plant is especially diverse.

Features of care and cultivation of hosts

It is worth noting that the hosta is a shade-tolerant plant. It is preferable to select areas for growing this plant, which will receive shade in the afternoon. However, blue hosts require complete darkening, which is due to the fact that only under such conditions the plants will have a brighter color. The same plants that are endowed with white, yellow or golden leaves are more resistant to sunlight. However, when grown in a highly lighted area, the plants may get burned and the plants themselves may overheat. It should be noted that for the optimal development of this plant, it will be necessary to pick up loamy soils rich in humus. So the soils should be sufficiently moistened, as well as well-drained: the soil can be both slightly acidic and slightly alkaline. It is important to remember that in order for plants to not slow down their growth, they will need a cold period.

It should be noted that young plants tolerate planting well, but older plants will need to be transplanted as rarely as possible. Before planting, the soil must be fertilized with mineral or organic fertilizers. The soil where this plant is grown must be moist. However, older specimens are able to tolerate slight drought. For the winter period, it is recommended to mulch the planting of this plant.