Hostas

Hello everybody

I'm trying a new hosta this year called Hosta 'Siberian Tiger'.

Looks awesome I think. Planting them out once I've been to get some more compost as I prefer my hostas in containers.

Anyone trying anything new this year?

 

That is a pretty impressive hosta! I am not trying new hostas personally, because I hate constantly having to kill slugs. (I don't like them, but I don't enjoy slicing them in half with scissors right before bed either...) As a matter of fact, one new related thing that I plan to try, is garlic spray, to deter them. I hope it works.

 

Are you sure that’s not a canna? Very striking .

 

This is Essence of Sunset, in the middle @Banana Man. I put my best hostas on a bench to deter slugs and it has worked ………..so far .

 

I'm a sucker for a hosta, yours look great. I really hope mine grow as good as the pictures.

 

Our hosta is just now sprouting properly with the first leaves uncurling. I have heard some chinese people eat them, eating the young shoots. I cut a few that were large but not yet unfurled and steamed them.
Tastes good! Like asparagus and brocolli with a slight bitterness. Very tender. I think I could eat half the shoots and itll do fine still, but it is very established already.

Perhaps give it a try

 

That's interesting @Adam I! I don't plan to eat mine because I would rather have the foliage, but I am now wondering if there are differences between them e.g. I can imagine the blue ones being more bitter.

I have been spraying garlic water on them for about 10 days as a slug repellent by the way. It might be a coincidence but they seem to be doing OK.

 

@costak you're pre-seasoning with garlic! A good move if you do try eating them

 

Garlic spray is interesting, I might give that a go. My slug problem got noticeably better once I started growing everything in pots up on a table like Plantminded. Still get the odd one climbing up but nothing like when they were at ground level.

 

It was recommended by a gardener I follow online. You do need to reapply regularly, especially if it rains. Also, you need to make sure it's not overly strong, otherwise it could lead to leaf damage in combination with sun. At the recommended concentration though, the plants don't seem to mind it. And I haven't seen any slugs, but I can't say for sure that it's because of the garlic water or just the weather being dry...

 

I don't get much of a problem with slugs eating my Hostas, I grow them in Clay pots which dry out quickly and I don't think slugs like crawling up them. I've also got some in hanging baskets but slugs don't mind climbing up there ... however I haven't noticed much slug damage on those Hostas either.

 

Does the brewing of the garlic concoction linger in your kitchen/house/neighbourhood @CostasK? One of the specialist Hosta growers that I recently bought some hostas from suggests making the garlic concoction outdoors over a camp stove . That put me off .

I've ordered some copper Slug Rings today to experiment on one of my Hostas in the ground. I'm a bit sceptical but thought I'd give them a try.

 

It smelled incredibly strongly @Plantminded As soon as the boiling was done, I moved the pot to the conservatory. I don't remember it lingering though. I did open the windows afterwards.

Now I have the liquid in a plastic bottle and I can't smell it. I use a separate bottle sprayer, where I mix about 10% of the original liquid with water each time. The diluted solution doesn't have a very strong smell - apparently it doesn't need to be too strong to deter slugs.

Regarding copper rings for hostas in the ground, I have tried it and found it to be half - effective. It was an obstacle for slugs on the surface of the soil, but if they were persistent they could go under it. At the time I had bark chippings as mulch and that probably made it easier for them.

 

Thank you @CostasK, I'm now tempted to give the garlic spray a try . I suspect that my experience with the copper rings will be the same as yours. I may insert one deep in the ground and put another on top, a highly scientific experiment .