Problems & pests
Crisp brown edges on hosta leaves are usually scorch: the leaf loses water faster than the roots can supply it, because of dry soil, hot afternoon sun, wind or competing roots. Check the soil moisture and the light first. If the brown streaks stop at the veins, or the stems collapse at the base, look for foliar nematodes or crown rot instead.
4 min read
Problems & pests
Hostas are not deer-proof: Rutgers University rates them in its highest damage category, and rabbits and voles eat them too. Thick-leaved varieties may be a little less tempting, but only a physical barrier reliably works: a fence, a cage or netting dug in against tunnelling animals. Identify the animal first, because deer, rabbits, slugs and voles leave different clues.
4 min read
Problems & pests
Hosta Virus X (HVX) is a virus that infects only hostas. It spreads through plant sap on tools, hands and mowers and through division of infected plants, not through insects or seed. Typical signs are ink bleed from the veins, uneven mottling, puckering and stunting. There is no cure: remove the whole plant, put it in the bin, clean your tools and do not plant a hosta in that spot for three years.
6 min read
Problems & pests
Hostas are late risers: established clumps rest until mid-spring, and a newly planted division usually shows two to four weeks after planting, later in cold soil. Before you worry, scrape the soil away and press the crown. Firm, pale tissue means it is alive; a soft, mushy or foul-smelling crown has rotted, and missing shoots may have been eaten by slugs or rodents.
6 min read
Problems & pests
To stop slugs eating hostas, protect the young shoots in spring: check the plants at dusk and after rain, remove what you find, water in slug nematodes once the soil has warmed up, and grow thick-leaved varieties. Copper tape, grit, wool pellets and eggshells did nothing to reduce the damage when the RHS put them to the test.
9 min read
