Why .... Do We Love Hostas So Much?

John Plant
16 hours ago
3 min read

We are constantly amazed at the number of people that declare their love for Hostas, some freely admit being a Hostaholic. There must be something about them that leaves so many people with a need to buy, to own, to love such a humble leafy perennial.

We think it’s time to look at this phenomenon a bit more closely. Let’s see if we can’t find out the reasons why we love Hostas.

There are an element of the population that like the way they look but can’t cope with the holes made by slugs & snails. Yes, it can be a problem but this problem can be overcome with a bit of care & effort.

So why Hostas, as opposed to other plants such as Roses, or Primulas? We all have our reasons for loving a particular plant, whether it be the variety, choice, colour or fragrance.

Everybody will have a different favourite Hosta. Here is a selection of our customers top 20 Hostas from two different years, and you can see how tastes and favourites change.

Let’s have a look at what they can offer you, before the individual benefits.

A Hosta will give you a fabulous show of dramatic coloured foliage for about 6 months of the year. They will go dormant over winter, needing little attention, as Hostas are hardy perennials. They will come up again, in the spring, to give you yet another display.

Did you know? That Hostas symbolise friendship & devotion, and are long lived, just like a good friendship.

They will keep expanding their growing crown, getting bigger, so you can divide or split the Hosta to get more plants for free. Who doesn’t want FREE plants? So easy to do. These can be planted elsewhere in the garden, or given to close friends & fellow Hosta lovers

You will be very popular .......

Hostas are easy to grow, very forgiving plants that create a wonderful space in the garden, or in pots & containers. They keep coming back, year after year, and even bigger. What’s not to like?

Hostas are generally grown for their dramatic foliage. People tend to go for the one they like the look of. This isn’t the only reason!

There are thousands of different varieties currently available, in general, on the market today. There is certainly plenty of choice, perhaps, too much for some.

Different sizes of Hosta from miniatures, right through to the giants of the Hosta world, and everything in between.

A wide variety of leaf sizes and shapes, from rounded large leaves down to spear-shaped miniature leaves.

A mixture of colours from blue or yellow or green and a wide range of variegated leaves from green & white, green & yellow & many more. All colours cover all sizes of Hosta.

There is always the choice to have slug resistant varieties or not, as well as sun tolerant ones. Do you need a shade lover or one that will tolerate some sunshine.

There is pretty-well a variety to suit every desire. Do you want a miniature, with green & cream variegated leaves that is slug resistant, and suitable for a container? Of course you can! Perhaps a large greeny blue leaved Hosta with white flowers.

Whatever reason for liking a particular Hosta is down to the individual, and as you know we all have different tastes.

As for why we love Hostas so much, it will come down to the plant itself. So many choices, comes back every year or even just the way they look. Whatever the reason, there are thousands of Hosta lovers, and long may it continue.

Here endeth my missive in praise of Hostas but I guess if you are reading this, you already know why we love them so much. You are probably a Hostaholic?

If you want to overdose on Hosta Knowledge & discover all our past Hosta blogs click here

Shop for Hostas HERE