Hostas are the most popular hardy perennial in the United States, and with good reason. Besides providing texture and large leaves to garden plantings, hostas offer an exceptional range of leaf colors, which makes them outstanding foils, specimens, and accents in any shade garden. My hosta collection boasts about 2,300 kinds, including those with green, blue, yellow, and variegated leaves. I’d have to admit though that yellow-leaved hostas are my favorites. Their luminescent leaves glow at dusk and at dawn as well as on rainy or overcast days. They brighten up dark corners of the garden and are especially noticeable when combined with plants with green or blue foliage.

They like dappled light

One of the reasons hostas are so popular is that they are easy to grow. They generally thrive in USDA Hardiness Zones 3 to 8 and prefer fast-draining soils. While blue and green varieties can tolerate full to partial shade, yellow hostas require a bit more sun to bring out their color.

To keep them true to form, divide hostas in spring or fall rather than start them from seed. I recommend amending the soil with composted manure and sand or small gravel when planting a hosta, and adding a handful of slow-release fertilizer. I also fertilize every spring just before the shoots appear. Annual fertilization is especially important for yellow-leaved hostas, which contain fewer food-producing chloroplasts and therefore are not self-nourishing. I also recommend mulching hostas the first year they are planted to prevent the heaving that can result from winter’s freeze and thaw cycle. I water newly planted hostas daily for the first two to three weeks, then weekly during the first year.

Hostas are tough plants that are bothered by only a few pests. Black vine weevils sometimes chew along the edges of the leaves, and they can be controlled with various insecticides. The most common hosta pests are slugs, snails, and deer.

Sanitation is the key defense for controlling slugs and snails. They gravitate to moist, dark areas, so be sure to clean up any leaf debris, especially in the fall. It is also a good idea to avoid watering plants toward the end of the day when leaves have little chance of drying before dark. Several slug baits are available that can also help with control. I have never found beer to be an effective control, but a home remedy I do use contains 15 percent nonfoaming ammonia and 85 percent water. I apply the mixture with a watering can at night, completely soaking the hosta leaves and killing all slugs and snails on contact. Absolutely no harm is done to the plants, and the application may be repeated every two weeks.

As far as deer go, I find barrier fencing to be the best method of control, but there are a number of repellent spray products that are also effective.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, the expression “Good things come in small packages” couldn’t ring more true when it comes to H. ‘Little Aurora’. This delightful little gem reaches only 8 inches tall and 12 inches wide and has soft-lavender flowers from late June into early July. The golden metallic sheen of its cupped and bubbly-textured leaves makes it an outstanding edging and massing plant, particularly at the base of evergreen and shade trees.

Now that you’ve been introduced to a few of the many yellow-leaved hostas available, I hope you will begin to experiment with them in your own garden, using the variations in shape, size, and color to create dramatic combinations. You may find that before long you, too, have become a hosta collector.