Each flower only lasts a day when it opens. If you want to enjoy the hosta flowers in a bouquet , cut each scape when only two flowers on it are open; the rest will gradually emerge over two weeks inside your home.
For the flowers you leave on the plants, you should still snip off the scapes once the blooms fade. The American Hosta Society recommends cutting off each scape after three-fourths of the flower buds have opened; this keeps the plants from diverting energy into setting seeds for the next year so instead they'll grow more roots and leaves.
Don't be tempted to just pull off the scapes with your hand because this can damage your hosta. Instead, use a pair of pruning shears to snip the scape near the point where it meets the leafy base of the plant. Several hosta varieties have scented flowers you can enjoy either in the garden or in a vase, but one kind that goes by the name of August lily Hosta plantaginea has an especially strong perfume. Its large, white flowers appear along 2-foot tall scapes in midsummer.
When should the blooms be removed from hostas? Remove the flower stalks as soon as they appear if the hosta is only about pretty foliage. Flower stalks will die back to the ground in the fall with the foliage. So when are wilted flowers removed from hosta plants? Spent flower blooms can be removed in the fall along with other faded foliage.
You may wish to leave the seed head on the plant for a while as a food source for birds. Let them do their thing! I usually remove new flower shoots on new hosta plants to encourage healthy root establishment. Hostas usually only put on one round of blooms, so flower removal only has to be done once a year. Like with pruning hosta leaves, remove the flower stems near the base. Pruning the stem low keeps the visual focus on the foliage. Fall hosta care is mainly about preventing cozy conditions for unwanted garden pests.
Use clean tools to minimize opportunities for germs to spread. Remove dead or damaged foliage that could provide winter shelter for critters. Seed heads can be left for the birds, or removed along with the foliage. Hostas need a good cool winter of dormancy to thrive during the summer months.
They do better in the ground during the winter than in container gardens. For hostas, that means an early spring application, as well as a mid summer dose. In the early spring, applying a slow-release fertilizer helps feed the roots and promote strong early foliage growth.
And that early growth is important for forming strong, healthy bloom sets. There are a couple of different methods that work well for spring fertilizing. Many gardeners simply cover their hostas in early spring with a few inches of fresh compost.
The compost slowly releases its nutrients down into the soil and the roots below as the plant grows. Just as effective is using a good quality slow-release Espoma PT 18 Organic Fertilizer is our favorite choice granular fertilizer. When applied at the plants base, it slowly releases nutrients to feed the plant.
Fertilizer can be applied anytime in the spring before hostas bloom. The earlier the better. If the plant has already come up through the ground, make sure any granular fertilizer is placed in the soil and not on the leaves where it can burn the plant. Although the early spring feeding is important in developing strong blooms and foliage, it is a mid-summer fertilizing that will help hostas rejuvenate their foliage and stay healthy and vibrant into deep fall.
Hostas use up an enormous amount of energy in developing and producing their blooms. And as they complete their bloom cycle, they need to have that energy replaced to keep their foliage bright and strong. As with spring fertilizing, there are a couple of options and methods that work well. You can pinch off individual flowers on the stem as they wilt to improve the plant's appearance during flowering, if you wish.
Trim off any hosta leaves that have yellowed or become damaged. Leave the remaining leaves in place after flowering until the hosta dies back naturally in fall or early winter.
Jenny Harrington has been a freelance writer since Her published articles have appeared in various print and online publications.
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