‘Blue Angel’ (Plantain Lily) is one of the largest blue-leaved hostas, forming a gracefully cascading mound of thick, strongly textured, broadly oval to wedge-shaped, dark blue-gray to blue-green leaves, 16 in. long (40 cm), with pronounced veins slightly ribbed leaves. In the summer, dense racemes of long-lasting, funnel-shaped, pale lavender to white blooms develop on scapes 48 inches tall (120 cm). ‘Blue Angel,’ a popular choice, is recognized as one of the best large, blue-leaved hostas for warm regions. When established, it can endure quite dry soils. A great background plant and a gardener’s favorite, but not so much with slugs!
- Hosta ‘Blue Angel’ is a low-maintenance plant that grows 36 inches tall (90 cm) and spreads 71 inches (178 cm).
- Recipient of the Royal Horticultural Society’s coveted Award of Garden Merit
- It prefers rich, wet, well-drained soils and thrives in part shade to full shade. Morning sun is tolerable (except in hot climate areas).
- Perfect for shade gardens, where it can be blended with other perennials, used as a groundcover, or as a shrub underplanting.
- To encourage the plant’s growth, cut off the stems after it has bloomed. Leaves that have become discolored should be clipped back to the ground.
Can blue hostas take full sun?
Instead of functioning well on your site, the best you can hope for is a hosta that can tolerate it. In full sun, Hosta cultivars with a lot of white colouring or thin leaves are more likely to burn. Hostas with fragrant flowers, gold or yellow foliage, or slight white variegation, in general, prefer shade, whilst those with fragrant flowers, gold or yellow foliage, or slight white variegation can handle more sun.
How do you keep hostas in full sun?
Sun-tolerant hostas must be protected from the heat during the hottest part of the day, even though they can withstand more sun than traditional shade-loving hostas. Hostas can withstand more sun in Zones 6 and north than they can in warmer zones. Even sun-tolerant hostas will struggle to tolerate more than a few hours of sun in the warmest zones.
Hostas for the sun do well in all growing zones when they have sufficient of moisture. Sun-loving hostas will need more water than those that grow in shadier environments. On sun-tolerant hostas, keep a thick layer of mulch on top of the soil to help conserve moisture. Visit local nurseries in August to look at hostas and decide which ones are best for your landscaping. The sun-tolerant hostas that don’t have scorched leaves are the ones you can bank on to perform in your garden.
Why did my blue hosta turn green?
The blue hosta hue is unique because, despite its appearance, it is not genuinely blue. Light is reflected in such a way that the leaves appear blue due to the waxy coating on the leaf surface. Some blues are quite pale, while others are very dark, depending on the amount of chlorophyll in the real leaf. When their waxy surface isn’t as reflective as it once was, most blue-leafed hostas turn green at some point throughout the growth season. When exposed to the sun, heavy watering, or pesticide sprays, the wax appears to practically melt off. The same leaves will not regain their blue tint the next year once the wax has been removed. Select newer and improved blue types with great waxy leaves for the best blue leaf color in a hosta. Plant them in a location with plenty of indirect or softly filtered light. In most areas, the early morning sun is optimal, but it’s critical to remember to keep the leaves shaded throughout the warmest portions of the day. Avoid high-pressure irrigation and petroleum-based herbicides to avoid rubbing the wax off the leaves.
To help you understand how hostas experience color changes, let’s look at some examples of a few popular varieties.
- Hosta montana ‘Aureomarginata’ is an older variety that refers to its variegation in Latin. The name “Aureo” derives from the Latin word aureus, which means “golden,” while the word “marginata” means “margin.” This would lead one to conclude that this is a gold-margin green hosta. It has a yellowish edge for a few weeks in early spring, but it quickly turns creamy white when the leaves unfurl entirely. In the summer, the margin often lightens much further to white. As a result, it’s easy to understand how the name ‘Aureomarginata’ could be misleading.
- Hosta ‘Sea Fire’ is another springtime favorite. In the spring, this hosta is blazing with color, as its name suggests. ‘Sea Fire’ has appeared with nearly the same light yellow coloration as the daffodils, just as they are blossoming. Few plants can match its joy as it awakens from a lengthy winter slumber. However, when summer approaches, its leaves change color from yellow to a rich tropical green.
- The bright gold core of the leaves of the classic variegated Hosta ‘Gold Standard’ is recognized by those who are familiar with it. Surprisingly, its early spring hue does not like that of a plant entitled ‘Gold Standard,’ because the leaves have no gold when they initially emerge. Young leaves are green or chartreuse in color, with a deep green border. It is not until later in the season that the golden color is obtained.
- Hosta ‘Undulata Mediopicta’, another classic, is characterized as having lovely green leaves with white centers. Summer heat, on the other hand, causes the white core to darken, resulting in green frosting or fogging at first, then darkening to all-green.
- The Hosta ‘Remember Me’ (seen above) truly needs two photos to tell its entire narrative. The plant’s leaves are bright gold with blue-green margins when it emerges in the spring. The core of the leaves, however, brightens to ivory or near white by summertime. Many individuals would not know the plant if they were just familiar with it for one season.
The majority of hostas are chameleons, changing their leaf colors throughout the season. The only hostas that do not change color are those that are plain green. Perhaps this is one of the characteristics that distinguishes them and explains why the thousands of hosta types are so fascinating to gardeners and collectors today.
Can Patriot hosta take full sun?
Hostas prefer light to open shade, while ‘Patriot’ may endure full sun if given enough water. Plant it in soil that is rich, wet, and well-drained. Most hostas are tolerant of both sandy and clay soils.
What is a patriot hosta?
‘Patriot’ is a hosta cultivar with a 12-20″ tall mound of huge, variegated, oval basal leaves (up to 7″) with deep green centers and irregular white borders. ‘Francee’ is a popular H. ‘Francee’ sport. Foliage mounds usually grow to be 24-30″ wide.
How do you take care of a Blue Angel hosta?
Easily cultivated in part shade to full shade on evenly wet, organically rich, well-drained soils. It grows best in partial shade (some morning sun or sun dappled conditions). Established plants (especially those with thick leaves) can tolerate some dry shade, but soils should never be allowed to dry completely.
Where is the best place to plant hostas?
Choose a location that receives partial to full shade when planting hostas. Hostas can survive morning sun but prefer to be in the shade. It’s crucial to understand that these perennials thrive in lush, organically rich soil. Hostas should not be planted in heavy clay soil since the drainage will be inadequate. Place hostas where snow tends to pile up in places that get a lot of snow in the winter to preserve stems and leaves.
Are blue hostas really blue?
Blue hosta types aren’t blue in the traditional sense. The leaves of the plants are covered in a waxy covering that gives them that blueish tint. This is also known as “glaucous,” which is Latin for greyish blue and is used to describe plants that have those tones or are blue-green in color.
While the color blue in the variety name is a decent indicator of the color you’ll get, there are lots of others whose names don’t even hint at the foliage color.
The blue tint of the hosta leaves may fade throughout the season, depending on the environment and where they’re placed in the garden, as sun exposure, heat, and strong rains can wear it away, revealing more of a green color. Planting your hosta in part shadow, where it only receives a small amount of the chilly morning sun, can help it retain its color. The foliage can also be affected by direct sunlight, which causes the edges of the leaves to burn and turn brown.
Blue hostas have thicker leaves than other hostas, which can help protect the plant against slug damage. Other pests, such as groundhogs, rabbits, and deer, are nevertheless attracted to them. They may also be subject to slug damage if the summer is particularly wet.
Do hostas like coffee grounds?
Perhaps we should share the rest of the pot with our houseplants and use leftover coffee to water any prima donna garden plants. On second thought, the border belles would probably prefer that we prepare them their own particular batch of coffee rather than take secondhand or second-best coffee.
Starbucks makes used coffee grounds available to consumers in North America on a first-come, first-served basis all year. Grounds come in re-usable coffee bags with clear instructions for utilizing them in the garden or compost pile.
Slugs and snails can be discouraged by using coffee-ground mulch. One student said she regularly mulched her hostas with coffee grounds every day and had never understood why they were never disturbed by slugs until she took a recent session.
Slug-friendly plants, such as hostas, ligularias, and lilies, can be mulched with coffee grounds. They’re also good for daffodils and other spring bulbs. Slugs and snails can also be deterred by making instant coffee two to three times stronger than usual. If you spray this concentrated coffee where slugs are free to roam, you’ll notice a significant reduction in damage.
Recent investigations have shown that when slugs or snails walk over soil or pathways where a powerful caffeine solution has been sprayed, the caffeine is absorbed by their slimy foot, resulting in death. In theory, you could also kill slugs with tea, but you’d need a considerably more concentrated pot than you’d consider drinking.
Tea has more caffeine than coffee pound for pound, but a pound of tea creates a lot more cups than a pound of coffee. To acquire a strong enough caffeine concentration to discourage bugs, you’d have to drink a lot more tea than is practicable. The stewed ends of the teapot, on the other hand, are well worth splashing around in the garden. Tea, like coffee, contains a number of chemicals that aid plant growth. Tea leftovers, including paper wrappers and tea bags with strings, are commonly used to mulch houseplants, and all types of tea leftovers, including paper wrappers and tea bags with strings, can be put into the compost with impunity. Metal (such as tea bag staples) and non-breakable plastic coated wrappers are the only materials to avoid.