Sun...dappled shade...sun...dappled shade...sun

18 years ago

Hi all,

My goodness, I've been away from this forum much too long. It will take me hours catching up on all the great advice you all are sharing. I am planning (on graph paper) a new garden area that will receive full sun, followed by dappled shade from Silver Maple trees, followed by full noon sun, again followed by dappled shade, and finally full late afternoon sun. In this garden area I already have Hostas, 'June', 'August Moon', and 'Gold Drop'. They all do fine in this crazy light situation. I'm looking for more Hostas that can tolerate these light changes, and also have good slug resistance.

Thanks in advance for your ideas,

Julie

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Comments (12)

Janice
18 years ago
Hmmm, Sum and Substance comes to mind, as well as Plantaginea, Inniswood, Guacamole, Regal Splendor,
Francee, Sum of All, to name some that do well in my yard with some of both the conditions you describe.

I think it depends on how long they would be in full sun!

All the ones I've mentioned can handle the sun!

Welcome back, "luvto"--hope to see you posting more!

Janice
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
18 years ago
probably all of them ..... in WI ...

the blues might not appreciate the sun in the heat of the day ..... and ones with big white centers may melt out in TOO much sun .. but need more sun because of the reduced amount of chlorophyll .... real catch 22 there ....

regardless... the more sun ... the faster they grow .. and the faster they mature .... the further south you go .. the more problematic afternoon sun becomes ....

bottom line... PLANT WHATEVER HOSTA YOU WANT .... and if it doesn't thrive ... to your satisfaction ... MOVE IT ....

hosta actually do grow on driveways ... so your little patch of heaven .. shouldn't really be that much of a problem ....

when it comes to hosta.. JUST DO IT .... worry about it later .... heck .. with hosta.. you dont even need to worry about it ....

good luck

ken
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well ... hmmmm .... you are on the right track ... but working on the wrong variables ... i am going to come at it from another angle ... hosta are VERY HEAVY WATER USERS ... and they use the most water.. in the most heat .. which is why they struggle in the deep south ... they simply cant pump enough water to offset the loss ... and part of that is ... night temps.. they can cope better up here in MI because at night it cools considerably ... hosta actually sweat ... transpire ... in england.. which is above the 60th parallel.. or 2/3 of the way to the north pole.. they are ALL FULL SUN ... partly because the sun barely shines.. lol .. but also because of the declination of the sun.. the British are a pasty peeps.. because the sun is not as strong.. so the hosta can cope ... compare that to LA.. and you can see a stark difference. .. so.. hosta can grow in full sun .. hosta are only shade tolerant.. but the sun .. or conversely.. the shade is not really the issue.... its all about how effectively they can pump.. enough water. and if they have a recovery period to cope ... the fact that a hosta looks ratty in late summer.. is more a function of not enough water.. rather than too much light ... ken ps: zone.. which is.. in its simplest form.. MINIMUM WINTER TEMP ... has nothing to do with it .... pps: i have tons of wood hyacinths.. i dont know why you failed with those.. unless there are multiple plants under that common name ... ppps: hosta also have a requisite dormancy period.. and if you go too far south.. they dont get it ...
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diannp
18 years ago
I love Ken's advice on Hostas. Just do it! :) It's when I start trying to analyze what I'm doing that I end up in trouble! (And also, when I have 50 or 60 hosta waiting to be planted and it's mid-September, but that's another problem.)

Diann
0
luvtosharedivs
Original Author
18 years ago
O.K. Thanks all you zone 5-ers. Yes, that is the wonderful thing about gardening - moving plants to more desirable spots when a present location is not working.
My husband and a neighbor felled a giant dead oak tree in our back yard late last summer. I had several varieties of Hostas growing under it, and once it was gone, they were receiving instant half day sun. I panicked and quickly moved most of them to shadier locations. Now, using hindsight (always 20-20), I probably should have left them to see which would adapt.

Janice, I will try to visit more often.

Julie
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intrepidgardner
18 years ago
From another temp absentee...
You have described not only my own back yard,fraught with hosta and trees but a perfact area to grow Hosta in case you weren't thinking of it,(smile). Choose from all the lovlies and then water. They will all excel.
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vera_eastern_wa
17 years ago
".... the further south you go .. the more problematic afternoon sun becomes ...."

I have simular light conditions in the 2 areas I'd like to plant mine (seeds recieved in trade). I imagine WI summers are cooler than Eastern WA summers, but does that mean the sun's intensity is equal because we are northern states? Plus here we lack summer humidity in temps that exceed 90+ for weeks.

Thanks,

Vera
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luvtosharedivs
Original Author
17 years ago
Hi Vera,
I was born in Puyallup, WA. I'm sure you know where that is, but we moved to WI when I was a year old. I've been back there to visit a few times, but mostly to visit relatives in Tacoma. As I can recall, Eastern WA is much different than Western WA......Eastern WA much flatter? Anyway, about the weather here - you can expect anything and everything. Our summers can be extremely hot, in the 90's,or 100's, dry or humid, droughts and flooding, long cool rainy Springs that never seem to end, or so short we seem to go from Winter to summer. (Same for Fall) No matter what the weather is, the Hostas survive. And as Ken mentioned above, plant whatever you want, and if it doesn't do well, move it.
Have fun experimenting. I know I will.

Julie
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newhostaaddict
17 years ago
hi julie..

whereabouts do you live??....how many hostas do you have??

do you want a visitor???,,,lol,,,,AND,,,of course,,,you are welcome to come here....

jill (1/2 hour south of green bay)
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esther_opal
17 years ago
Water is more important to worry about than sun
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luvtosharedivs
Original Author
17 years ago
I agree about the importance of water, especially to get Hostas established. I have to water when it's cloudy, or early in the morning, but not while the sun is shining intensely at high noon. (Water droplets act like little prisms and can burn holes in the leaves).

Hi Jill, as you know I replied to your post over in the WI forum.
Looking forward to Spring,
Julie
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Hosta_Haven
17 years ago
Jill/Julie...
There's a WI (Wisconsin?) forum? Tell me more!
0
luvtosharedivs
Original Author
17 years ago
Hi, hosta-haven,
You must be burried in snow by now!

Here is a link that might be useful: Wisconsin gardening
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Sun...dappled shade...sun...dappled shade...sun

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