Icenovm...... You need some help, and it isn't simply about the grass clippings. You are in a whole new world with your hosta in Texas, than you were in ILLINOIS. Fortunately for you, we have someone on the forum who lives in Texas in zone 8.with years of experience growing hosta IN TEXAS. Take the clippings off. Your problem is something called southern blight, which can occur because of heat and humidity and poor air circulation around your roots. What I've done when it happens, and I was able to save my first hosta when I caught it on time, was to spray it down with 10% ammonia mixed with water. I also changed out the potting mix. Gave it a new pot. Might not be required, but I sometimes over react. I've lost several hosta to that blight--but it is not simply HOSTA affected by it. It can happen to lots of other plants. You know your plant has it when the stems/petioles simply decide to fall over dead, and the plant was fine the day before. Tell tale little orange balls like Osmocote can be seen around the base of the hosta. It scared me so bad after I saw my first favorite plant dead of southern blight, that I stopped using Osmocote...every time I saw one of those little balls in a plant, I immediately had heart failure--oh gee, another one with southern blight! After you salvage your hosta, and they stabilize, be sure to read the forum for growing hosta in zone 8 and higher. I'm in zone 9a. Your hosta need a lot more water, no afternoon sun unless it is fairly LATE afternoon. If they are in the ground, good drainage. If they are in containers, good drainage. (Which is true for hosta elsewhere too, I know.) But also keep the roots cool, don't let the sun shine on the pot unless it is WHITE. Hope you come back to tell the end of this story. Welcome to the forum.

Thanks for the encouragement. I think I just pot it up and baby it for a while - keep away from the varmints... and then plant outside in Oct right off my patio. Hopefully it will make it. The roots were whitish this morning after the soaking so I think that's a good sign. I'm not planning to return it since its not their fault. I would have expected Ken to suggest I throw it on the driveway for a bit :-)

Hi, I would treat the fungus first. The one fungicide that I regularly see available that specifically treats Southern Blight is Bayer Disease Control with Tebuconazole. This fungicide is a curative and a preventive treatment. There is no need to lift the plant, just saturate the crown and surrounding soil. You will likely want to spray the whole garden, then repeat next year. If you are moving the plants, I would recommend completely bare rooting them in place so that you don't move the fungus with them. Southern Blight is a soil borne fungus, so if you remove the soil you will remove most of the spores too. Take a garden hose with you and wash off the old soil right in place, then move the plant. Since your hostas are in the sun that can be part of the problem. If you water during the heat of the day, especially if you overhead water, this can create too much moisture at the surface during the hottest part of the day and cause the spores to become active. It is best to let the soil dry out completely when it is really hot, and avoid watering on those 90 to 95+ days. Wait until evening so the soil surface is dry by the next afternoon. But really, the fungicide I mentioned will get rid of this. Spray now and repeat again next summer before it gets hot. Treat again next summer if you see any again. There is absolutely no need to soak the plants because Southern Blight is a surface mold and it does NOT get into the crown or into the plants. And yes, after the stems fall off and after the mushy fungus is gone, most hostas will immediately start to regrow. Hope that helps! Chris

Who in the world would have such a young June planted in a construction zone? The mind boggles. Good rescue. -Babka