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Hostas under Sumac

11 years ago

Does anyone here successfully grow hostas under sumacs? I'm running out of sufficiently shaded areas to plant hostas, and have been eyeing that lovely dappled shade under my staghorn sumac. My concern is the numerous suckers that the sumac sends up. Will it eventually stop suckering heavily as it matures, or is this a spot that I will regret filling with hostas?

K.

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Comments (6)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years ago
Will it eventually stop suckering heavily as it matures, or is this a spot that I will regret filling with hostas?

==->> what suckering plant ever stops suckering..

you know the answer.. you are just in denial .. lol ..

get rid of the sumac.. and replace with a nice redbud [z3???].. and plant your hosta ...

de nile is not a river on the chicks prairie.. lol ..

ken
prairie_chick
Original Author
11 years ago
That is so not what I needed to hear, Ken, but probably true.

We've had so many wet years in the last fifteen (not including the last two), that I've lost all my fruit trees and several large shade trees to drowning due to high groundwater levels. Even my scrawny sumac is hard to give up in the circumstance. Redbud is too tender for Manitoba winters, but I'll look into other possibilities.

Missing de nile,
K.
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The area is so shaded that grass will not grow ==>>> if grass wont grown... NOTHING WILL THRIVE... crickey its the number one invasive.. i will grow in cracks in ashplalt weed.. lol ... if it wont grow.. give up ... then on top of that .... under my mature conifers... i am talking 30 to 40 foot trees.. its a desert ... and i dont think you will ever be able to apply enough water for any hosta.. other than the driveway workhorses ... [new post if you want that list] you said: So would I be correct in thinking that it is probably due to water competition from the tree roots? ==>>. bingo and a bango... you know much more than you are admitting to yourself ... and dont even get me going on cottonwood ... water suckers supreme ... and if they are close.... say the height of the tree ... i doubt you will ever water enough to overcome them and the conifers ... except for the above ... ken
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I live in central Alabama and have been successful with Krossa Regal (I did kill a couple in the beginning) and Gold Standard. The ones I have now are about 6 years old. Since your success is iffy, I wouldn't invest a large amount of money this first season. Also, Home Depot will have a large variety of 1 gallon hostas at very reasonable prices. Keep going back every week through May because they will get in different varieties. Also, growing anything under a tree can be challenging. Hostas do like some sunlight and they don't like to dry out. Tree roots absorb a lot of moisture. And just when you've spaced them out all perfectly, you start to dig a hole, and . . . hit a tree root. Move it over a few inches and . . . hit another tree root. Very aggravating. Remember to plant them high so that the crown doesn't rot. I've personally not been very successful with coral bells either. Holly ferns will tolerate a lot of shade (but anything likes some sun) and they are very hardy. The holly ferns are also evergreen in my zone, so they should be in your zone also. Home Depot will also have nice, healthy holly ferns for about $5 and Walmart has Autumn ferns for $5, but they may be looking scraggly by now. I bought one a month or so ago when they first came in. Walmart has beautiful plants when they first get them and then their employees neglect them.
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mctavish6
11 years ago
I doubt it will stop suckering but it has never hurt my garden. I just pull out the ones I don't want. The first garden is in the shade the second is in the sun. Both are under Sumac's. Personally I like this tree because the leaves turn in the winter and I don't have many others that do. I would not want to wait for a planted tree to grow and this one takes care of itself. The sucker showing in the picture is probably only a couple years old. I'll just move it somewhere else that needs some shade if I ever get around to it. Go for it.
jan_on zone 5b
11 years ago
I planted my very first hostas underneath sumac about 30 years ago. Both are still there, although the sumac seems to have a rather short life expectancy so I always encourage well placed suckers so the main trunks will have replacements when they eventually die. The hostas I have there are the old fortunei albomarginata and halcyon, and they seem to be quite happy.
Jan
hosta_freak
11 years ago
I'm glad you showed those pics,Myrle,and Jan. I now know what those trees are in my yard. I have one of my Francees near those trees,and it is thriving. Actually,that tree looks a lot like Walnut trees do here also. Thanks for enlightening me! Phil
prairie_chick
Original Author
11 years ago
Thank you, Myrle and Jan. Your gardens are beautiful and encouraging for the future of mine. I won't put anything too special under that tree to start. Maybe move some old standards out of premium spots and replace them with my newer purchases.

K.

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