Just curious - quick question about hostas in the ground vs in pots

last year

I don't usually post here but a question popped into my mind when I was walking into my house yesterday. I noticed that two hostas which I have in pots on my patio are still looking really good, while the hostas out in the gardens are pretty much toast. And these potted hostas were dug up from a friend's garden in spring, and just thrown into a pot with a handful of soil because I was going to plant them right away. Ha, yeah right.

Anyway, is this a usual occurence or situation? Do potted hostas do better (or at least last longer) than in-ground ones? They are in about equal light situations, and equally neglected by me, so it's not like the ones on the patio got better care. There might be a VERY slight difference in protection on the patio (from winds, etc), and I suppose the patio could be warmer because of the pavers, but it doesn't get much sun to begin with.

some hostas in the garden

Ivory Queen in a pot

Northern Lights(?) in a pot

Just curious... Thanks!

Dee

Featured Answer

old_dirt 6a

last year

IMO, location. warmth, sun and color will make some difference but like Pieter said, the biggest difference is in the variety. Below are two pictures taken today, both in the ground within five feet of eachother. All variables are almost identical except the variety.

June

Blue Mammoth

Comments (13)

tsugajunkie z5 SE WI ♱
last year
The patio is likely keeping them warmer.

tj
Pieter zone 7/8 B.C.
last year
Unfortunately it's not quite that simple. I'll bet the ones in the ground are a different variety from the 2 in the pots and that's where the rub lies. Yes location does make a difference. For example, I have 2 'Katherine Lewis' in pots. One's in a lot of direct light and it's well into senescence whereas the other one, which is planted pot-in-pot under a rhododendron, still has all its colour. A little too wet out there today to take and post pictures, unfortunately.

Pieter
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What Carrie said: against the south wall of the house. Even though your porch is on the north, that's always colder with the weather gets wickedly cold. Put them against a sunny south wall right against the house and check the soil every week or two to make sure it's just damp. They can handle more cold that people give them credit for, but once the threat of root freezing presents itself (around 15 degrees or lower) you're better off moving that pot someplace where the temps won't drop lower than that. Most people's unheated garages serve. Without a garage, an unheated porch or mudroom. Remember you're not protecting only the top growth because the plant is dormant. You don't want the roots to freeze. So covering with a blanket isn't really going to help if it's 10 degrees. Try not to keep them inside any longer than necessary. You want them dormant and staying dormant. Temperature fluctuations in the Sierra are bad enough without helping them along.
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BK, I agree, I like the 'finished' look of pot feet, and I do use them with my decorative patio pots, which sit on concrete or decking rather than on the ground. The link is to the thread I had in mind. It's all you ever wanted to know about the movement of water through potting media. It seemed counter-intuitive to me that raising a pot off the ground doesn't improve drainage, but that's the idea here. Basically, a rough summary is that every media has a level at which gravity alone is no longer sufficient to draw water down through it. This is called the perched water level. (Do forgive me if you already know all this...it was news to me when I started out a few years ago!) When a pot is raised off the ground, the water drains out only to that "perched" level, then it just hangs out there. Not a problem if your media is well drained (has a low perched water level), but potentially rot-inducing if your media is finer (water perches at a higher level in the pot and keeps the roots and crown wetter, longer). When the potting media is in contact with the earth, that perched water can continue to wick downwards and out. The soil acts as a sponge or a wick. Now, as someone with verrrry slow-draining clay soil, I do wonder about how different soil types effect this process. But anyway, that's kind of the Readers Digest version. What do you think? Here is a link that might be useful: Tapla's container drainage thread
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Oh Westy your funny! Yes I do have them in very large 30+ black landscaper pots. You can also spray paint them to become more decorative. Many years we would drag these huge pots into the garage but our backs were weakening and I just started tipping them in place (lazy). As long as they are at least slanted more than 45 degrees they will be fine. You only start to put back on their feet when the pot is UNFROZEN...very important! This is because if tipped up and frozen the sun may defrost some of the soil it could rain and the crown could rot! I would suggest very loose good gritty soil. I use a mixture of mulch, soil, soiless mix...NEVER, like Caliloo said, moisture control...plants could rot! Then you can layer your yard. The reason we do this is because we have a suburban lot and had to be creative to include the giants that my husband loves. If your not sure just take a smaller common plant and put it in a pot...plastic works best but I do have(like Ken said) glazed terra cotta that I have never tipped or brought in and they are fine. Italian pots are made stronger than Mexican just a FYI. Just experiment! Sorry no pics but you can e-mail me and I'll send some. Westy...your so funny! See ya Thursday! For our annual Sunrise Greenhouse adventure! lol
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newhostalady Z6 ON, Canada
last year
I don't think it makes much difference whether the hosta is in the ground or in a pot. Location matters. But the two hosta you show have blue leaves it seems. I find that some blue leaved hosta tend to last longer in the fall.
diggerdee zone 6 CT
Original Author
last year
Thanks for the input guys! I guess there's no concrete answer. I have about 15 other hostas in the ground, all different varieties and all pretty much done for the season. I just thought it interesting that these two are still looking pretty good. It might be interesting to pay closer attention next year and see if the blue hostas last longer. Not to mention, if I get these two potted ones in the ground, to see if they a) last longer than the others, and b) last as long as they did this year in pots.

Thank you!

:)

Dee
bkay2000
last year
Well, my opinion is that the ones in the pots are warmer, as the air stays warmer. I only grow in pots and my pots always come up early. Almost every year, I'm scrambling to keep the early risers from freezing in the spring.

bkay
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
last year
i agree with junkie.. when hes right.. hes right ...

and i agree with bkay about spring.. if you have a stone patio .. with no sun on it.. a pot will stay dormant longer in spring ..

its a heat sink.. a benefit in fall.. and a detriment in s[ring ..

watchout for those warm zone peeps.. they dont know what cold is.. or they forgot since they moved to warm climes...

ken

ps: if HOUZZ makes this post disappear again.. im going to be livid ...
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
last year
hmm it worked.. lol

also.. NEVER leave a pot on a patio or cement in full sun ... if you get a few days warmth in winter.. the plant might pop out of dormancy.. and that is real bad .. they might ignore it happening once.. but if it does so repeatedly.. the plant will rot and die ... just no sense of humor about that ...

the key is.. get them dormant.. and keep them dormant ...

thee other problem with pots in late winter .. in cold zones.. if getting to wet and and many plant dont like cold sodden roots in spring... and in my ground freeze area.. roots being frozen solid on an pot sized ice cube ..

ken
bkay2000
last year
last modified: last year
Yes, we peeps who are Texans don't know what cold is. I was watching a TV program the other day and they said it was -20 F. and they were outside - working.

We had a few days around 0 F and people died, pipes froze, - lots of water damage to homes. My hosta weren't bothered, though.

bk
djacob Z6a SE WI
last year
We peeps in cold are forgetting what realy cold is. Here in MKE, our last couple of winters were dry and on the average, not as cold. However we did have a really cold Spring and plants weren’t pipping until early May.

debra
Ben D (zone 7b)
last year
Ken says "get them dormant.. and keep them dormant"

I've moved some hostas to our shed to protect the containers from cracking in our upcoming freeze (low 20s predicted). We've had some mild freezes already but some of the containerized hostas are hanging on still.

Here's my question: is it ok to leave them in the shed from now until spring, even if they are not fully dormant yet? Or should I move them back outside after this (relatively) cold spell passes?

I'm in north Alabama, zone 7b.
newhostalady Z6 ON, Canada
last year
I am in zone 6, Canada. I have many hosta in containers. Most are dormant but some are not. We are experiencing a hard frost now for a few days. I have moved the nondormant hosta in more protective areas and some in an unheated shed. I am planning to put them back outside again when the daytime temperatures are above freezing. They should go dormant soon.

As you are in zone 7b, you are in a much warmer zone. It is not OK to leave them in the shed now until spring if they are not fully dormant because they will continue to want to grow. Growth will be poor. They need to be dormant before you store them for the winter.
lindalana 5b Chicago
last year
Have had same experience. Same variety looked great in the pot and shriveled in the soil due to cold weather. I think soil in the pot was warmer.

Just curious - quick question about hostas in the ground vs in pots

old_dirt 6a

Comments (13)

tsugajunkie z5 SE WI ♱

Pieter zone 7/8 B.C.

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djacob Z6a SE WI

Ben D (zone 7b)

newhostalady Z6 ON, Canada

lindalana 5b Chicago

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Just curious - quick question about hostas in the ground vs in pots

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