All of mine were so bad that I didn't take photos. It was a super bad weather summer.

bkay

Love the not always what it is.

Sorry you had such a bad weather year bkay.

Paula it really looks pretty good. It survived a ridiculous delivery time and came up.

My worst has to be Lakeside Dot Com.

What it used to look like before being overgrown by others.

I have so many that are dwindling from root competition and lots of cut worm damage this year, it's hard to pick the "worst" one. Plus I don't usually take too many pictures of the uglies.

Pocket Full Of Sunshine - Think I'll pot it up if it comes back.

Bed being overrun by grasses now that i have more sun (thanks to emerald ash borer.) I need to get EVERYTHING out of this bed, and meticulously remove all those grass rhizomes, before I lose any more…

Cute funnies. The "almost" elephant and the cardinal coming at us are both good!

Babka, I hope next year is better.

This year I give all of my hostas a pass. If they came back, they’re doing well.

But I’d say my worst is Sultans of Swing because it seems to have a virus of some kind. I’ve given it time to see if it could rid itself of it, but looks like I’ll have to pull it this spring. Too bad because it had the potential to be a pretty hosta. A sad goodbye to this one.

I did a double take on the elephant/crane..lol

my Diamond Lake scared me..I thought I might have HVX..it looked better as time went on..it was exposed to colder than ideal temperatures 🤦‍♀️..glad it’s in a pot alone..I’m keeping my eye on it..anxious to see it in 2024..

the first real snow this winter came today..the news said it’s the largest snow in over 2 years..it will be above freezing on Sunday and should melt..😃

For me it was the weather. it was the worst.

persistent early hail followed by drought was killing me.

Love the jokes today Paula, but your hosta looks good!

laurie, can’t believe you have a bad one, but there it is! Lol

old_dirt, I had the same situation as you, roots and cutworms…..arrrrggg!

sandyslopes, I remember you posting about SOS last season. Too bad for the loss.

ann, your Diamond Lake is such a beauty…. I hope it does not have the virus. Time will tell.

hosta_maker, looks like you had cutworm damage as well. I have never really had it. However, it started out slow but slowly I think bu mid summer, most of my hostas were chomped to some degree. How does one deter cutworms? The slug drenches don’t affect them at all.

debra

Here are my worst:

This was HS’s first year in my yard trying to adjust to the sun

Silver Bay started out great (new)

But then by September; also new

Time in a Bottle, new in August just wasn’ making it. I shared pics with the vendor for both of these in case they don’t return.

poor Gabriel’s Wing, also new, arrived with frost damage so never looked good all season.

debra

I don’t have fotos of ugly ones.

I love snow but this winter has been extra snowy. I don’t need any more snow, but more is coming.

Today very heavy snow.

This was Gold Standard at the beginning of September. I'm hoping it's just an early dormancy due to the heat.

Snow we had that last year. this year almost nothing, with crazy heat waves, ice on the lakes has been thin and dangerous. normally it is around 18 inches thick, lucky to have 5 inches, no ice at all in January.. at any rate we finally got 2 inches just in time for the world cup cross country races here today. go jesse!

deb i rarely have worm or slug issues. just hail shredding everything. followed by drought which ta kes alot out a plant.

the more white that is in a hosta it has to counter with its vigor. growing conditions need to be optimal or it will fade away.

Paula, great jokes. I love the not as it seams.

It is strange to hit the like button for all the pictures of the hostas we have problems with. Here are mine:

This is where I replant the hostas which are struggling. Jewel of the Nile - just one reverted (sported stem is left), Sun Mouse, Whirlwind, Pandora's Box, Rhino Hide. They all have been diminishing each year.

Lakeside Dragonfly - It starts out looking good by August it looks like this. I moved it to a pot, maybe it will be happier.

Raspberry Sorbet - This might need a new location. Not sure sunnier/shadier.

debra..oh my!..thanks for sharing and your complete honesty!..your worst made me laugh (sorry)..I’ve been there..I had a Kabitan (no pic) that looked nice for about a day..then uglier every day until it died..don’t you wonder why we have HUNDREDS of great hosta but some that are duds?..I don’t get it..I hope yours come back strong..

Saija..wow!..you have so much snow!..the snow sure doesn’t hurt your hosta..they’re beautiful..looking out my kitchen window this morning..

Beth..love your turquoise pot..isn’t it comforting to know all of us have had a dud hosta?..

Praying Hands was originally 5? times this big and in a pot..squirrels were digging in the pot and ruined it..I planted the remains in the ground..do you think it will survive?..

debra - I've heard that Sluggo Plus will kill cutworms (not plain Sluggo). Supposedly it is organic and safe when used as directed. I'm going to try it this year.

It is a comfort to know that there are dud hosta. I knew it could not be me. As I say rolling my eyes. Tomorrow let's do 'Companions'. One of my favorites.

Ann, funny you planted your Praying Hands in the ground because the squirrels were digging at it in the pot. Mine took a step or 2 back this year and I think will dig it up and pot it. lol! Yours looks like it will survive….

Old_dirt, I will have to do my slug drenching and also sluggo plus for the cutworms. My experience with regular sluggo is it does nothing for the slugs. We shall see if that does the trick. I still can’t understand why they were so bad last year. I had never had a problem before…..

Beth thanks for sharing because your yard always looks perfect to me……good to know you have bad ones too!

debra

debra..I thought..Praying Hands is going downhill..try something different!..🤷‍♀️

I hope each of us has success!..

ever had this experience?..a hosta that’s not a favorite getting minimal attention looks great while a hosta you love is a dud?..Lol

Old_dirt, I have a Pocketful of Sunshine. It is doing okay---growing slow but steady. But for the last couple of years it has gotten bad rust later in the year. Just when the colors of it are at their best (it is lutescent), the rust begins! I am going to try to remember to spray it with something and see what happens. Not sure if I will remember! And about root competition and cutworm damage---I know exactly what you mean!

Cutworms can do a lot of damage in a short amount of time. I don't know how to reduce their population except for going out and finding them! (Canada has banned a lot of pesticides so a product like Sluggo Plus is not available here.) Unfortunately, the cutworms seem to have decided that they like my garden! My elegans came up so beautifully and then it seemed, in an instant, there were giant holes in it and that's how it stayed for the rest of the year.

Each year I vow to do everything that I can to control slugs, bugs and disease. But then a lot of life happens and either I forget, do it too late, don't do it often enough etc.

Sorry to hear about the hail hostamaker. I have experienced it also. So destructive.

Saija, some of our snow must have gone your way instead!

Just like many of you, I don't take pictures of ugly hosta. But since Virginia Reel was new, I did take a picture to remember how it transformed from pretty to not! But since it was just it's first year with me, I am hoping for better next year.

Finally a group I can participate lol. I had insane invasion of slugs last year, never seen worse, my veggies transplant were disappearing overnight. I spent countless hours applying ammonia and hand picking... Anyway, sent my soil for testing and have some serious deficiencies to overcome. My calcium is very high, double if what I need. Since calcium does not move much I will need to adjust other elements and go full out with foliars. Hopefully in couple of seasons I will get back to balance .

H

Oh lindalana I am sorry you are having issues! That is no fun at all and I hope you get your soil up to snuff and those rotten slugs under control. There always seems to be something trying to upset our enjoyment in our gardens.

The general absence of photos from me this last year is proof of how awful my garden did. I couldn’t bear to look at it. Drought, heat, pests…sigh.

Ugh utog that is terrible! I feel for you because I think we have all had those years. If it is any consolation the ones you have shown look really good.

The key to the slug drench is to do it early as pips are coming up and also in fall to kill eggs that have been laid. I also have found extra drenching on the thinner leafed hostas helps. Maybe 2-3 times throughout the season on them. My bad damage was cutworms….. I think they hit every hosta……sigh!

debra

Debra, for the slug drench do you spay or pour? Do you use the 10:1 ratio of water to ammonia or vinegar? I use the spray during the season I was wondering if the before/after the season is the same.

Thanks!

I have ordered ammonium sulfate granular as part of my adjustment program, among other things. Am a biological gardener.

Remembering Debra recommended early application ammonia solution I have done a lot of it last year and already have it ready as it has been warm enough here. My experience as long as it not done in any sunlight, it is hard to overdose although price comes in play then.

I did Sluggo plus last year first time as it is too wide spectrum of killing for me.

Beth, regarding the slug drench---to spray or to pour? I have always sprayed around the crowns of the hosta and other plants. I have heard of other people pouring the ammonia solution. I think one uses a lot more if you pour. I'm getting the idea that the slugs are pretty much everywhere and just spraying around the plants is not enough. This year I plant to pour the ammonia solution around the crowns and everywhere else I can think of---especially in the early spring.

As for the ratio of ammonia to water. I used to do 10 water and 1 ammonia. But the ammonia I was using is no longer available. I have learned that the dollar store ammonia is not as strong. So I will be using that one in the 5 water to 1 ammonia formula. (Unfortunately the bottles now usually don't tell you the strength of the ammonia within them.)

Beth, I do use the 10/1 ratio, but with my measuring tools and water cans it come out to be 1 cup to a gallon of water, maybe 8/1 according to my probably wrong calculations. 😂

I do “drench” the entire hosta that is showing, pips and leaves. I pour it over the top and make sure I get the crown. It sounds like a lot of time, but I have a garden helper and we knock all of them out in about 30 minutes. Last couple of years I have used vinegar because the stronger ammonia is hard to find as Newhostalady mentioned. It seems people make bombs with it. Nobody cares about us gardeners!

debra

People make bombs with ammonia! I never knew that.

newhostalady - It is also used to manufacture methamphetamine, a highly addictive & dangerous drug. I was told once if a person was to purchase large amounts of it you could be reported as suspected drug manufacturer.

old_dirt, unbelievable!

hmmm..I wonder if meth manufacturers have big hosta collections to disguise their large ammonia purchases?? 😜..

if need be I can testify for the drenchers in the group..I’ve heard about their hosta drenching for years..😂

I get mine at Wallmart, nobody questions me when I buy dozen bottles at a time. Ammonia is short lived and contact required. It does burn and kill things so your worms will get killed from contact as well.

I have been advised to drench with sugary water my soil to promote better soil activity which will help control slugs.

Also I noted that beds with basil were avoided by slugs so planting basil in a lot of areas this year to test my theory.

Debra, thanks for the update on "drenching" I usually do that when I have issues but maybe a more proactive approach might work well. Also thinking the basil approach might be good too, at least it would taste good.