Yes they can - they will need more water than if planted. Someone in your zone will be along soon enough and can tell you how they deal with their potted hostas.

Are you sure your Elegans are dead? The roots are likely fine - did you check them?

Jo

The leaves turned yellow and felled off. There are empty spots where my elegans were placed. Do I still need to check the roots?

They may have died because of lack of water. If you dig up the root mass, you'll be able to tell if it's shrivelled up or if it is still living...whitish roots that are still firm to the touch. At least you'll know for sure. :-)

Those black pots get very hot during the day and the roots bake inside them.
I was also going to suggest that you bury most of the pot (3/4) in the ground for each hosta until you are ready to plant them. In that kind of heat they will need water every day or every second day.

Good luck.

This post was edited by josephines67 on Fri, Jun 20, 14 at 17:46

Glen, your Elegans most likely still have roots and some crown material left and will bounce back next year with any luck. I would continue watering where you planted them if they are in the ground (or even the pots). Why are you concerned about planting the other hostas now? Even though it is terribly hot, the plants should do better in the ground than in a pot in terms of moisture. You will need to water them frequently (maybe every day when it's really hot) throughout the summer unless we start getting a lot of rain like last summer.

I'm in zone 7a, but don't have any hosta in pots, so can't advise about my experience with that. However, might watering have been the issue with your disappearing hosta? The frequency of watering is one important aspect of caring for plants, especially ones recently planted. But of equal importance is how deeply is the water soaking into the ground. If it is hot out, and only the top inch or so of soil is being moistened, the water will not reach the roots and the plants will still be thirsty. Make sure you are watering deeply. Is the water running off? Did you plant the Elegans in a sunny spot? If so, it might have gone into shock if it was more shaded previously. Whenever I plant anything in the sun and the weather is going to be hot and sunny, I position a folding lawn chair over top of the plant for the first few days until it can adjust a little bit. This seems to help. Last question: did you mulch around the plants? This will help retain moisture.

It sounded to me like you are perhaps a gardener new to hostas. If this is not the case, I apologize for the "gardening 101" lecture. Paul's Glory is a very pretty plant - I hope you enjoy it.

Sometimes a hosta will go "heat dormant" if it gets too hot for it, and the roots are still alive. If you can provide some shade, and a lot more water during the hot days, they will emerge again right away. The heat dormancy is their way of saying I'm too hot and I'm taking a nap until it gets better.

I'm in a higher zone number than you are, with high humidity. I still water every day and have since June 1st. Our temps are about like yours though. In the 90s, with a touch of 100 when there is no breeze. No way can they take that without some shade and water.

anyone else wonder about the IDs on the patriots and PGs????

maybe its distance ... and camera angle ...

ken