those are rather large plants...

3 to 5 to 7 years.. for full impact ... [10 years for the elegans, sometimes]

every time you dig them up... you set them back.. when was the last time you set them back ????

i also wonder.. if they are planted too deep .. the crown should be at soil level.. or just an inch below ...

and please dont tell me.. there is landscape fabric under there ...

i suspect.. most of the problem.. is your expectation.. that hosta grow as fast as other perennials ... they dont.. on some level ...

ken

ps: elegans should have flowered in late may ... if your is currently blooming.. i doubt its E ....

Thanks Ken. No landscape fabric, so we can eliminate that mistake.

I understand that hosta take awhile to get up their steam, but my concern is that these are going backwards, smaller this year than last, and the growth they have this year is just weak and painful. Not vigorous at all.

This is their 3rd year of being in this spot. When I moved them in they were big and healthy with many eyes per plant. Then last year they were pretty good, sort of taking time to settle in. But this year they all look like seedlings.

I do have high expectations though, you're spot on about that!

They might be too deeply planted. When you dig in there is the soil moist 4-6" down? Looks like a lot of mulch, which is a good thing, except when it covers the crown too deeply.

-Babka

I was going to say the same thing about the mulch, Karin...maybe push it back from the crown so you can visibly see the soil around it. The mulch might have shifted towards the crowns of all your plants in that bed from rain downpours.

The other thing I wanted to mention was the effects of this past brutal winter. They could be reacting to that. However, after three years in this location these transplants should have established themselves by now, you are right.

My suggestion is to see what's going on at the root level of the ones you just pulled up so easily with your hands. Let us know what you find. :-)

Jo

Hi Karin,

I'd bring them up a bit, as they look too-deeply planted to my eye as well. I've done that in my garden, and observed that it does affect vigor and hampers plant growth.

Cheers,
Don B.

Ah, consensus, I like that! Thank you all for chiming in.

Planted too deep could well be the problem. The soil in this bed was still settling when I planted these because the whole bed and area around it was newly filled in. So the depth was in flux at that time.

The soil is surprisingly wet down 3-4 inches. As in, I think the pieces I pulled out had rotted.

Mulch is only about 1-2" thick, so not too thick, but maybe it's adding depth where it's already too deep.

So, would a possible plan be to pull the plants out, maybe amend a little better to aid drainage, and re-plant a little higher? And if so, should I do that now? I guess there is not much to lose since at this rate they won't get through the coming winter.

Thank you for the suggestions, I really appreciate it!

Karin

If you only pull soil back, it can get washed in towards plants again. I say dig up and replant. Your hostas will thank you for it. :-)

On the plus side, you don't have to move that many! I keep a short piece of plywood handy for when I add new soil to a new bed. I fill it, water it all, then lay down the plywood, walk about on it to somewhat compact the moistened soil, then dig holes and plant. Works for me.

I plan to relocate 5 one year plants. Will I hamper their growth if I keep the root system and surrounding soil intact when lowering them in the new hole?

DD

first.. link them to your other post about your new wall.. this group will be highly entertained by it ...

second.. some guy ... i cant recall who ... did a post titled .. MOVING A FULLY LEAFED OUT HOSTA ... or some such.. perhaps if you review it.. you might glean some tidbits of knowledge.. see link ....

if they have been regressing for 3 years.. crikey woman.. dig them up and find out whats going on .... based on the other post.. i am surprised you of all peeps.. havent already done that ... lol ...

a dormant hosta.. in frozen soil ... especially if snow cover.. doest freakin care how cold winter is ... its simply irrelevant.. IMHO ... its the warm winters... when they might go in and out of dormancy... that wreak havoc with dormant plants.. because they dont stay dormant all winter .... with snow.. dont forget.. its a great insulator... and and air temps dont affect soil under snow.. frozen is frozen.. and there is no wind chill ...

anyway... my hosta friends.. especially you warm zone peeps.. i will yell... SHE HAD SNOW INT EH FORECAST FOR THE LAST FEW DAYS ... lol ...

ken

ps: 95% of us.. mail order hosta .. lets these old turds die.. and order up some newer.. better hosta... blimey ... lifes to short to deal with these 50 year old cultivars ... review the last 50 pages of hosta posts in this forum for some great pix ... etc ... rotflmbo ....

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Entertaining as always Ken, thanks!

We got a beautiful coating of snow up high yesterday. When the sun finally came out this morning it was a wonderful sight. All's still green and growing happily down here in the valley though.

You are right that I'm remiss in checking in on these hostas. They seemed so feeble this year that I just didn't want to mess with them in case that did them in for good. But I will. Really. I would do it this evening but I need some vigorous exercise, now that the wall is built I need to do something else exhausting every day. :)

Yes, new hostas are greatly tempting. But I'd hate to spend the $$ and put them in a doomed site. We'll see what shakes out by the spring.

I'll do some digging and check back in with a full report. I've got masking tape and everything.

Here is a link that might be useful: Stone wall project that Ken is referring to

"a dormant hosta.. in frozen soil ... especially if snow cover.. doest freakin care how cold winter is ... its simply irrelevant.. IMHO ... its the warm winters... when they might go in and out of dormancy... that wreak havoc with dormant plants.. because they dont stay dormant all winter ...." -- Ken Marek

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!! Hostas LOVE long, cold hibernation! Freeze/thaw/freeze/thaw cycle is what does them in! I've read Chris Wilson and Bob Solberg and Mark Zilis state the same thing! Now Ken! It's the Quadrafecta!!!

Anyway, as you were...

Don B.

I also would suggest you add some ironite to your soil, if it's alkaline as you say. Hosta don't like really alkaline soil.

bk

How much compacting did they do on that soil after they had it all dug up? That area might not be draining as well as the rest of your yard.

Kathy

That does not look like my Elegans ... Are you sure you have the right ID? Mine also flowered in May.

I think it is Elegans based on how it was growing in its former spot. Agreed it just doesn't look right now, particularly because it's so puny. It could have been mislabeled too, I suppose. I've had it for many years. No hostas bloom in May here. This poor guy didn't even break the soil until June, IIRC. But if Elegans is an early bloomer then maybe it is wrong. Or maybe it's just tossing up a flower spike as its last gasp!

BK, ironite, good call!

Kathy, I built the bed and filled it and it's never been walked on or compacted. But my digging around so far does show that drainage might be an issue - it seems wetter than I expected.

Thanks for the continued input, you guys rock!

My comment re brutal winter effect was written with Guacamole in mind, Karin. When you said they were dwindling...take a look at this version of Guacamole. This is what it looks like. Not bad, just unrecognizeable..it is quite light colour due to sun exposure. It over wintered in the same pot it was purchased.

High hopes for next spring! :-)

By the way, the "wall" you built? An amazing and impressive feat! Really enjoyed that thread. Congratulations!

Here is the before...from last year. I don't know what else to attribute this year's "look" to.

I have a follow-up from my pathetic hosta situation.

I removed one of the ailing plants and rooted around in the soil. There was no obvious problem other than that the soil is not great. It's more clay and alkaline subsoil than I had thought.

So I moved 2 hostas in from elsewhere in the yard, amended a nice wide hole with peat moss, and planted them so they are a little higher than the other ones I put in this bed.

The deer did me a lovely favor and removed most of the leaves from the plants that I was moving in, so they certainly won't get droopy from the move. (The deer de-leafing is why I was moving them anyway, to a more protected place.)

If these survive, I will either dig up and amend the remaining ones, or just scrap them and get some new ones. That thread about your hosta wish list is a very dangerous thing!

Josephine, your Guacamole looks divine, and I like it in both pics. That is one I have always admired.

Thanks again for your help and encouragement!

Karin