Oh boy, Jo!
When is your average first frost date in your present town?
Didn't they say an early fall? Ha? well, let's hope one is predicted for your purposes. Not for everyone else, of course. :)

I did not have as many as you have to move, when we brought my original hosta garden with us in 2011 coming from zone 5b to 9a (used to be 8b). So I dug them up soon as I decided they had to come with me, and had about 20 in pots waiting for frost. They sat outdoors in an open porch from the end of Sept to Dec 12 when we sat them in the PODS. They reached Mobile the day after Christmas, still asleep and relocated south by 1500 miles.

It was a perfect plan well executed by all parties. The hosta went to sleep in MA around October leading a normal hosta life......and in early March, about 2 months earlier than their FORMER NORMAL emergence, well, there they were! Poking up noses in a strange new world.

"Toto, we're not in Kansas any more!"

The king of hosta movers has to be Ken....I don't have the discussions to hand about how that went, because frankly
I hope I never have to move again. It is excrutiating from start to finish, and I wish you good fortune.

I enjoyed your moving story (pun) lol! and thank you for the well wishes, Moc.

The hosta will likely overwinter in their pots, all huddled together, surrounded by soil to insulate the roots or get placed in the garage...thankfully there is lots of room either way.

Our temps are fluctuating... low fifties daytime, low forties nightime temps...warmer next week....crazy weather... could get snow as early as October, or as late as December, you just never know. All in all this city gets lots of snow and that's a great insulator for gardens. I'm heading an hour south and into a bigger city where the snow load is much lighter. The winter in the hollow should be interesting. :-). I'm hoping for lots of snow so the hosta can have a great, long, protected sleep!

This post was edited by josephines67 on Fri, Sep 13, 13 at 2:27

More hosta space?? Sounds like a win/win situation! : )

Don B.

It sure is a win/win situation, Don :-)
This is a part of the backyard....can you tell what's wrong with this picture?

Hmmm...Too much lawn, river rocks mulching (The HORROR)....But what really jumps out is....None of your hosta are there : ) I see promising shady spots, though!

Congratulations, I would be salivating with the possibilities as a hosta person if I were moving there...It's a nice yard to begin with...but...You know what to do! : )

Don B.

Or, IS that river rock mulching, Jo? Maybe I'm wrong, and it's a bark mulch?

Don B.

Depending on what it does to your light, I'd sure plant some deep rooted trees and tall shrubs along the bank. That stream looks peaceful now, but with nothing to hold the bank, it will erode with high swift flowing water like after a big rain. Think about it, to anchor your hosta beds. If you don't need to cut grass along the bank, that is where to use the rock mulching. It won't float away so much.

LOL...you got it with your first comment, lol....too much lawn even tho' it's lovely...there are NO hosta there at all - that's weird, huh? It'll be a different scene next spring, to be sure!

Nope, no river rock...but i do have a lovely river in the back that is part of the property...there is bark mulch...I'm considering using coco bean mulch in spring...love the smell of chocolate for two weeks! The sharp shells should deter slugs, I hope. There are some pine trees in front that may need removal...will wait till spring to see if dieback is more severe..:-(. Bonus factor: pine needles for mulching!

The front does have a row of the same looking hosta (green but i couldnt i.d. it) but needs additional planting in the larger front bed. I will be busy posting "before hosta" and "after hosta" pics next season....like a Vanna White wannabe!!

Official yesterday...moving date is Oct. 25th, not Sept. but that's OK. More time to dig up Mom's peony, my one year old Itoh peony called Going Bananas and other treasures. Exciting times. :-)

Here's a pic of the river.

We cross posted, Moc :-)
Here's another river pic....I can't remember how much lower it is than the property, but I hear you Moc. I'm also thinking of Mosquitos, etc. ugh but it sure is pretty. I'll definitely be bending your ear, Moc. :-) ill be researching " living near river" during the winter months and reading Botany of Desire! :-)

Thank you, Don. My reaction was the same...I was salivating while gaping at what I regarded as a "blank" ( sans hosta ) canvass..my mind was going a mile a minute as I envisioned my hosta in the beds! Drooling like a hound! :-) and prancing around like I had to p!!!! Lol

This post was edited by josephines67 on Fri, Sep 13, 13 at 22:49