How to Thin Hostas
Hostas are among the most versatile, prolific and easy to grow perennials in the ornamental garden, with more than 7,400 cultivars from which to choose. Once you establish a healthy stand of hostas, they will multiply quickly. Although hostas can remain beautiful and healthy for many years without being thinned, thinning keeps the plants from spilling over into unwanted areas. Thin hostas every four or five years to keep the shape and design of the original hosta beds, provide free plantings for other areas of your garden and create welcomed gifts for fellow gardeners. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Instructions
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Remove an entire clump of hosta from the ground. Starting an inch or two from the outside of the clump, punch the pitchfork into the ground at a slight angle, guiding the tines toward the bottom and center of the clump. Rock the pitchfork back and forth to loosen the soil. Remove the pitchfork. Work your way around the clump until you can lift the entire clump from the ground.
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Remove the soil from the clump. Use a garden hose to wash away as much soil as possible from the clump. Removing the soil allows you to see where to divide the plant and also helps to keep the knife blade from becoming dull.
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Divide the clump. Start at the outer edge of the clump. Use a knife to separate and then cut away pieces consisting of multiple plantlets. Because the plantlets grow so tightly together, expect to slice through some of them as you separate and cut. Even with the loss of these plantlets, a mature hosta clump will yield abundant thinnings.
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Keep the divisions moist. After you cut apart the clump, place the divisions upright into buckets and spray with water to keep the roots from drying out. Place the buckets in the shade while you plant the divisions in the ground or pot them up for friends and neighbors.
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Tips & Warnings
Although you can thin nearly all hostas in either early spring or late summer, different seasonal techniques are used to encourage healthy root growth. In early spring, divide the plants before leaves erupt and include more plantlets in each division. In late summer, thin and replant the divisions at least 30 days before the first expected frost.
The H. sieboldianas or the Tokudamas do not recover well when thinned and replanted in the spring. Thin these types in late summer.
Thinning hostas is not difficult, but it is time consuming and requires a certain amount of physical strength. You may want to ask a friend for help, especially when lifting a mature hosta clump from the ground.
