Hosta

Advantages: Grow in shade where few plants thrive - very hardy - lots of varieties to choose from
Disadvantages: Insignificant flowers so not for those who insist on a floral display - slug attack!

...pot is now housing the hosta alone and even that’s getting too small for it. Either it’s got to go in the ground this year or be transferred to a bigger pot. I’ve no idea what its name is and as there are over 2,000 varieties available, I probably never will. WHERE IN THE GARDEN SHOULD I PLANT HOSTAS? Hostas, otherwise known as plantain lilies, are shade tolerant (as opposed to shade loving) perennials that will quickly turn an otherwise dull corner ...
...the weather gets warmer. Hosta roots run deep so make sure you water them well. A superficial watering will be of no use to them and may well cause more harm than good by enticing the roots up towards the surface. One really good soaking is far more beneficial than several quick showers. *** BUT AREN’T THEY JUST SLUG FOOD? Unfortunately, far too many would be hosta growers are put off by the thought of slugs and snails munching at them. There’s ... Read review

Advantages: A plant for that moist shady place
Disadvantages: Dies down in winter

Hostas - one of the most underrated of plants. Slug bait, I hear you say. Of course they are but there are many ways around that one. Grow them in pots, putting vaseline around the rim. Grow them through gravel, bark or anything else that is sharp OR (and heres the secret), grow lettuces among them. Slugs and snails will go for them long before the hostas, and by the time they get to them, they will be too tall. Anyway, back to the plant itself. ...
...you have shade and not moist, then thats easy too. Put in a lot of leaf mould or humus that will retain moisture. Hostas - they come in any shade of green you can imagine, pale, lime, dark - and then theres blue, pale, medium and dark. Variegated - green with yellow, yellow with green, white with green, green with white ecetera, etcetera. Height - there are varieties which grow to 12 inches (sorry dont do metric) and then theres those which will ... Read review

Advantages: Variety of foliage and sizes
Disadvantages: Lose leaves in winter

Hostas, or Plantain Lilies, are clump-forming perennials. There are around 70 species. Although they originate in the far East, they are fully hardy in our climate, and I find them addictive! They are grown primarily for their foliage, and come in a range of greens, blues and variegations. They have the added bonus of producing clusters of flowers in summer, on leafless stems. They prefer moist situations, and are very effective by a pond or in ... Read review

Advantages: quite nice foilage
Disadvantages: heaven scent for slugs

...way through all varieties of Hosta and give the plants a rather undesirable appearance. for this reason I would not grow them in any garden that has an obvious slug problem. One of the fundamental problems is that to thrive Hosta's require moisture at the roots . Slugs love soil containing moisture and so there is the problem .Also I suspect they taste nice to the molluscs. I have grown Hosta's on heavy slug infested soil over the years and frankly ...
...lavender scented flowers. Meanwhile Hosta fortunei "albo picta" enjoys being at the margin of a pool . I've used this to good effect in my own garden you do need to provide shade from the height of the midday sun though. Also the Hosta flowers can be used for cutting and are quite long lasting too. Regarding controlling slugs .Pellets help very little and can poision other wildlife pets and birds , it's hard to justify the use of these just for ... Read review

Advantages: They're pretty and smell nice
Disadvantages: They sometimes attack you

...had the gardens to ourselves. I can only describe them as stunning. Paths of perfectly manicured lawns lead you through walkways of the most delicate and impeccable roses. Arches and arbours are clad with yet more flowers and just as you start to think you'll go into sensual overload, the path opens out to reveal a fantastic renaissance garden featuring a long, oblong fountained pond a la Taj Mahal, flanked by fabulous standards and leading to a stone platform where one can sit amongst yet more roses for some quite contemplation. Before I finish, I feel I should also mention that Claire Austin, who, if I remember correctly, is David Austin's daughter, raises hardy perennials and part of the nursery is devoted to her plants. We bought a beautiful delphinium, a hosta, a clematis and, as she has a reasonable selection of native wild flowers... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: It works - plus there's a money-back guarantee!
Disadvantages: Only available online

...We have tried copper tape and pellets etc. but althought they killed a few and made a bit of a mess we still have so many that we felt like giving up. Our slugs and snail problem was pretty bad - they finished off my Hostas and ravaged my husbands Lettuces so badly, we'd come out after a wet night and to see the damage was so dissappointing. We came across this "Snailaway" product when searching the web, we were a bit sceptical but they offer a money back guarantee so we thought we'd give it a go. We have found it works fine and has made a big difference, completely sorted out my slugs and snails. I cannot reccomend it hightly enough We started off using it on our raised bed of lettuces and now we are using it on our pots and thinking it of having it in our hot-house for the plantlings. So both my husband & I can... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: autumn/early winter colour
Disadvantages: all yet to be tried and tested personally

...I was recently asked by a friend for some advice about what to plant in her new garden, for the Autumn. This is the advice that i have managed to gather together from different sources for her: (Mainly concentrating on colour, and brightening the garden up a bit). Autumn Crocuses, Winter Pansies, Chrysanthemums, Ornamental Kale, Asters, Hyacinths, Red twig Dogwoods, Jerusalem Artichoke, Burning bush, Hosta, Berberis, Berberis, Euonymus and Brachyglottis syn. senecio. Most of these suggestions have been from other people, so i shall wait and see what results can be had from these plants. Most of these plants are fairly hardy or perennial. the reason for this being that i wanted to suggest plants that would easily survive this Scottish winter. make of this list of plants what you will :)... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful