The plants that keeps on giving

If you have hostas in your landscape, you already know how well they work as perennial bedding plants. With beautiful foliage and flowers, hostas are perfect for groundcovers or backdrops in shady areas. Even better, they’re durable, easy to maintain, and can be divided in the fall to create more of a good thing!

Diving hostas is a relatively simple process. The first step is to dig up a clump with a sharp spade, then separate out sections by hand or with a knife. The larger the clump, the more sections it will produce. When making the divisions, it’s important to ensure that each new section has roots intact.

The sections can then be planted. Planting holes should be as deep as the root ball, and one-and-a-half times as wide. As with any new planting, the new divisions will need room to grow. So, the space between the planting holes should be equal to the diameter of the mature clump the divisions came from. Once planted, a thorough watering will help the new divisions get off to a great start in their new location.

Whether you’re looking to share some plants with a friend or get more mileage out of your current plantings, dividing hostas is a great way to do it!