Should Hostas be cut down low this time of year to clean up flower beds and allow better growth in the summer?

Hi,


I'm in No. IL., I just cut mine back and cleaned up the area.


Any flower beds I've seen that are taken care of by professional landscaper crews have cut and cleaned up the sites they tend, plus all the lillies are cut and cleaned up, too.


Hope this helps, Dave

Should Hostas be cut down low this time of year to clean up flower beds and allow better growth in the summer?
If it hasn't died back yet yes then it cut it to ground level.
Reply:In the Chicago area, I had good luck letting my hostas stay as they were over winter and then pulling up anything that was left in the spring after it started getting warm. As I pulled out the dead leaves that hadn't decayed, I found little hosta sprouts underneath. The decaying plant matter seemed to warm them, and they grew quicker and bigger than the same plants at my neighbor's house.
Reply:Clean them up now or in the spring take your choice.





It's easier to cut them back now rather than trying to clean out the dead leaves from the new growth in the spring.





If you leave the foliage now it will give the roots some protection from freezing %26amp; thawing during the winter. It they freeze %26amp; thaw to many times that will weaken them.
Reply:Treat them as you would any perennial plant that dies off over winter months. Cut back dying foliage to ground level and mulch, fertilise in spring for strong new growth. If patch is too big you can divide for more plants.
Reply:After the leaves die down, trim them back. Go to the following web site and the info is at the bottom of the page.


http://www.hosta.net/tips.htm#6
Reply:Clean them up now. Good garden sanitation involves removal of plants' dead growth, since a host of insects and diseases can overwinter in this material. This differs from mulch, in that mulch, such as raked leaves, can benefit by insulating the soil from heaving plants in freeze/thaw cycles. But hostas are the type of plant that will tolerate winter no problem. If the hostas had slug damage and other problems, those things will most certainly be transferred back to them in the spring if you don't clean up. Exposure to cold allows the cold to do its job by killing certain insects that would otherwise overwinter in plant waste. And hosta leaves are one type that just get nasty and slimey once they die, so get rid of them! Hint for preventing slug damage in hostas: spread wood sawdust (not charcoal dust, since it can react with rain to form sulphuric acid), and the slugs will be repelled. And you can use the beer-in-a-saucer method, but why waste beer?
Reply:Hostas should be cut back in the fall. That way no fungas will grow on the leaves.
Reply:FLOYD B IS BY FAR THE BETTER ANSWER
Reply:I have several different types of hostas. I find that they come back better in the spring if you just leave them alone.

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