Plants & Profits: hosta

Suggest hosta when customers ask for . . .

• A perennial for a bed underneath a tree
• A low-maintenance “starter” perennial
• Something with unique or unusual foliage
• A plant to line a walkway or edge a planting bed
• A perennial that offers unusual texture

{The story}
Hostas remain staples within shade and semi-shade gardens, creating a lush carpet of eye-catching foliage. Generally speaking, blue-leafed hostas require shade, while the gold, yellow and white-leafed hostas can tolerate more sun. There are thousands of cultivars to choose from, and consumers rely on garden centers to suggest the best plant for their landscape. Hostas are low-maintenance herbaceous perennials, and almost always appear on lists of ‘top perennials’ in the consumer media. The biggest problems associated with these plants are deer and slugs, which love to feed on the foliage.

Display and marketing possibilities

• Offer hostas as part of pre-planned shade garden packages.
• Play up evocative cultivar names with fun, full-color signage
• Ask your staff for their top three hosta picks. If possible, display photos of your employees’ gardens where these specimens are being grown.
• Use hosta in a “kid’s clinic” showing how to divide perennials. Help participants plant up the divisions, and let them take them home.