Gardening: Hints and Help!

Just purchased two of the above compost, these are now not the same quality as last year. Its the same rubbish stuff as in most peat free bags

Perhaps one for Hostahousey. I have two Hosta's in my back garden both in pots. Not sure of the variety but one is a more compact plant and its leaves are constantly getting eaten by something. The large more vigorous plant seems to be growing rather nicely with no evidence of being eaten, they are about 10 feet apart!

David

HH will be the expert, but all I can say is that Hostas are notoriously delicious to slugs and snails. Our hostas, all in pots have never looked better than this year, and I think it might be down to getting lots of moisture, but this of course brings out the slugs and snails. Mine are in pots, but up off the ground in a hay rack pinned to wall, and a couple on an old pig killing slab affair again a foot or so off the ground. Close to bird feeders as well, so it’s a brave slug that tempts our resident blackbirds🤭 Check around the munched one for slug and snail trails, then if these are the culprit, decide how to deal with them.

(The pig killing slab you ask🤔 It was in an old outhouse when we bought the house 40 years ago. The first owners of the house, newly built in the 1860’s were successful local butchers. One of the outhouses was where pig carcasses were bled out on the shallow sink, and then I presume butchered for the shop. We demolished the old outhouse, but kept the rather lovely stone sink, quite large, but only shallow, as a garden feature. It was an alpine plant area for many years, but we moved it, without plants, to another area, and I now keep potted plants on it instead. At some point, because it has a proper drain plug, I have dreams of another water feature, but it’s very very heavy. Potted plants do well because it’s up off the ground and the pots can drain well via the plug hole!)

Inundated with slugs this year, I’ve bought new plants, put them in the garden and within 2 days they are stripped. Hostas are in pots, on the decking, pots in trays with water in, (hoping slugs can’t swim) copper tape around the top, grit and eggshells around the base of the plants, checked every day and ok so far, fingers crossed. I saw on another site that someone had put a ring of 2p pieces around their plants. I had some waiting to be exchanged at the bank, so I’ve now put rings around newly planted plants, where I can’t put copper tape 🤞 so far ok.... Maybe the pennies will grow 😂 

It’s a bit of a bad year for some things. I’m not doing too bad with slug damage, but it’s been so wet, I have “rust” on some of my roses for first time ever. Just going to roll with it if I can, I sprayed for other rose nasties last week, and they seem to be budding up wonderfully. I even have one or two fully flowering. I am having an afternoon pottering, just tidying up a few pots, cutting back a few things, hoping to lay some bark in some areas. It’s clouded over here, we are right on the edge of the Amber thunderstorm warnings, so hoping we miss out.

Yes slugs and snails are a problem with Hostas. I use horticultural grit around my pots, the main problem with slugs 🐌 and snails is they lay their eggs below ground and these lay dormant until the following year. They then hatch in the Spring and unfortunately eat fresh new growth and carry on eating over summer. A good way that can help in Autumn when the plant is starting to die off , remove from pot or ground and wash all the roots clean and repot  in new compost and re-grit. This is time consuming but might be worth a try on a couple and see what result you get .