Content
Planting and caring for the host at home is possible, although the plant is considered a garden plant. It is necessary to choose the right container, prepare the soil and provide an integrated approach. For planting at home, you should choose hosts of certain categories.
Can hosta be grown as a houseplant
Hosta is attractive for its gorgeous leaves, which is why many people want to grow it at home. The plant is unpretentious, therefore, with the correct organization of the process, this is quite real.
Which host can be planted at home
The host can be planted in a pot at home, but for this it is better to choose certain varieties of it. According to growth, several categories of plants are distinguished. For growing hosts at home, you should choose medium-sized varieties:
- category D - dwarf varieties up to 10 cm high;
- Mini category with hosts up to 15 cm;
- S category plants with a height of 15-25 cm;
- category M with pieces of medium size 25-45 cm.
Hosts of categories L (45-70 cm) and G (from 70 cm) are best left for the garden.
One of the options for an apartment is the dwarf variety Blue Moon, it has attractive blue leaves and large flowers have a lavender hue.
How to plant a hosta in a pot
Hosta is grown at home in a pot. If the plant was purchased in a container, then with a transplant into a new container, it is worth waiting until the root system is strengthened.
Choice of capacity
First you need to pick up a small pot. A more spacious container will be required when the flower grows up. At home, you can plant the host in a ceramic, clay, plastic pot. Small holes on the bottom are required.
Before planting the hosts, the selected pot should be disinfected. To do this, use potassium permanganate or alcohol solution, wiping the container from the inside.
The host can also be grown in a box, the inside of the material must be waterproof, and the outside of the container can be pasted over with colored paper or cloth
Soil preparation
In order for the hosta to grow successfully in a pot at home, you need to properly prepare the soil. The substrate must be sterile - the presence of fungi and pathogens will lead to the death of the plant. For disinfection, the earth is spilled with a manganese solution or kept in the oven for 1-2 hours, and then in the freezer for a day.
You can take ready-made soil or prepare it yourself. It should consist of peat, vermiculite, perlite, but 60% of the garden soil.
The soil should be slightly acidic or neutral, moderately moist. Hosts do not like heavy soil and sand.
Drainage is mandatory for growing at home, a 3-4 cm layer is enough. It is recommended to place humus under it, which will become a source of nutrients for the rhizome.
Landing algorithm
Features of the process at home depend on the planting material. If seeds are used, then the algorithm is as follows:
- Soak the material for half an hour in a growth stimulator. You can use aloe juice, Epin, Kornevin. Preparations can be replaced by monthly cold hardening.
- Pour a drainage layer into a disinfected pot, place a pre-moistened soil.
- Sow seeds, sprinkle with earth. Thickness not more than 1 cm. Slightly compact the soil. If a lot of sprouts are needed, then they are planted per 1 cm² seed.
- Cover the pot with glass. You can use a plastic bag or a cut-off plastic bottle.
- Monitor soil temperature. It should be between 18-25 ° C until shoots appear. It takes 2-3 weeks.
- Moisten the ground regularly, remove condensate in a timely manner. The pot can be kept in a shaded area.
- With the appearance of the first shoots, the hosta needs more light, but direct sunlight is excluded.
- When the first pair of leaves appears, the seedlings dive. You can move seedlings to individual pots. Pour fine sifted sand on top of the soil.
- At first, watering should be bottom - you need to put the pot in a pan with water.
- The shelter should be removed daily for 1-2 hours. In the absence of gusty winds and temperatures above 18 ° C, it is better to expose plants to the open air.
You can collect seeds for planting yourself, do it at the beginning of autumn - the seed pods turn brown and open
Hosta seeds are usually planted in early March or late February. Growing in this way is rarely practiced, since it takes a long time, and does not guarantee the preservation of all varietal characteristics. Planting seedlings or rhizomes with cuttings is much more popular. The algorithm in such cases is as follows:
- Fill the disinfected pot with a drainage layer halfway with soil, center the plant. Spill the earth 2 hours before landing
- Fill the free space around with soil, slightly compacting it.
Growing hosts indoors
For the successful existence of hosts at home, it is important to provide a certain microclimate in the room, regularly water and feed the plant, and observe the peculiarities of winter care.
Indoor microclimate
The host prefers a dry and cool room. When it is too warm in it, wilting begins. If the room temperature is room temperature, then the plant should be regularly sprayed. When choosing the right place for a pot, there are a number of factors to consider:
- the host prefers shading;
- there should be no drafts, this is especially important for a young plant;
- varieties with variegated colors need partial shade, but sunlight in the morning and evening hours;
- plants with bright or striped leaves need more light;
- varieties with blue foliage are only suitable for shading, and sunlight is required only for 2 hours a day.
In warm weather, you can put the host in a pot outside.
The host in a pot, as in the photo, grows successfully indoors, but in the summer they will perfectly complement their street counterparts.
In the conditions of an apartment in the summer, the host can be exhibited on a balcony or loggia
Watering and feeding schedule
Taking care of the hosta flower at home means watering and feeding it in a timely manner. The plant loves moisture, but in the room you need to remember about moderation. Water the hosta when the soil in the pot begins to dry out.
In the autumn-winter period, less moisture is needed. In the summer, the hosta is watered every day. For some varieties, and on particularly hot days, hydration may be required twice a day.
It is better to water the plant early in the morning or in the evening. If the house is warm and dry, then the condition of the soil is checked daily. When 2-3 cm of soil on top is dry, moisture is required. The water should be settled and at room temperature.
Water the plant slowly. With a strong flow of water, the earth does not have time to get enough moisture, since most of the moisture comes out of the drainage holes.
If the soil is dry, then loosen the soil before watering.When the soil dries up completely, the pot is placed in water for 1-2 hours.
The plant is fed in spring and autumn. Top dressing is required during flowering. Khosta prefers organic fertilizers:
- husk seeds or pine nuts;
- rotted bark;
- leafy land;
- garden compost;
- cobs of corn (must be chopped).
Mineral fertilizers serve as a source of vitamins. Effective complex means of prolonged action Bazakot, Osmokot.
How to take care of your host at home in winter
The hosta at home in a pot sleeps in the winter just like a plant grown outdoors. During this time, it is removed away from batteries and other sources of heat. Better to put the pot in a cool place. Some people keep it on the balcony if the temperature is at least 10-15 ° C.
Watering hosts in pots in winter is minimal, but drying out of the land is not allowed. You need to moisturize it a little. It is enough to control the soil condition 1-2 times a month.
In the spring, the host's room wakes up faster than her relatives on the street. It can be exposed to fresh air during the day, but kept indoors at night. If the plant does not wake up, then it should be kept in the apartment until warm.
Transfer
It is necessary to transplant the host as it grows. This is usually required when the plant is 2 years old. The algorithm is simple:
- Gently remove the hosta from the pot along with some of the soil above the tuber. Release roots carefully.
- Place the plant in the center of a new pot with drainage and some soil.
- Fill the empty space with earth.
- Add small pebbles. A layer of 3-4 cm is enough. This measure does not allow the soil to dry out quickly, preserves the roots and does not let parasites into them.
The host in a new pot should be positioned so that there is room for watering under the leaves without the risk of damage
Pros and cons of growing hosts in an apartment
Growing hosts at home has many benefits:
- the plant is mobile - it can be rearranged not only within the apartment, but also taken out to the loggia, street;
- excellent decorativeness and compatibility with many indoor flowers;
- maintaining attractiveness for many years;
- less susceptibility to diseases and pests, especially the main enemy - slugs;
- unpretentiousness;
- no risk of death of peduncles and buds in frost in late varieties.
Growing hosts at home also has disadvantages:
- the soil dries out faster;
- there is a risk of overheating the pot in the sun, which harms the roots;
- the soil must be changed every 2-4 years.
Sometimes hosts rank as disadvantages a shorter life expectancy at home. In an apartment, she can feel great for 10-15 years, when she has been successfully growing on the street for more than 20 years.
How to keep the hostu in a pot until spring
When it is planned to plant a plant in open ground, it is recommended to purchase it in the spring or at the end of August. If the hosta is purchased during the cold season, then at home it will perfectly wait for spring in a pot. To do this, you need to dig it in with the kidneys. The host will grow quickly and will wait well for disembarkation on the street. It is better to do this at the beginning of summer.
In winter, the host can be kept on an insulated loggia, then watering is not required. If it will stand indoors, then the care should be like a houseplant.
Pests and diseases
Home-grown hosts rarely suffer from pests. Their main enemy, a slug, simply does not survive in a dry room. The nematode can be a problem. These small worms are root, stem, leaf. You will have to say goodbye to the affected hosta, and the rest of the plants must be processed. Most indoor preparations are not suitable, Bak Eco-gel is allowed.
The root system is affected by gall nematodes no more than 1-2 mm in size, swellings, called galls, appear, first yellow and then brown
The main problem when growing hosts at home is disease. One of them is the X virus. It is expressed in round small specks on the leaves, which grow rapidly. There is no cure, the affected plant must be burned.
When infected with the X virus, it is recommended to get rid of not only the diseased plant, but also the pot, work gloves, all the tools used must be disinfected
Another problem is phyllostictosis, also called brown spot. First, large brownish-yellow spots appear, gradually merging, a plaque forms. The affected plant must be removed along with the pot.
Spores affect all parts of the plant and soil; for prevention, fungicides must be used
The host may develop root rot. The roots and base of the cutting turn black and rot. It is rarely possible to save the affected plant, therefore it is necessary to get rid of it. For prevention use Bordeaux liquid, colloidal sulfur.
The cause of root rot may lie in an oversupply of fertilizers or fungal contamination of the soil.
Conclusion
Planting and caring for the host at home does not require much effort. The plant is quite unpretentious, you can grow various varieties of it up to 50 cm high indoors. It is important for the host to water it in a timely manner, feed it twice a year and protect it from diseases and pests. In summer, the plant can be kept outdoors.
