Dividing

January 2012

I have 3 or 4 large hostas plants that have gotten too big for the area where they are currently planted. When is it a good time to dig these up and relocate them. Also, is there anything extra I need to do to insure the plants will re-establish themselves.

Hostas are quite easy to divide and replant. When you see signs of them emerging in the spring, dig up the clump and cut between divisions. I find a serrated bread knife does the best trick, but anything that makes a nice clean cut will work. Leave two or three crowns per division. A crown of a plant is the area where the stems meet the roots. When hostas get growing, they often can have six or more crowns in each plant. If you over-divide and separate them down to one crown per division, it will give you a small plant and they will not bounce back as quickly.

May 2008

My cannas haven't bloomed in three years. Is it because they are not in full sun? They only have sun in the afternoon?

Cannas need a minimum of six hours of sunlight to bloom their best. They also may be too crowded. Canna bulbs grow quite quickly and can easily get overcrowded. Try thinning out the plants and try moving a few to a sunnier locale and see how the blooming goes. Water well and fertilize two to three times during the season.

June 2005

Once before you printed a hint about how to make Stella de Oro lilies bloom again once their first blooming period is over. My Stella daylilies bloomed only fair this year. They now have what look like pods at the tops of the stalks. I wonder if I should cut them back or leave them alone. I would appreciate your help with any info you can give me.

While Stella de’oro daylilies are touted as ever blooming daylilies, blooming will definitely be curtailed if you allow the seedpods to remain after bloom. Although most daylilies set seedpods following bloom, Stella’s seem to be prone to an abundance of them. While they are busy making seeds, less energy will go into new blooms. It is best to deadhead the spent blooms at least every two weeks to keep them setting more flowers. This needn’t be as time-consuming as it sounds. Simply snap off the spent flowers or beginning seed pods whenever you pass the plant. Fertilize after the first peak of blooms, and then again six to eight weeks later. Water as needed. Following these recommendations should give you almost continuous blooms. Another thing that reduces blooms is overcrowding. While Stella’s don’t get overly tall, they can grow quite wide. If they are too crowded, blooms will be small and sparse. Division can be done either spring or fall.

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