Looking for a few key tips and tricks to keep the foliage on your hostas safe from slugs, aphids and other insects?
Hostas are one of the most popular perennials of all. Known for their big, beautiful leaves, they can brighten up flower beds with their rich green, blue, or variegated foliage. But while hostas are tough plants that come back year after year, they are also one of the most targeted plants when it comes to insect damage.
Slugs, aphids, and a few other pests love to visit hostas. And when they do, the damage comes swiftly – sometimes in a single night! One day your hosta plants look full and lush, and the next day, small holes can appear all over the leaves – or even worse – entire sections chewed away.
Thankfully, there are a few simple and natural ways to keep your hostas safe. From homemade slug traps to neem oil sprays, you can protect your plants without the need for using harsh chemicals. Even better, these methods are safe for pets, wildlife, and pollinators when used in just the right way!
Keeping Hostas Safe From Slugs, Aphids & Other Hungry Insects
Why Hostas Attract So Many Pests
Hostas are soft-leafed plants. Their large, tender leaves hold a lot of moisture and provide a cool, shady place for insects to hide. Especially underneath their big canopy of foliage. This makes them an easy target for pests like slugs and aphids. Both pests feed on the leaves and can do damage fast if not stopped early.
Slugs are especially bad news. They come out at night or in damp, shady conditions and can chew large holes in hosta leaves. Even worse, slugs don’t eat in just one spot. They usually move from leaf to leaf, leaving ragged edges and damage all over.
Aphids, on the other hand, are tiny bugs that suck the juices out of leaves. They’re harder to see at first, but their feeding can curl leaves and weaken plants. Even worse than the damage they cause by feeding is the fact that they can carry serious plant disease along with their bite.
Other pests like caterpillars, beetles, and leaf-cutting insects will often show up too. Knowing how to deal with all of these insects is the first step to keeping your plants safe. And it all starts with dealing with the worst of them all – slugs!
How To Keep Hostas Safe With Slug Traps
One of the best ways to control slugs is by setting traps. Slugs are attracted to the smell of yeast and fermenting liquids – especially beer. You can take advantage of this by making a simple beer trap that lures them in and keeps them from reaching your plants.
To make a beer trap, all you need is a small plastic container with a shallow lip. Dig a small hole near your hosta plants and place several containers in the ground so that the top edge is even with the soil. Fill it about halfway with beer or yeast water. Affiliate Link: Desland Refillable Slug Traps
For the yeast water, just mix one tablespoon of dry yeast, a teaspoon of sugar, and a cup of warm water and pour it into the trap. Slugs will crawl in and fall into the beer or yeast water and can’t crawl out. In the morning, you can remove and dump the trap, and then refill if needed.
We use this trick not only to protect our hostas, but all of our leafy vegetable plants as well. We set a few traps up early in the season before we ever see the first slug. It absolutely works like a charm!
A Few Other Slug Tricks To Keep Hostas Safe
Along with traps, there are a few other tricks that can make your garden less inviting for slugs. The first is to keep mulch light and not piled up too thickly around your hostas.
It’s also best to try always water plant in the morning. Slugs are most active in damp, cool conditions. Watering early in the day allows your plants and soil to dry out by evening, making it harder for slugs to move around at night.
Last but not least, you can use crushed eggshells or coffee grounds around the base of your hostas to help form a barrier that slugs won’t want to cross. The sharp edges irritate and cut into their soft bodies. Also see: How To Get Rid Of Slugs – 3 Simple Ways To Stop Slugs And Protect Your Plants!
How To Stop Aphids & Other Insects With Neem Oil
While slug damage is easy to spot, damage from aphids and other small insects can be a bit harder to see at first. Aphids are tiny green, white, black, or brown insects that usually gather in large groups. They often hide under hosta leaves or along stems.
They feed by sucking the sap from the plant, which can cause the leaves to curl or yellow and weaken the overall growth of the plant. So how can you stop them quickly along with other small insects? The answer is with neem oil! Affiliate Link: HARRIS Neem Oil Cold Pressed Water Soluble Concentrate
Neem oil is made from the seeds of the neem tree and works as both a pest repellent and a mild insecticide. It doesn’t kill on contact but interferes with the insect’s ability to feed and reproduce. Over time, it can reduce numbers drastically – and more importantly, naturally.
To use neem oil spray on hostas, mix 2 tablespoons of neem oil per gallon of water. Spray the solution onto the leaves, especially the undersides where aphids hide. Make sure the entire plant is covered, including around the base where other insects may linger.
Consistency Is The Key
The key to neem oil is using it regularly. Apply it every 10 to 14 days as a preventative spray, even if you don’t see pests. If you already have an aphid problem, spray once a week until the bugs are gone. After that, go back to spraying every two weeks to keep them from returning.
It’s best to spray early in the morning or later in the evening when bees and other pollinators are less active. Although neem oil is safe for beneficial insects once it dries, spraying when pollinators are not flying helps protect them even more.
One of the biggest benefits of neem oil is that it’s safe to use around your family, pets, and the environment. It doesn’t contain harsh chemicals or poisons, and it breaks down quickly in sunlight and rain. When applied properly, it poses no danger to birds, bees, butterflies, or mammals.
Because neem oil only targets insects that feed on plants, it won’t harm most beneficial bugs like ladybugs or spiders. It’s also a great choice for people who don’t want to use synthetic sprays but still want to protect their garden from pests. (For tips on using neem oil to battle pests, see: 2 Easy Ways To Eliminate Ticks In Your Yard – For Good!)
Here’s to keeping your hostas safe from slugs, aphids and other insects this year! Happy Gardening – Jim & Mary.
Old World Garden Farms
Jim and Mary Competti have been writing gardening, DIY and recipe articles and books for over 15 years from their 46 acre Ohio farm. The two are frequent speakers on all things gardening and love to travel in their spare time.
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