Humpback Whale Hosta

Light Needs

Full Shade to Partial Shade

(0 - 4 Hours Of Direct Sunlight)

Mature Height

3 Feet

Mature Spread

7 Feet

Growing Zones

3 to 9

Like the ocean giant, the aptly-named Humpback Whale Hosta (Hosta hybrid) is a giant in the plant world. With a mounded dome of blue-green leaves, this hosta can grow nearly 3 feet tall and 7 feet around. The big, textured leaves have a heart-like shape. It’s tough to imagine a perennial getting this big with little sun, but the hosta prefers part shade to shade, especially the type of dappled shade provided by trees.

Humpback Whale Hosta grows in zones 3 through 9 and in most soil types. It adapts well to its soil and environment and grows to its mammoth size with little help from the gardener. In early summer, white flowers rise on a scape about a foot above the foliage and attract hummingbirds. But the real beauty of this plant is its year-round color, since the blue-green leaves remain all year. Place a few of these hostas in a shady area needing a border, like along a path or driveway, or use a single one as a focal plant in the landscape.

Humpback Whale Hosta Care

Hostas require little care other than regular, average watering. Although they can grow in average soil, they prefer a fertile soil. You can improve soil by adding some compost at planting time. Mulching around the plant with a compostable mulch can help keep the soil moist and cut down on weeds around the plant. Organic mulches applied each spring help feed the plants as well, though you can add an all-purpose fertilizer around the plant, avoiding getting any granules on the leaves.

It’s best to water regularly enough to keep the soil from drying out for long; the big leaves on this plant release plenty of moisture. Humpback Whale will need no pruning, just removal of dead or damaged leaves in late winter to prevent diseases. Remove the flower scape after the white flowers fade by cutting the stem down to just above the foliage.

Humpback Whale Hosta Spacing

This big boy needs room to grow, so if planting in a border, as part of a mixed bed, or up against a home’s foundation, leave it room to reach its mature size. That means spacing a new plant about 7 feet from a wall or the center of another plant.