Hostas are mainly the plants of shadow gardens, but as a result of their great diversity of size, shape and colour, they offer wide possibilities for using in horticulture.
They are the leading individualities of shadow gardens, but they can be applied not only as solitaires but in spots, strips or bordering as well. They can be well coupled with other shadow perennials, fern, Epimedium, Waldsteinia, Dicentra, Geranium, Campanula.
They are excellent water marking plants; they can decorate bank of garden lakes, streams when coupled with Hemerocallis, grasses. Small-sized Hostas are very suitable for planting of shaded, semi-shaded areas of rock gardens. Sightful decoration of these areas of rock gardens would be a difficult task without dwarf-sized Hostas. These small plants with their circular, rosular foliage will become the jewels of the rock garden. Hostas can be kept in potteries, vats very well. This possibility will further extend its use in gardens. Terraces, pavements, lanes, roof-gardens can be decorated with them. Another advantage of keeping them in potteries is that they can be used in quite small gardens, fractions of gardens. As a result of their mobility, the shadow conditions can be well followed and the plants can be easily kept through the winter.
Planting of graves, graveyards, shrines with small- and medium-sized Hostas is well known in Western Europe and it is becoming more and more popular in Hungary, too. In foreign countries, use of Hosta leaves as leaf-green ornament gains ground in flower arrangement. Most of the generally used leaf-greens are of thin, narrow stem, or maybe arundinaceous. The oval or round leaves of Hostas compensate these shapes. Usually the base of the bunch of flowers is made of them, but they can be well used for other table ornaments or shrine ornaments. The leaves can be kept in vase for a long time, but it is very important to gather only ripen leaves of hard blades.
