Hosta plants are native to Asia.
A hosta is a large leafy plant that is a popular choice for many gardeners looking for a decorative perennial plant. Hostas grow well in shade and gardeners can choose from over 2,500 varieties with different shapes, colors and blooms. If you notice small holes on the leaves, you may have snails eating your hostas.
Signs
Snails and slugs are some of the most common hosta pests, and they do damage to the hosta leaves when they chew holes in them. Other signs of a snail infestation in your hostas include small, thin, shimmery-looking trails along the leaves or in garden beds.
Pesticides
Begin to focus on eliminating snails from your hostas in the spring, because spring is when snails will awaken from hibernation and begin looking for food. Pesticides are available for snail and slug control, but they can harm the environment. If you do use a pesticide, consider using one that contains iron phosphate, an iron salt, as the active ingredient as this will cause less harm to wildlife. Metaldehyde, which is a type of rat poison and slug bait, is another common pesticide for snails.
Organic Methods
Pesticides are toxic to pets, and homeowners may want to choose safer, organic methods for getting rid of snails. One method is to lay out sheets of wet newspaper at night. By morning, snails will have collected under the newspaper and the newspaper can then be removed. Spread diatomaceous earth around the garden bed to create an undesirable texture for snails. Shallow dishes of beer are a nontoxic, cheap snail bait. Snails and slugs will be attracted to the beer then and fall in and drown.
Other Pests
Check for snails using a flashlight before you attempt to eradicate them; you'll want to be sure you are dealing with snails. The flashlight will illuminate any slug trails on leaves better than the naked eye. Other pests that eat hostas include rabbits, deer, nematodes, squirrels and vine weevils. Nematodes turn the hosta leaves yellow, vine weevils can eat holes along the sides of the leaves and other small animals may eat the leaves as well. Animal footprints, damage to other plants and large chunks of hosta leaves missing are signs of larger animal damage.
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