Rainbows End in Mid July - half day sun.

Li'l Abner in August - nearly full sun.

Both have grown well for me especially Li'l Abner.

Thanks for posting those beautiful pictures. I like to look at the Hosta Library, but seeing pictures from people that actually have them in their yard is much better.

I recall reading somewhere that the non-variegated hostas will stand up to sun better than the variegated. I've had some in sun, don't know the cultivar, but I still had to water them regularly in the hot summer months and even then they did so-so. They definitely didn't grow as large as they did in the shade. I posted something I found on the web:

SUN TOLERANT HOSTAS:

Hosta Royal Standard

The worst sun damage to hostas comes in high summer from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Most experts agree that hostas lose a lot of their moisture content from the sun and wind. So, if you plan to grow hostas in the sun, water profusely and keep them heavily mulched. Thick leaved and fragrant hostas with plenty of water will also tolerate sun conditions better than other hostas.

There is no such thing as a truly sun-tolerant hosta. In Zone 6 and further South, hostas should remain in some shade, as the sun is much too intense. In northern gardens, you must give hostas a lot of water in order to keep that good look in the sun.

Below is a list of plants that are known to hold up well in 4 hours or more of sun without excessive care in Zone 6 and further north. Consider this list as helpful, but not factual, because hostas prefer some shade.

Hostas with Full Sun Tolerance Potential

H. 'Allan P. McConnell'

H. 'August Moon'

H. 'Blue Angel'

H. 'Elegans'

H. 'Francee'

H. 'Halcyon'

H. 'Honeybells'

H. 'Invincible'

H. 'Krossa Regal'

H. 'Lancifolia'

H. 'Pearl Lake'

H. plantaginea & family including:

--- H. 'Aphrodite'

--- H. 'Ming Treasure'

--- H. 'Venus'

H. 'Royal Standard'

H. 'So Sweet'

H. 'Sun Power'.

H. 'Sugar & Cream'

H. undulata & family including:

--- H. u. 'Albomarginata'

Hostas with 4 hours of sun tolerance

H. 'Abba Dabba Do'

H. 'Abiqua Moonbeam'

H. 'Alex Summers'

H. 'Ani Machi'

H. 'Aztec Treasure'

H. 'Birchwood Parky's Gold'

H. 'Blonde Elf'

H. 'Blue Cadet'

H. 'Blue Mammoth'

H. 'Blue Umbrellas'

H. 'Calypso'

H. 'Canadian Blue'

H. 'Chartreuse Ruffles'

H. 'Cherry Berry'

H. 'Choko Nishiki'

H. 'Christmas Tree'

H. 'Colossal'

H. 'Crusader'
H. 'Dee's Golden Jewel'

H. 'El Capitian'

H. 'Eternal Flame'

H. 'Fair Maiden'

H. 'Feather Boa'

H. 'Fire and Ice'

H. 'Fortunei Aureomarginata'

H. 'Fragrant Bouquet' & family including:

--- H. 'Fried Bananas'

--- H. 'Fried Green Tomatoes'

--- H. 'Guacamole'

H. 'Fragrant Gold'

H. 'Fringe Benefit'

H. 'Geisha'

H. 'Golden Fascination'
H. 'Green Fountain'

H. 'Green Wedge

H. 'Ginko Craig'

H. 'Glory'

H. 'Gold Drop'

H. 'Gold Edger'

H. 'Gold Regal'

H. 'Golden Anniversary'

H. 'Golden Tiara'

H. 'Green Gold'

H. 'Green Sheen'

H. 'Grey Piecrust'
H. 'Hadspen Blue'

H. 'Hirao Supreme'

H. 'Hoosier Harmony'

H. hypoleuca

H. ÂInniswood'

H. 'Janet'

H. 'Jewel Of The Nile'

H. 'Joker'

H. 'Josephine'
H. 'June'

H. 'Kiwi Sunshine'

H. 'Krossa Regal'

H. 'Lady Isobel Barnett'

H. 'Lakeside Kaleidoscope'
H. 'Lakeside Shoremaster'

H. 'Lemon Lime'

H. 'Love Pat'

H. 'Lucy Vitols'

H. 'Mackawa'

H. 'Marquette Park'

H. 'Mayan Moon'
H. 'Moonlight'

H. 'Morning Light'

H. 'Nancy Minks'

H. nigrescens

H. 'On Stage'

H. 'Paradise Joyce'

H. 'Patriot'
H. 'Paul's Glory'

H. 'Punky'
H. 'Radiant Edger'

H. 'Regal Splendor'

H. 'Richland Gold'

H. 'Sagae'

H. 'September Sun'

H. 'Shade Fanfare'

H. 'Shining Tot'

H. 'Snow Crust'
H. 'Squash Casserole'

H. 'Solar Flare'

H. 'Stained Glass'

H. 'Stiletto'

H. 'Sum and Substance' & family

H. 'Summer Fragrance'

H. 'Sundance '

H. 'Sun Glow'

H. Sunspot

H. 'Sweet Home Chicago'

H. 'Sweetie'

H. 'Swirling Hearts'

H. 'Treasure'

H. 'Vanilla Cream'

H. 'Vera Verde'

H.' Warwick Delight'

H. 'Whirlwind'

H. 'Wrinkles and Cream'

H. 'Zounds'

hosta are simply shade TOLERANT ...

all hosta like sun ...

its just a matter of how well they stand up in the sun.. or how early in the season they start looking ratty ...

but they will grow faster in more light ...

i really dont know the difference between BRIGHT sun.. and DARK sun.. per your title ..

the easy answer .... dig hole. insert hosta.. make observations.. move it.. if it doesnt like the spot you put it in...

in general.. white tissue crisps and burns in sun .. as the plant can not maintain that tissue in sun ...

ken

Hi Joan,

I can tell you i have personally grown Radient Edger in full sun up to about 2 pm. It takes sun very very well. I grow Rainbow's End in filtered shade which I think helps maintain the gold edge. I used to have Hanky Panky in full sun but I moved it to filtered shade because I think the colors look better. However, it did take full sun well. I think Lil' Abner might do better with more sun. I have mine in pretty deep shade and the colors are dull and it hasn't been growing as fast as I would like. Another two I have had great luck with growing in full sun are Grand Tiara and Wylde Green Cream. Hope this helps. Good luck!

Thanks for all of the advice.

A lot will depend on how good the actual plants look once I get to the farm, but you never know, I might just buy all four and get rid of some irises to make more room.

The hosta list will come in handy for me.

I am in the process of helping older friends replace hosta on the east side of their home and near their driveway. They want something smaller than what they have.I now know what I will go with thanks to your post!!!

Connie

Hi there!! I have Radiant Edger, very nice small hosta (my favorite small Hosta, nice colors) that tolerates quite abit of sun, like Ken said they are "shade tolerant" but some I would not put in full sun, just my experience... where was I? .... oh, but someone showed a list of hosta above this, my only thought on that list, well a couple of hosta, most of the blue show better with less sun, I have a halcyon that gets have day sun (by middle of summer it is more green) and another halcyon that gets just morning sun (blue all summer til fall). I'd avoid blues for sun, my Blue Angel gets half day sun (grows great), but is mostly green by mid summer, (yah it has to do with the wax thing too, but the sun melts wax doesnt it?)just as some of the whiter ones will melt in sun. I'm sure someone will have more to say on this.

Paul

MCT!! I really like your Lil Abner, looks really nice!! (will have to check that one out, THANKS)

and Joan, the list above also mentions some very LARGE hosta,(sum & substance) probably not what you are looking for. thankyou kimcoco for posting this!!

Paul

Don Rawson has a put together quite the complete list of sun-tolerant Hosta, which I post on my website. You can find it here.

I like Cheatin Heart because it keeps it's yellow all season and did great for me in 6 hours of full sun.

My other favorite is Emerald Tiara. Its the yellow-green one in a small mound on the left in this photo. It looks fantastic, never burns for me, takes 6 hrs of full sun and multiplies like crazy. I've divided this one about 8 times and each year it looks as if it's never been divided.

Lainey