How big are they? If they're tiny, how about putting them down in your seedling room under lights?

I'm going to put a couple of struggling ones in my hydro planter to see what happens.

I usually put mine in a pot and stick them in the shade (after pulling all the maple tree roots out of them).

Gesila

I have about a two gallon round glass container with lid, found it at WalMart, used to see those at the old stores where you got bubblegum for a penny in them. You know what I mean? I have another one with a lid which is a footed huge brandy snifter, and it is a smallish terrarium. I have some activated charcoal in the bottom to help keep it sweet if water tries to puddle. But, the two gallon round tubular container is my rooting jar, and now the home of the baby venusta with a doubtful root structure. And some false beach rosemary which broke off the plant as I was planting it outdoors with the real rosemary officinalis. (Yes, there is life outside a hosta garden :)

Frank, it sounds like you have room for a really fine set up. I keep mine out of direct sun, and tip the lids whenever I see condensation on the glass. My terrarium unit is over two years old now, and I've pinched things back a few times, all seems well balanced.

Also, beneath my hardware cloth, totally different project, I have some steelwool sanding disks (I just ordered two boxes of some 20 inch diameter pads to keep critters from digging under my house) and I'm putting those thick disks down, beneath the hardware cloth. But I'm not concerned about weeds. You might add a thick layer of newspaper beneath your hardware cloth for weed control.

Incidentally, I ordered some 4" wide rolls of steel wool also, and am going to try wrapping rims of some pots with it and see if slugs have an aversion to the sharp steel fibers as much as they do the copper. I cannot find any copper wool which is what I wanted. Will your 2 x 12 lumber be treated wood, or are termites not a problem up there?

There is nothing outside of hosta!

Up here we use treated lumber for anything that touches the ground or concrete. There are definitely termites up here.

If you use smooth ceramic or plastic pots you could try using self adhesive copper foil tape that is used for making stained glass. Any stained glass shop will sell it. You can get it in different widths.

or you can try to locate this stuff. I found the picture on google but it wasn't a store.
{{gwi:1014419}}

The label says ACE, so it could be through Amazon--Ace Outlet works through them, as I recently learned.

Very good. In the pictures where the nursery was using copper pipe mounted on the walls of the greenhouse to keep out the big snails, they had two rows of the pipe going horizontally around the building, just in case any made it past the first barrier. With only one ICU you might consider adding a second row of the tape a little below the one on the top rim. Sort of belt and suspenders technique.

Frank,

Hostas that need special care (i.e. full shade) go into a pot and sit behind my deck. They get only filtered sun if that, and plenty of water.

In the same area I am also building a seedling bed. I am lining the bed with hardware wire to keep out voles and then covering with 50% shade cloth making a low tunnel out of hoops. No copper, just Sluggo. You might have to clean that copper periodically, and, of course, if one gets in, it can't get out.

Steve

I giggled when Moccasin said you have enough room for a really fine set-up. From everything I have seen of your gardens, Frank, you only have room because you have non-virtual j-pegged gardens.

I have had my best success by potting for at least one over-winter and then one year in a sleeve in the ground minimizing root competition. I have an area near my compost source for my nursery area. It is, like my composting area, a work place. My plans for this area are to add controlled shade capability and a slotted potting table.

After this treatment, when I place them in my garden they JUMP forward the next spring.

Last year I was given ventricosa by my across the street hosta-lover. Hers were so jammed close together that I couldn't differentiate one crown from another. I had to remove mine full grown and didn't know how to tape up the foliage. Naturally I had some smallish pieces AND GAVE THEM TO ONE OF MY DAUGHTERS for rehab. This spring she has several really nice looking ventricosa. So add - give to a family member for tlc, to your list. lol

Les