I usually go by how much the potting mix has compacted. When the hosta has "sunk down" in the pot, I repot it. I generally do not totally clean off the roots when I repot. I usually just clean off the worst of it. When they have to be divided (leaves get smaller), I clean off the soil entirely (pretty much). It gets to be like hard packed clay after several years.

That's just how I do it. I'm not an expert.

bk

oh come on bkay.. you are one of two pot queens here ... lol ...

media failure is based on drainage .. as the media compacts or breaks down ... water does not flow freely thru it ... usually defaulting to puddling.. and running down the edges ..

eventually when you unpot.. you find all the roots that were in the middle.. dry rotted .. and are dead.. and all live roots are out at the edges ...

with a plant in the ground.. this is when you would start seeing fairy rings ...

how do you SEE that in a pot ... well.. take it out of the pot and look ...

generally though.. i guess i wouldnt go more than 2 or 3 years.. depending on the quality of the media you started with ...

ken

btw ... this is not a rule specific to hosta ... drainage is important to all plants .. especially perennials ... and double especially for cold winter storage.. you want them to drain properly for storage ... in fall

hope all is well with you ...

ken

Several people in our club have all of their hostas in pots. They never go beyond 3 years. We need to replant several of ours this year since they are in spin out bags that line pots in the gorund to avoid maple tree roots. We are not looking forward to the job.

It depends for me. I have some portion of my hosta overwintering in the ground so I repot it every year, that is till they get enough root mass to be solid and safe to overwinter above ground.

Older pots year every few years and it is a job. Also one need to think if you want to restrict it size and keep in same container for long time or keep going with next larger size. Some hostas are happy and will fill next size real fast... and some will just sit and sit and sit....