A little maintenance can go a long way.

As the trees change colors in the fall, so do the hostels, adding to the beautiful autumn colors of your garden. And while those yellow leaves may be beautiful, you may be ready to cut them off for aesthetic reasons. Plus, cutting back hosts will help them grow stronger next year – and fall is the perfect time. Here, we chatted with an expert gardener about when to prune your hostas, as well as how to keep these plants happy and healthy.

Meet the expert

Andrew Marshalla landscape expert, wildlife garden designer and founder Go Wild Landscapes.

Related: 20 varieties of hosta with beautiful foliage and flowers

Why autumn?

You don’t want to cut or cut hosta leaves when they are green and blooming. This will damage the plant – when the hosts are green, they are still actively growing, even underground. Instead, you should wait until late fall—usually November in most regions—when repeated frosts have turned the foliage to a muted color.

“Once the leaves are brown and not looking good, they can be cut,” says Andrew Marshall, a wildlife garden designer and founder of Go Wild Landscapes. “The reason we do this is partly aesthetic.” It is also worth considering that diseases and fungi can infiltrate the plant through the dry brown leaves, and a fungal attack can cause rot. This process will eventually kill the plant if left untreated, so it is best avoided by pruning.

How to reduce safely

With a pair of garden shears, cut the hosta’s foliage about two inches above soil level. “This will remove ragged brown leaves from your winter garden and clean up the border around the hostas, making room for fall and bulbs with spring flowers to manifest,” says Marshall.

To make the cuts, grasp several clusters of hosta leaves in one hand and cut the leaves with the other. Once the foliage is cut, add a layer of compost mulch to the edge. “This helps put nutrients back into the soil for next year,” says Marshall. “It will also protect the crown of the plant from winter frosts.”

Mistakes to avoid

Don’t cut soon enough

The biggest mistake you can make is delaying (or avoiding) the pruning process. Many others autumn perennials usually they can be cut in the spring, but hostels are different. Decaying brown foliage makes the crown of the plant susceptible to garden pests and rodents. Camphors, for example, may be tempted to call these browned leaves home during the winter and will devour the plant’s roots and crown—weakening the plant, if not killing it entirely.

Not Deadheading

Another common mistake is choosing not to pull the plant’s spent flowers. As with other fall perennials, deadheading a hosta’s flowers redirect their energy back to caring for their bulb, which is especially important as the plant goes dormant.

Excessive cuts

Finally, don’t cut too much. Cutting too much of the foliage can stress the plant, negatively impacting its overall health. Hostas also need these few inches of foliage to catch sunlight and photosynthesize. “They’re a great foliage plant to grow in a shady spot in the garden,” says Marshall. “But they still need sunlight to live.”

Related: 12 Plants You Should Never Prune in Fall

Autumn care

The division

You can also share hostas transplant in autumn to help spread them throughout the area. This gives the plants more room to grow when they re-emerge in the spring and helps fill your garden with beautiful foliage. Divide the plants in September if you live in a northern region and in October if you live in a southern region. Be sure to do this at least 30 days before the first frost; otherwise, the plants will have to be in pots and wintered indoors until spring.

Protection against pests

Another thing to keep in mind is pests. Hostas are, of course, particularly prone to attack from slugs and snails. Marshall suggests going the extra mile to keep them at bay. “Use copper wire rings for extra protection around the base of the plant,” he says. “Adding a circle of sharp sand and broken eggshells can help protect hosts in an ecological way.”

Watering

Finally, while hostas don’t require as much water once they’re cut, watering is still the best way to protect the root system from freeze-thaw cycles. How and when to water, Marshall says, depends on where you live—hosts in areas with mild or wet winters are less likely to need a lot of watering. When in doubt, always consult the experts at your local nursery or garden store!