Miniature and small hostas stay compact, usually under about 30 cm high. They are perfect for pots, troughs, rock gardens, balconies and the front of a shady border.
Miniature & small hostas
Plant them where you can see them up close, in well-drained soil that does not dry out. In pots, use good potting compost and water regularly in summer.
Every pack contains 2 plants of the same variety and comes with our 100% growing guarantee.
Small hostas are plants for close viewing. Put them where you pass every day: along a path, at the foot of a step, in a gap in the paving or in a trough by the door. At the front of a border they work best in groups; two or three packs make a neat drift of four to six plants. On a shady balcony, a row of small hostas in matching pots looks more striking than one large plant.
Blue Mouse Ears and its relatives are the best-known small blues. Hadspen Blue and Canadian Blue grow a little larger and suit edging better than troughs.
Sun Mouse is a true miniature in bright yellow. Wiggles and Squiggles has rippled edges, and Maui Buttercups stays compact with gold leaves. They colour best with a little morning sun.
Pandora's Box is a miniature with a white centre, Little Treasure pairs cream with a blue-green edge, and Lakeside Little Tuft has a yellow centre framed in green. For red leaf stems, try Cherry Berry or Lipstick Kiss.
Among the plain green small hostas, Miracle Lemony stands out with its unusual lemony-yellow flowers, and Invincible combines glossy dark green leaves with fragrant flowers.
Drainage matters more for small hostas than for big ones: they root shallowly and can rot in heavy, waterlogged ground. Mix grit or fine gravel into the soil, or plant on a slightly raised bed. Set the crown at soil level and keep larger neighbours at a distance, as big hostas and ferns soon smother a miniature.
Mark where they grow. Miniatures vanish completely in winter, and it is easy to dig into them by mistake in early spring.
A stone trough or a raised rock bed suits miniatures perfectly. Use a gritty mix of about two parts compost to one part grit, and finish with a layer of fine gravel to keep the crowns dry and the leaves free of soil splash. Choose a spot in light shade and water in dry spells, because a trough dries out faster than the open ground.
Miniatures look best with plants of their own scale. Mix a blue, a gold and a white-centred variety in one trough, or line a path with alternating blue and gold. Small ferns and mosses suit them; vigorous ground covers do not, as they creep over the crowns. In a mixed border, keep a little open ground around each small hosta so it is not swamped in midsummer.
Miniature hostas usually stay under about 15–20 cm high; small hostas reach roughly 20–30 cm. Most spread a little wider than they are tall.
Blue Mouse Ears, Hosta of the Year 2008, is the best-known miniature: thick, round blue leaves that slugs find hard to eat. It has inspired a whole family of “mouse” hostas in other colours, such as Ruffled Mouse Ears, Sun Mouse and Funny Mouse. Mini Skirt, Hosta of the Year 2024, has very wavy green leaves edged in yellow.
Yes, miniature and small hostas are ideal for pots and troughs. Use a pot with drainage holes and good potting compost, water regularly in summer and keep the pot in shade or partial shade.
Slowly at first. A miniature usually needs two or three years to form a full little clump, and some take longer. Keep the space around it free of bigger plants and add a little compost in spring.
Yellow and gold miniatures, such as Sun Mouse, like a few hours of morning sun, which brings out their colour. Golden Tiara copes with more sun than most. Blue and white-centred small hostas are best in shade.
Some are. Blue Mouse Ears has thick leaves that slugs find hard to eat, and Ayesha and Gravity Rocks are good choices too. Still, a small plant has few leaves to lose, so check them after rain in spring.
Planting
Yes, hostas grow very well in pots. Choose a frost-proof container with drainage holes, fill it with free-draining compost, and water whenever the surface feels dry. Feed through spring and early summer, check under the rim for slugs, and leave the pot outdoors in winter, because hostas need a cold rest to grow well the next year.
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