Mini-hosta

Mini-hostas are a hot ticket these days. 'Blue Mouse Ears' have been around for awhile, but in the last five or six years, the public's appetite for more and more miniature varieties has been growing furiously. Since 2008, the American Hosta Society has defined a mini this way: Leaf area can be no greater than about four square inches and length no more than about 4 1/2 inches. Pretty tiny, but if you've ever seen these plants in a container or scattered about in a garden - on the rocks, along a path - they're pretty sensational. This old metal container has been transformed into something interesting by Ann Stookey, the Chestnut Hill gardener who'll be featured in our Home & Design section tomorrow. Ann's got a beautiful "green" garden that emphasizes the different shades of green and foliage, rather than flowers. I wrote about her weeks ago when I first visited her garden. I returned this week to see how things have filled out, and discovered this little treasure on a table on her back terrace. A similar photo will accompany the story; unfortunately, it's in black and white, so you can't appreciate the colors and textures very well. So here it is - a collection of different-textured mosses and one tiny hosta that makes a nifty centerpiece. Minis - check out 'Bitsy Gold,' 'Daisy Doolittle,' 'Green Eyes' and curly-leaf 'Dragon Tails' - are the perfect scale for city gardens, in a patio space or berm, in ceramic bowls, troughs, wooden boxes or beds. Easy to see why they're seducing all kinds of gardeners nowadays. And imagine the ease of division. My neighbor comes to mind. He's a  strong fellow, a creative and experienced gardener who earlier this spring decided it was time to divide his overgrown hostas. He dug them out (with difficulty), hauled them to the driveway, and went at it with a shovel. He got them divided, all right, but broke his spade in the process. Yikes! Pass the minis!