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The Book of Little Hostas: 200 Small, Very Small, and Mini Varieties

By Kathy Guest Shadrack and Michael Shadrack

Consulting editor Diana Grenfell

The hosta world has been waiting for a book like this.

Bob Solberg, American Hosta Growers Association

Hostas are irresistible. Their sculptural leaves and appealing textures make it difficult to stop at one, and it is easy to fill a garden with them. Help is at hand with this attractive guide to the popular new small hostas that take up less space and are ideally suited to container cultivation. They can be used on their own or with companion plants to make charming displays on the patio, porch, or even windowsill.

Many small hostas are simply scaled-down versions of classic hostas, while others offer distinctly new attributes in terms of color, leaf shape, and patterning. Like full-size hostas, small hostas can be upright, flat, or cascading; there are varieties that are full of substance, and others that are fine and delicate; there are green ones, gold ones, blue ones, variegated ones, and splashed ones. Some are better garden plants than others, and a valuable function of this book is to showcase the very best of the new introductions. Photographs of the hostas in garden settings show how admirably they respond to imaginative display in a wide range of situations including waterside, woodland, and rock gardens.

Beautifully illustrated and highly informative, this handpicked selection of diminutive hostas will inspire hobbyists and gardeners alike and provide inspiration for new planting schemes.

Filed under: genus specific, plant directory, shade, care, container, cultivation, perennials, pests and diseases, rock garden, small spaces

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 208 pp.
Book dimensions: 7.2 x 9.33 in. (235 x 185 mm.)
Images: 263 color photos
ISBN-10: 1604690607
ISBN-13: 9781604690606
Product code: 689060

Media reviews

"Useful and beautifully illustrated."

—Kirkus Reviews

"If you love hostas already, you'll love this book. If you didn't love them before, you'll love this book and little hostas."

—Kylee Baumle, Gardening by the Book blog

"Very nice. ... If you still think of hostas as big, boring, and plain old green, take a look."

—Virginia Smith, Philadelphia Inquirer

"Well-written and with beautiful images, this book is a valuable addition to any gardener's library."

—The Gardener for the Prairies Magazine

"I didn't know much about hostas before reading this book. ... but after reading Little Hostas, I've fallen in lust with several of these diminutive plants."

—Life on the Balcony blog

About the authors

Kathy Guest Shadrack

Kathy Guest Shadrack has gardened passionately in Western New York for over 25 years and has maintained collections of hostas, irises, and daylilies. A former secretary of the American Iris Society, she is currently the secretary of the American Hosta Society.

Michael Shadrack

Michael Shadrack is a photographer with more than six thousand hosta images in his library. He is an active member of the British Hosta and Hemerocallis Society and the American Hosta Society, and has assumed leadership roles in both organizations. Michael regularly lectures on hostas in North America and Europe, and is an avid hybridizer as well.