It all depends on what size plant you are beginning with. Fit the plants roots to the pot. Not all Mice are similar. I have 4 or 5 and they are all different. My Blue Mouse ears totally filled a a 2 gal pot and spread out almost 20" more fitting a description of small, rather than mini. Those leaves were not mini, but rather 2+"x3+". I have a Mighty Mouse that stayed small leaved, but in a 1 gal container for several years before it had to be divided. All mice are not created equal!

I would think that a 4" pot would work for a couple years if you start with a plug, but then it all depends on how they grow for you. Some grow faster than the others.

Put each one in a 4" pot and slide them out in a year to see what is going on with the roots. (How crowded they are). I seriously doubt that you will get the same sized clumps. Hostas are so individually willing to cooperate.

I say go for it and take lots of notes. Sounds like fun. Report back on your rodent collection.

Didn't one of the recent Hosta Journals do a special section of minis (mostly mice) grown in Europe. I was surprised at the number of them that reverted or disappeared. Worth a look... The name "mouseland" comes to mind, but it is late here and the wine is being consumed. As I recall, none of them made the same sized clumps... Good Luck with your plan.

-Babka

as Babka said "go for it".. why not?..you certainly know how to transplant it if you need to..when I plant (inground or a pot) I always hope that things will last "forever" but they usually don't..if you get 2 years at least it had a home for 2 years lol..I bet it will look adorable..post pictures!..

i found that clay pots .... unfired .... were very hard to work with ...

if you have no experience with them .... you might want to stick with a plastic pot ... which if you size it right.. can be slipped into a clay pot ...

if you do have success with clay ... whats the trick??

ken

ken..not growing any hostas in pots at the moment..I wondered what the problems were with clay pots?..too dry?..

Yeah Ken, clay pots can be a PIA sometimes. They do dry out faster, are prone to damage and if not protected will crack in the winter. That being said, I still use them some in the smaller less expensive sizes. I like the more natural look and allow the green algae to grow on the outside.

For this project, I am planning to bury them in the soil and cover with some kind of mulch. The space will not allow anything larger than the standard 4.3" pots and I would like to get at least a few years before I have to tear it apart and do over.

Thanks all for your input.

unfired clay is porous ... and dry clay can wick water out of the media from the sides ... and super dry media ... can be impossible to rewet properly ...

it a watering issue ...

now if you are there every day.. to test every pot .. to insure proper moisture.. i am sure it can be done ... its just easier in plastic ...

back in the day .. the only real place you saw clay pots... was inside greenhouses ... with all their humidity control ...

it could also be very location dependent .... one might speculate.. the cooler and wetter a location.. the more forgiving clay might be ... one might think that the PNW and england might be more friendly toward such ..

but all i know is that in my potential 100 degree july and august ... there are pots a lot easier to deal with .. other than clay ...

and of course.. they did away with clay in greenhouses if for no other reason.. they weigh a lot, comparatively ... and if you have to move a couple thousand of them around.. crikey ....

ken

Got the Book of Little Hostas on Monday and it shows a lot of nice ideas how to present minis. As I ordered quite a few for spring I will surely try to realize some of those 'mini-hosta-gardens' in pots or maybe metall tubs I get from the scrap metal dealer.

Is clay pot the same as earthenware? I like the look but I don't like them for the hostas. They dry too quickly in summer and get covered with algae during the wet season. I will use them for other plants this year, agave maybe which I take inside over winter...

I really love my ammunition box with seedlings from my belgian friend. Maybe I should buy a few more of those for the minis...

Karin, really like the ammunition box too. Is it filled with media and the hostas planted directly in it? Do you have any kind of liner in it?

I did a similar thing with an original wooden ice cream bucket. Loved it but they only last so many years and it is a shame to let the antique rot out.

I just put a small layer of gravel under the potting media and no liner. It's the first winter for hostas in that box but I had other plants in it the year before and it was no problem. I shut the lid a little to protect them by laying a piece of wood between box and lid. We will soon see if this was a good plan :-) The box is a very good quality, does not wither easily, the government is caring for the grenades :-)

Old dirt, I’m curious about your plan. Could you show us some pictures or give us a better description? I’ve got several minis in pots and am always looking for some new ideas. Here I have three minis that multiplied really quickly, Blue Mouse Ears doubled in size each season in it's pot here. in addition, Cracker Crumbs and Surfer Girl multiplied rapidly.

Sherry

Sherry, I have in mind an old wagon wheel inside a whiskey barrel. What I have is about a 1/2 inch off so looking for a slightly smaller wheel or just force it into the barrel. The pots would be sunk in and not visible. Planting one mini in each spoke opening. Maybe some kind of annuals for a colorful center piece.

Karen, That root system looks like a great idea. I do a fair amount of hiking nature trails and have seen several of these but most of them are huge. I bet I will watch for one in a manageable size.

Karin..your idea sounds pretty..I love logs, branches, stumps etc too..my yard is a treasure trove of debris..I have a little stash of debris that I keep for who knows what lol..my husband will say "should I throw this out?" and I'll say "I'm saving that"..

old_dirt..I love your idea with the wagon wheel..I saw a pic of an old non folding ladder secured to the ground with a different plant planted in each section..if I find any pics I'll post them..

The wagon wheel is also a nice idea and if the clay pots are sunken in and protected from the metal they will not dry so fast. If we have high water in spring I will look for more driftwood, maybe I can construct something similar to a root system in a big pot for the beginning. I love to use all kind of debris, as long as it is from mother nature :-) I collected stones like agate and amethyst years ago and use the cheaper ones for pot decoration meanwhile, maybe some also wander into the mini garden.

Last year I was determined to collect mouse hosta, but now I don't like them so much anymore. I ordered a wide variety of shape, color and growing habits as is would be in a big hosta garden. With the ones I already have it will be interesting to choose what I use in the end...

here are some names that I have in mind...Ani
Machi/Geisha
Bashfull
Cameo
Country Mouse
Cracker Crumbs
Dixie Chikadee
Frosted Lollipop
Japangirl
Lakeside Elfin Fire
Lakeside Ninita
Lakeside Whizzit
Little Caesar
Little Wonder
Munchkin Fire
Needlepoint
Paradise Puppet
Sitting Pretty
Snow Mouse
Twilight
Twist of Lime

I couldn't find the pic of a "planted" ladder..I did see a wagon wheel and stumps..I posted these even though you've probably seen similar pics..

Wow, that stumpery is great, exactly what I would love to have, only a little bit smaller :-)

I would also be satisfied with less..I think it would be hard to maintain..you don't have anywhere to step to reach the plants..or sit to work on them..but the plants are great..

I hope spring comes soon, need a bit of gardening work for heart and soul after the long winter. Making plans is nice but to feel the earth beneath the fingers is much nicer...Last year I was able to make bike tours for collecting stones and wood already around mid of March. At the moment it is still very cold, eastwind blowing from Siberia but it shall be warmer in a few days...

Karin..waiting for winter to end is torture..I feel rejuvenated already after just a few days outside and seeing my tiny hosta pips lol..

No pips here yet, but at least the parcels with the new ones will soon start to come and then I have my guestroom full of new hostas :-) Every day until spring last so long now...but the days get remarkably longer, the sun is rising in an hour and that's good to notice. Coffeetime in garden is coming nearer...

I think I would be thrilled to see that stumpery in person, very foresty, just the way I like it.

As much as I enjoyed the warm weather we had here in southern PA, (got lots of spent foliage cleaned up) I just hope we're not going to have another warm-cold-warm-cold pattern like last year. I see lots of pips, and other plants developing that I'm concerned about right now.

Cracker Crumbs is a must, Karin. It's the brightest hosta in my garden when it leafs out.

wonder what might have happened to old-dirt ....

you guys kinda hijacked this post .. lol ... i doubt anyone cares ...

one other thing about clay pots.. in my ground freeze MI ... they have to be emptied and stored dry ... or they can crack in winter.. as the water they soaks up expands ...

btw ... i see to recall a class at hosta college.. where bob solberg taught peeps how to grow algae and moss on pots ... because it looked cool ... lol ... as i recall.. with mosses ... you put it in a blender with buttermilk or something like that.. and then paint the goo on the pots ...

ken

I don't keep hosta in terracotta because of the drying out thing. Sorry Ken, I hang my head in shame.

I have two minis in clay pots sunk into the ground. The one with Flamenco Mouse looks like it might have gotten too dry this winter. I touched the eye that was showing and it came up and had dried up roots on it.

The other one is Sparkler which did fine in a plastic pot for two years, but I uppotted it a little into a clay pot last summer. We’ll see how it has done over the winter.

I think I’m going back to plastic pots.

I like my clay pots, maybe I should try the pot in pot method...or if I can not fight it, feed it and make moss art pots :-) Actually found something about it in the net, different recipies, one with beer and sugar, the other with buttermilk...Thanks for the idea, Ken!

My Asian guru suggested boiled rice water poured over rocks and lanterns and the moss will come. I have several cement lanterns that developed lichens over the years, but my granite one is only just starting to grow anything on it's North side. We have a lot of lava rock and the nooks and crannies allow the moss to put down their roots IF I remember to water. Not always.

So is a 4" pot big enough for a mini????? Answer: Only if the roots fill most of the pot.

-Babka

Still here Ken and liking all the info here. I also read about the moss and buttermilk thing but the DW frowned on my using her blender. I have a lot of natural moss (to much). I allow it to edge one bed and have a brick path that is covered with a carpet of moss, can't even see the bricks anymore.

Ken, for what it’s worth, all clay pots are fired. If there were not fired they would just dissolve in the rain.

(When I was a kid, I once made my Mom a whole SET of “pots” I made from clay I dug up in the yard. I thought I was such a thoughtful kid. I had read somewhere about sun-baked clay. I laid them out on the sidewalk since that was the hottest place. Then it rained.)

The kind you are referring to are just not GLAZED. It’s the glaze that makes clay waterproof.

First firing is called “bisque”. After firing it is hard, but still porous. The common orange terracotta pot has been fired once.

To be glazed (like dishes), it is first bisque fired, then dipped into powdered glass and minerals mixed into a solution with water.

Then it is fired at higher temperature that melts the glass and minerals, and combines with the outer surface molecules of the clay.

A glazed clay pot has been through 2 firings, and is not porous. Though they WILL crack and fall apart in the winter, even faster than an unglazed pot. Cold is ok, I keep mine in the garage for winter.

(I make pottery for fun)