The Mouse Series of miniature hostas has become a very popular group of plants to collect. With new mouse varieties each year, collectors never run out of options for their expanding collections. The mouse series began with 'Blue Cadet' sport 'Blue Mouse Ears', which as the name suggests resembles small round mouse ears. Once established 'Blue Mouse Ears' became the origin of many new mouse varieties such as 'Church Mouse' and 'Dancing Mouse'. The series has gone from strength to strength with interesting introductions such 'Country Mouse' and 'Snow Mouse'.
Growing Mice
We find that on the nursery some are much better growers than others. As miniatures, it is always important not to over pot as they take much longer to establish than regular sized hostas and the can rot in too big of a pot. The best way would be to gradually increase their pot size overtime as they grow. Always be sure to include plenty of drainage. Take a look at our Growing Hostas In Pots blog where we go into more detail on this. We believe the mouse series look their best in pots as apposed to being ground planted where they can be lost or go unnoticed.
How New Mice Are Found
There are two ways that new varieties can come about. One is through a genetic mutation known as a sport. This is when a variety, lets use 'Blue Mouse Ears' as an example, mutates to show different traits to the original variety it once was. This leads to varieties such as 'Snow Mouse' (see below images).
The second way that new varieties come about is through hybridising. This is when the genes from two different varieties are crossed to create a new one. This can be a long process and is less common than introduction from sports.
How Many Types of Mice Are There?
The truth is by the time you are reading this article there will probably be another 2 or 3 varieties at least. New additions are found each year and introduce into the market. We will update this list as new varieties are introduced, if there are any you know of that aren't on the list, please let us know. Last updated 23/01/2024
