There is a grand lady who has been gracing my garden the past couple of years. In fact I would say she is definitely Miss America. You know The Garden Guy is having fun, as I am talking about Shadowland Miss America hosta.

The past two summers have to go down as a hosta survivability challenge of sorts. If the hostas are not crying uncle The Garden Guy is.

Shadowland Miss America is giving my other two favorites a run to see who captures the gold at my zone 8 West Georgia garden. I haven’t been a hosta grower for long but I already have Shadowland Autumn Frost and Shadowland Etched Glass high on the pedestal.

There is something special however about the way Shadowland Miss America maintains her creamy white center variegation and on green leaves that also has unique light green streaking. They are thick, sturdy and positioned as if she knows her name is Miss America.

I am always working with the goal of showy plant combinations. I’ve hit big a couple of times with Shadowland hostas and hydrangeas that are typically blue in my soil.

This year Miss America and Perfecto Mundo Red reblooming azaleas put a smile on my face. So you might guess that Perfecto Mundo Red and a blue Tuff Stuff Ah Ha mountain hydrangea hitting in sequence would be nothing but pure luck. But they should all match up at some point in time with Miss America.

I also like to try hosta and caladium combinations. Last year I tried Shadowland Miss America hosta with Heart to Heart Flatter Me caladiums and loved the look. This year I I had the opportunity to get Heart to Heart Blushing Bride. It is a strap leaf variety and has given me a new appreciation for this type of caladium. You really do get a bounty of colorful leaves.

I am old fashioned too; I like hostas with hostas, ferns and impatiens. I love blue green hostas with yellow leaf shrubs like anise or grown on the shady side of a golden needled chamaecyparis.

Shadowland Miss America will reach around 20 inches tall in zone 8 producing tall scapes or flowers reaching 56 to 60 inches. In my garden you can spot the hummingbirds flying like little acrobats through the shade visiting most all hosta flower stalks. The hosta clump itself will eventually spread to around 55 inches.

Fertile organic rich beds will pay huge dividends and make for hosta happiness. I am growing mine on a hillside where leaves have been falling for decades creating some good soils with their decomposition. The trees provide the needed protection from the hot afternoon sun. Now if I could return to a rainy pattern, I would be ecstatic.

The Shadowland Hosta collection is approaching 20 gorgeous varieties, most of which are recommended from zones 3-9.I used to make fun of hosta gardeners, particularly during the dormant season. The hosta area reminded me of a national cemetery. Here is where my loved ones are buried. How true that turned out to be!

Now that I am building my collection, I see the need for such an endeavor. I’ve been using wood stakes and it must look like my area is where the vampires are in eternal rest.

So let this be a warning to you young hosta gardeners: You will fall in love with this plant. You will want all of the colors, patterns, textures and sizes of hostas that are in the marketplace.

This next spring I urge you to begin with Shadowland Miss America. She is a winner indeed!

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(Norman Winter, horticulturist, garden speaker and author of “Tough-as-Nails Flowers for the South” and “Captivating Combinations: Color and Style in the Garden.” Follow him on Facebook @NormanWinterTheGardenGuy.)

(NOTE TO EDITORS: Norman Winter receives complimentary plants to review from the companies he covers.)

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