Hosta Vista Podcast — Season 2 premieres MAY 9TH! Every Saturday all summer long, your favorite hosta and gardening podcast is back with new episodes featuring plant experts, nursery owners, landscape designers, and disease specialists.

If you're a plant parent who started with a monstera and is ready to take your passion from indoor to outdoor, this is your next obsession. Hostas are the ultimate shade garden plant — and we have the experts to prove it.

Season 2 guests include hosta expert Bob Solberg, Christina Brinkmann, Al Ritchey, and Dr. Warren Pollock — plus convention coverage, storytellers, and so much more. We can't wait for you to hear it all.

Whether you're a beginner gardener or a seasoned hosta collector, there's something here for every plant lover. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode — just hit the + (follow) button in the corner to get notified the moment new episodes drop.

Find Hosta Vista Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Threads. Questions? Email us at HostalaVistapodcast@gmail.com

Music by Tomasz Redman

We know January can feel like the longest month in the garden calendar — so consider this your little dose of green in the grey. Betsy and Mandy are back with a Season 2 preview episode of Hosta La Vista: The Friendship Plant Podcast, and we have a lot to look forward to together.

We're hard at work planning a season we think you're really going to love — new guests, new gardens, new stories, and the same love for hostas and friendship that brought us all together in the first place.

Season 2 kicks off May 9th with legendary hosta hybridizer Bob Solberg of Green Hill Hostas. Bob has introduced around 100 cultivars to the market including Guacamole, Curly Fries, and Cracker Crumbs — so if you've ever wondered who's responsible for naming hostas after your snack cabinet, we found him. He was doing food-named plants before it was cool.

If you're planning to attend the Midwest Regional Hosta Society Convention in Madison, Wisconsin this July, come find us — Betsy and Mandy will both be there and would love to meet you in person.

While you wait for May, catch up on all of Season 1 — every episode is available now wherever you listen to podcasts.

Follow us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so Season 2 finds you the moment it drops. Got questions or just want to say hello? Email us at hostalavistapodcast@gmail.com, or find us on Facebook and Instagram at Hosta La Vista Podcast.

See you in May — we cannot wait.

Betsy and Mandy

Protect your hostas from frost with a cardboard box — that's just one of the practical gems Gail Russo shares in this Season 1 finale of Hosta La Vista. We're visiting Gail and David Russo of The Russo Garden in Cedarville, New Jersey, for a deep dive into their stunning multi-habitat landscape featuring hostas, daylilies, sunny and shady beds, ponds, and water features.

Learn how the Russos grow and sell hosta seeds through Facebook's Seed Growers group, overwinter seedlings, and collaborate with a nursery to bring new varieties to market. Whether you're curious about hosta seed growing for beginners, fall garden prep, or how to design a diverse shade garden, this episode is packed with actionable advice.

Gail also contributes articles to the AHS e-Newsletter — a free quarterly publication from the American Hosta Society available to members and non-members alike. She's actively looking for gardeners to feature, so reach out if you'd like to share your story. Read her July issue here: https://americanhostasociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/July2025.pdf

Topics covered:

• How to protect hostas from frost using cardboard boxes
• Growing and selling hosta seeds
• Overwintering hosta seedlings
• Designing a multi-habitat garden with shade and sun
• Seasonal hosta care tips for fall
• Contributing to the AHS e-Newsletter

Subscribe on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you don't miss Season 2. Join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram, or email us at hostalavistapodcast@gmail.com.