bloooooooom Eight o's. Don't count, bookmark. Plan a bed

Hosta 'Great Expectations'

Hosta 'Great Expectations' · Asparagaceae

Hosta 'Great Expectations' (Hosta 'Great Expectations')
Photo: Photo by David J. Stang, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Puckered leaves with a centre that opens yellow and turns cream, feathered with green, inside a wide, irregular, blue-green border.

Size
22 in tall, 3½ ft wide
Zones
3 to 9
Light
Part shade to shade
Flowers
Grown for its leaves; flowers late June to late July
Pets
Toxic (mild)
Job in a bed
Specimen

A bed built around hosta 'Great Expectations'

The planner designed this bed around hosta 'Great Expectations' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) cottage garden in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why hosta 'Great Expectations' stands where it does.

A 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) bed at eye level in mid July: Hosta 'Great Expectations', Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple', Astilbe 'Sprite', Northern sea oats, Foxglove, Gray's sedge, Snowdrop, Grecian windflower.
A 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) cottage garden in zone 6, part shade, seen from the path in mid July.
4. Northern sea oats44. Northern sea oats44. Northern sea oats45. Foxglove55. Foxglove55. Foxglove51. Hosta 'Great Expectations'13. Astilbe 'Sprite'33. Astilbe 'Sprite'33. Astilbe 'Sprite'32. Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple'22. Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple'22. Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple'23. Astilbe 'Sprite'33. Astilbe 'Sprite'33. Astilbe 'Sprite'33. Astilbe 'Sprite'33. Astilbe 'Sprite'36. Gray's sedge66. Gray's sedge66. Gray's sedge63. Astilbe 'Sprite'33. Astilbe 'Sprite'33. Astilbe 'Sprite'32. Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple'22. Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple'22. Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple'22. Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple'22. Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple'27. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop7. Snowdrop8. Grecian windflower8. Grecian windflower8. Grecian windflower8. Grecian windflower8. Grecian windflower8. Grecian windflower8. Grecian windflower8. Grecian windflower
From above, to scale. Each circle is one plant, as wide as the room it needs.

The plants

  1. 1 Hosta 'Great Expectations' × 1, blue-green leaves
  2. 2 Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple' × 8, purple
  3. 3 Astilbe 'Sprite' × 11, pink
  4. 4 Northern sea oats × 3, tan
  5. 5 Foxglove × 3, purple
  6. 6 Gray's sedge × 3, green
  7. 7 Snowdrop × 12, white
  8. 8 Grecian windflower × 8, blue

Why this plant

  • The only plant grown for its leaves. Leaf lasts all season, where a flower lasts a few weeks.
  • A classic partner for astilbe 'Sprite'. Both are on this plan. A pairing gardeners have proved outranks a general rule.

Why here

  • In the middle. At 22 in it is the step between astilbe 'Sprite' (12 in) in front and Gray's sedge (2½ ft) behind: each is seen over the one before.
  • One plant, alone. A feature plant is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
  • Beside astilbe 'Sprite'. A recognised partner: the planner puts such plants together where it can.

Why now

  • Here for its leaves, spring to frost. They cover the 11 weeks between early March and late November when nothing on the plan is in flower.

Planned as a cottage garden: 29 of the 29 plants (100%), bulbs aside, stand alone or in groups of no more than five, small enough for the kinds to mingle. The back corners are held by northern sea oats and foxglove, the tallest plants on the plan. Neither end outweighs the other: the visual weight is split 48 to 52, left to right.

The planner's own design check: 14 Excellent, 2 Good, 1 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Foxglove is highly poisonous to people, dogs, cats and horses. Northern sea oats spreads aggressively.

Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.

Where hosta 'Great Expectations' goes in a border

At 22 in it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium short (18 to 24 in).

Its job: specimen. A feature plant with a shape of its own. It stands alone with room around it, and repeats only at a distance.

Among the most beautiful hostas and among the slowest. It needs good soil, steady moisture and patience, and rewards them with a leaf like a painting.

  • A specimen for a favoured spot in shade
  • Close viewing beside a path
  • Collectors

What to plant with hosta 'Great Expectations'

Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:

  • Japanese painted fern: fine leaves against its bold ones; happy in the same moist soil.
  • Astilbe 'Sprite': adds the flowers, early July to early August; fine leaves against its bold ones; a low mound at the foot of its spires.
  • Foamflower: adds the flowers, late April to late May; medium leaves against its bold ones; a low mound at the foot of its spires.

Questions about hosta 'Great Expectations'

Does hosta 'Great Expectations' need sun or shade?

Hosta 'Great Expectations' grows in part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light).

It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.

What zones does hosta 'Great Expectations' grow in?

USDA zones 3 to 9. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).

Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.

How far apart should hosta 'Great Expectations' be planted?

3 ft (90 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 3½ ft (100 cm), so a group knits into one patch.

It grows 22 in (55 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.

How many hosta 'Great Expectations' plants do I need?

At 3 ft apart, set out in staggered rows:

  • 1 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
  • 4 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
  • 4 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own

In a mixed border, plant it as one, with clear ground around it: a feature plant is seen as an object, and a group of them is a thicket.

In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.

Is hosta 'Great Expectations' poisonous to dogs and cats?

Yes: mild toxicity to dogs, cats and horses. Can cause vomiting and diarrhoea in pets if eaten.

Rated from the ASPCA. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.

What does hosta 'Great Expectations' look like in winter?

Hosta 'Great Expectations' dies down to the ground and there is nothing to see until spring. The old stems can be cut in autumn, or left until spring as shelter for overwintering insects.

More Hosta

In these guides

Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9

Every fact on record

Type
Perennial
Size
22 in (55 cm) tall, 3½ ft (100 cm) wide
Plant
3 ft (90 cm) apart
Height class
Medium short (18 to 24 in)
Place in the bed
Middle
Flowers
Late June to late July; upright spires; white
Leaves
Bold texture, herbaceous; blue-green, chartreuse, variegated
Shape
Mounding, clumping
Hardy in
USDA zones 3 to 9
Light
Part shade, shade
Soil
Rich, evenly moist
Water
Moderate
Feeding
Light, in spring
Family
Asparagaceae

Checked against ASPCA poison lists. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.