Hosta Praying Hands

By Mary | 1 Comments | Rating: 2

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This is a very unusual Hosta. Its leaves are folded and not open like most hosta leaves are. The leaves of Hosta Praying Hands are a dark green with a narrow creamy band along the center. The thing that makes this perennial plant unusual is its upright habit. Most hosta plants tend to be open and mounding but this one with its folded leaves gives a spiky aspect to a garden bed.

Praying Hands is a small Hosta. It is smaller than 20" tall and wide which it yet another unique feature. If you are a collector of Hosta plants this one is a definite must have. This shade plant is more expensive than some probably because it is the 2011 Hosta of the Year. The collector's value plus the honor of being chosen will cause it to be a bit harder to find for awhile. The newness will eventually wear off though and the price will settle down to the normal "Hosta" range.

A few other Hosta's of the Year include Hosta Patriot 1997, Hosta Paul's Glory 1999, and Hosta Guacamole 2002. Some people collect all the award winners and if you do so you have to decide if you want to add this one to the your list of grown Hostas.

This is a type of Hosta fortunei, and that species is a bit smaller and has more shiny looking leaves than some of the others such as Hosta Sieboldiana Elegans. The leaves are less rounded and more spear shaped and the colors (because of the glossy look) seem to contrast more on the leaf. I'm actually a big fan of the Fortunei species I like the gaudy shiny leaves and the facts that they can handle my sunny garden and my horrible clay soil.

This is a Hosta that people seem to have strong opinions on. They either love it or hate it. Praying Hands gets a lot more flowers than most others and the flowers could actually be a strong point for it. Most plants just send up a spray with a few gangly flowers but this one really makes a statement with its flowers. I don't know what the statement might be but it is definitely saying something.

It may be an oddity in the land of Hosta but Hosta Praying Hands deserves to have its day in the sun…ummm shade. If you'd like something a little different and unique in your home garden you might want to think about adding this Hosta plant to your landscape and see just what you think of it.

Sports of Hosta 'Praying Hands'

Hosta Hands Up

Top 25 Hosta Plants

1. Hosta June
2. Hosta Sagae
3. Hosta Liberty
4. Hosta Guacamole
5. Hosta Blue Angel
6. Hosta Striptease
7. Hosta Paul's Glory
8. Hosta Stained Glass
9. Hosta Gold Standard
10. Hosta Halcyon
11. Hosta Sum and Substance
12. Hosta montana Aureomarginata
13. Hosta Paradigm
14. Hosta Orange Marmalade
15. Hosta Regal Splendor
16. Hosta Whirlwind
17. Hosta Spilt Milk
18. Hosta Abiqua Drinking Gourd
19. Hosta Guardian Angel
20. Hosta Patriot
21. Hosta On Stage
22. Hosta Niagra Falls
23. Hosta Great Expectations
24. Hosta Praying Hands
25. Hosta First Frost

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Comments

Dec 1, 2010 10:49am

aidenofthetower
Great article. I never knew there were that many different types of hosta plants! I have always liked hostas and the praying hands variety sounds pretty interesting.