Yes, GE will get that large. I have three mature plants, and they range in height from 31 to 33 inches tall, with a diameter of 36 to 60 inches. The 36 inch diameter plant is quite crowded by other large varietes, or it would spread out more.

GE has three basic requirements to grow well. Plant it shallowly, or it will dwindle and fade away over the course of a year or two. Give it lots of light, and water it thoroughly and often. If you treat it right, this will be the most spectacular hosta in your garden.

{{gwi:921534}}

yeah .. right

don and dh are the only two peeps in the country who can grow it ..

IF IT WERE ME ... and i have bought at least 8 of them over the years.. i would return it... and get your money back .. mine all died ...

this is NOT one for the neophyte to try to grow ... period ...

go for one of the edged sum and substance ... it will be stunning in a large planter ...

or better yet ... guardian angel ... or liberty ....

dont invest in a long term failure ... mail order is the way to go ... if local supply is limited ...

check the above names at the hosta library ....

good luck

ken

Or you could just grow it along a dirt road.

uh oh, just bought two huge pots of Great Expectations. I had great expectations that they would thrive in my garden, where most hostas are pretty happy.
The price was too good to pass up, 2 huge pots with at least 4 or 6 plants in each for $15

Now I am sort of a beginner with hostas, I have several that have been on my yard for years, and I am a pro at dividing, but only recently did I start trading and buying. I am tempted to just plant these two clumps of GE the way they are, but is that the best thing for the plant or should I separate them?

Don r and esox, yours are stunning!

By the way, if anyone lives in the Philadelphia/South Jersey/Delaware area, I found a modest discreet little nursery less than a mile from my house that sells over 150 varieties of hosta - Michael's Country Nursery in Medford NJ. Let me know if you want more details! Gorgeous and jaw dropping selection, great prices.

Don, that is an amazing GE.

sorry, many people will tell you that is a very difficult Hosta to grow, and some people have had success Jealous of there photos). It can be touchy (some say more sun the better,"not so much to fry it> and water), I just blame my failure to grow that one on my stupid Maple trees. That way I dont have to take the blame!!

Paul

Wow - I can grow something Ken can't!!!!

For the record, I appreciate and enjoy all of Ken's comments, and have learned alot from him.

Planted my GE under a tree (lots of roots), minimal water and no direct sunlight. Had steady growth until last year, when rot hit it. But I managed to salvage one crown, (thanks to Ken and others here) and it is gorgous this year in its 1 quart pot.

Mine is 4 years old and is a painfully slow grower. There are so many other cultivars that are better hostas in every way. I won't bother with this one again if it kicks the bucket.

Good Luck! Tim

How large?? I bought mine in 2003, a nice specimin with four eyes. Today, I have one tiny eye, looks like a seedling! This is after a rescue last year of three small eyes, bare rooted and put in pots, overwintered in garage. One survived. Maybe some GEs are hardier than others, but right now I am with ken...........

I have read and now believe that it really depends on the plant that you get. Someone mentioned that there may be two varieties of GE and the weaker of them is the one that tends to dwindle.
Here's my story...
Bought my first GE in 2006
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A year later...
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So I found another one at a bargain price late 2007 and thought why not...
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Last year...
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Two years later and it's thriving...
{{gwi:974008}}

The only thing I did different was put GE #2 directly in the ground instead of trying to baby it in a pot.

Janet

i am having better luck with dream weaver or thunderbolt or something

I had a few that would not grow either. I dug them up and put them in some small pots intending to plant them in another location later. Then it rained, filled the tray with a lot of water and a week later those GE were starting to grow. I re-potted them and put them in my pond all summer, with the top above the water. They were very happy so I put them in the ground for the winter and they came back bigger then ever!

poberbeck, Hmm, What a good idea!! I will have to give that one a try. I could always use another pond plant! How far above the water was the crown? Very curious here!

Paul

Is it possible that GE was one of the first hostas produced through tissue culture? It's almost like two different plants are being discussed here - the beautiful, stalwart Great Expectations and its evil twin brother, Thwarted Hopes. Maybe something got missed in the translation, especially at the beginning, and growers have been able to clean it up since.
It's done very well for me, in the shade of a maple forest, without irrigation or anything but a bucket of compost when it was planted. I do give it bone meal. Slow to start at the beginning, but now going gangbusters - though not yet as large as Don's.

I used a black 1 gallon pot to plant 3 very small GE. It was the perfect height on the ledge of my pond. The water was never over the top of the pot, to keep the crown out of the water. I plan to do the same with a few other varieties this summer.

thankyou poberbeck, I will give that one a try!! My ge (notice the lower caps used to show how small it is), when I moved it last year had two inch leaves, (I'm very surprised it is still alive after 7 years!) the last 5 years it has been getting smaller every year, now I will have a new bog plant for this summer, will have to take pics of the progress.

Thanks

Paul