Proven Winners® Hosta of the Year

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National Plant of the Year® Program

The Proven Winners National Plant of the Year program selects plants for their exceptional performance. These plants have been chosen for their proven excellence and ability to be used successfully nationwide by growers and gardeners alike. The Hosta of the Year is a division of this program highlighting on of the most popular genus from the Proven Winners Perennial brand. Look for these varieties to be featured in magazines, social media, as well as home and trade shows throughout the year.

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2026 - Hosta SHADOWLAND® 'Hope Springs Eternal'

All gardening is an exercise in optimism, and 'Hope Springs Eternal' is appropriate name for a hosta that will bring joy year after year. Heart-shaped, blue horizontal leaves have a crisp creamy white margin and form a formal habit. Its most notable feature are the incredible ruffling on the leaves that undulate all the way to the pointed tips. Near white flowers in midsummer.

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2025 - Hosta SHADOWLAND® 'Miss America'

A majestic, variegated large hosta that will capture the hearts of any gardener who showcases it in their garden. Medium green, heart-shaped leaves have white centers and light green intermediate streaking between the center and margin. The contrast between the margin and the center is dramatic and refined. Near white, tubular flowers have a lavender pattern in the center of the petals are borne on thick, upright, tall stems. The flowers were notably the most attractive we've seen on a hosta.

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2024 - Hosta SHADOWLAND® 'Hudson Bay'

An improvement over its parent, ‘Eskimo Pie', this new sport is a much showier, larger specimen and a stronger grower overall. The wider, brighter blue margin and apple green jetting contrast nicely with the creamy white center all season long. The leaves are of heavy substance, exhibiting good slug resistance in the landscape. This plant forms a large mound of attractive foliage topped with near-white flowers on white scapes in early summer.

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2023 - Hosta SHADOWLAND® 'Empress Wu'

Height: 3-4' | Width: 5-6' | Scape: 4' | Blooms: Early to Midsummer

Huge dark green, deeply veined leaves of good substance can measure more than 1½' wide and long. Large leaves are formed as a young plant, though entire clump takes about 5 years growing in the ground to achieve mature size. Strongly upright habit, forming a very tall and wide clump. Pale reddish violet flowers appear just above the foliage in early to midsummer. An outstanding focal point and topic of conversation in your shade garden!

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2022 - Hosta SHADOWLAND® 'Diamond Lake'

Height: 17" | Width: 45" | Scape: 25-28" | Blooms: Early Summer

Finally, a large blue hosta that's worthy of the Proven Winners® stamp of approval! Attractive, heart-shaped, thick and heavily corrugated blue leaves have wavy margins. The large size of this plant also translates to large leaves: they can get up to 9 inches wide by 11 inches long. Pale lavender flowers appear in early to midsummer. Use this blue hosta to add some color to your shade garden. This plays well with ferns, hellebores, and other hostas.

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2021 - Hosta SHADOWLAND® 'Wheee!'

Height: 11-18" | Width: 28-30" | Scape: 24" | Blooms: Midsummer

Extremely ruffled, cream colored margins extend from the tip of each green leaf all the way down the petiole to the crown. This ruffled margin is evident even in the juvenile stage of the plant before vernalization. The leaves of this medium sized hosta are of excellent substance, making them slug resistant in the landscape.

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2020 - Hosta SHADOWLAND® 'Coast to Coast'

Height: 30" | Width: 36" | Scape: 36" | Blooms: Midsummer

Adding a new color to the Proven Winners hosta line, ‘Coast to Coast' is a giant, solid gold hosta that makes a striking specimen in the shade garden. Its foliage emerges gold in spring and turns lighter gold with a bit more sun exposure in the summer months. As the leaves mature, they become thick and puckered with wavy edges and have nearly white undersides.

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2019 - Hosta SHADOWLAND® 'Autumn Frost'

Height: 12" | Width: 12-16" | Scape: 12-16" | Blooms: Mid - Late Summer

‘Autumn Frost' is a sport of the 2010 Hosta of the Year, ‘First Frost', which in turn is a sport of the champion of blue hostas, ‘Halcyon'. It is a showier version of ‘First Frost', displaying extra wide margins.

The leaves emerge frosty blue with a bright yellow margin that lightens to creamy white during the summer. It forms a medium sized mound topped with light lavender flowers in mid to late summer.