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Sansevierias

© Diana Pederson

Varieties Available

Only a few Sansevieria species are commonly found in florist shops or garden centers. These are the Sansevieria trifasciata varieties. Most garden center plants are S. trifasciata or S. trifasciata var. Laurentii which has a yellow strip on the edge of the leaves. With good light and cultivation these plants may grow up to 5 feet tall. In most settings, they average 2-3 feet tall. These are succulent plants with thick, sword-like leaves.

Some shops carry the S. trifasciata 'Hahnii' which is a dwarf variety forming a low rosette of leaves. Unfortunately, it is rare to find any other varieties in local florist shops or garden centers.

One reason this plant species interests me so much is that S. trifasciata often sends up leaves looking very different from the original plant but growing from the same rhizome. These are referred to as "sports". Plant growers isolate these sports and begin developing a new plant variety. If they are able to propagate it, collectors will have a new variety to grow. Specialty nurseries carry many varieties looking very different from your standard "Snake plant".

One of my favorite species is S. trifasciata 'Bantel's Sensation'. It has green and white stripes running the full length of its leaves. I have found it to be very sensitive to over-watering and find that 2-3 times a month is the most--otherwise it tends to succumb to rot. My favorite dwarf variety is S. trifasciata 'Golden Hahnii' which is gold and green striped. It too is very sensitive to over-watering.

*A Note on Scientific Names

All plants have a scientific name which should always be italized or underlined in articles. Few garden writers follow the scientific conventions of writing. After a scientific name is spelled out the first time in a magazine or book, normal practice is to abbreviate the first word in the name using just the first letter and a period.

The second name begins with a lowercase letter. Any variety name that follows is enclosed in apostrophe ['] marks and may be capitalized or lower case.

Example: Sansevieria trifasciata will be abbreviated as S. trifasciata after it is first mentioned in an article or book. This web page will follow these conventions and educate you with scientific names as well as giving the generic name found in most garden centers. Whenever you purchase a plant, always ask for the scientific name. This makes it easier to tell someone