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Ontario Hosta Society
Newsletter of the Ontario Hosta Society President's Message As we speculate what is happening to those little darlings covered with snow, it's time to turn to seeds and catalogues and warm thoughts. Bob Murphy and his merry band of seed cleaners have come up with a creditable list of about 120 varieties to choose from at the best prices on the continent. Our winter meeting in February will feature some timely tips on seeds, propagation, and garden planning as well as news on some of the newer varieties coming to market this spring. This is also our opportunity to welcome new members to the directorate and thank those who have served and wish to reduce their activities. You will find your membership renewal form enclosed, so please take advantage of a less stressful time to take care of the details. Our annual auction brought in a record amount to be used to promote hostas throughout the province and in Canada in general. We are making a concerted effort to complete a renewal of the Hosta section at the Royal Botanical Gardens so it can be enjoyed by a large audience. Other projects will be entertained as they are brought to our attention. Please make plans to attend in February and bring your expertise with you. A couple of shows have approached us to participate so we will also be looking for volunteers to promote your society and its activities. See you in February. Happy hostas for the new year. Bob WELCOME! The OHS would like to welcome the following members who have joined since our last Newsletter:
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
I have found a simple way to get a jump on hosta propagation by mini-Rossizing indoors under 24 hour lights. If you bring in a plant from the garden to propagate, choose a plant, or a section of a plant, which has a scape, preferably one which has almost died back. The new eye buds are raring to go, and you will save the several weeks it takes to develop new ones after Rossizing if you use a non-flowering plant instead. Remember to wash the roots bare, plant in Pro-mix, and fertilize with dilute 10/52/10 fertilizer. David Barham/Bramalea OHS ANNUAL AUCTION, SEPTEMBER 17, 2000 by The OHS auction gets better and better. This year, almost $3,500.00 was raised. Thanks to
the donations of individual members and the generous support of 21 retailers and
growers the selection of hostas and companion plants was even larger and more
diverse than in previous years. The live auction featured some of the newest selections on the market. Bidding was spirited. Hostas 'Embroidery', 'Olive Branch', 'Little Sunspot', 'Summer Breeze', 'Bottom Line', 'Winter Snow', 'Pineapple Upsidedown Cake', 'Amy Elizabeth', 'Standing Ovation', 'Venus' and the controversial 'Tattoo' drew a lot of interest, especially those that our three auctioneers Bob Leask, John Kee and Paul Zammit described as "drop dead georgeous"! Even hostas with unhappy names such as 'Reptillian' and 'Limey Lisa' had some appeal. A nd everybody who already had hosta 'Just So' wanted to complete the pair with 'Not So'.I went home happy with six new (to me) hostas. One is so new I couldn't even find it in 'The Hosta Handbook' but I liked the name 'Sweet Home Chicago'. Steve Donnelly of Trillium Gardens tells me that he has just ordered it. At OHS auction 2001 I hope I can tell you it turned out to be "drop dead gorgeous"! Thank You to all the Auction Donors! by Bob Leask/Georgetown On behalf of the members and executive of the Ontario Hosta Society, we wish to extend a very sincere thank you to those who donated to our annual auction. The proceeds of the auction go towards the promotion of hostas across a wide area in this province and throughout the hosta world. Research is supported to conquer particular problems so we can all enjoy healthy plants. In addition to the donations from our own individual members, we wish to acknowledge the following retailers and growers for their generous support: Belgian Nurseries, Breslau Blue Sky Nursery, Beamsville Canadale Nursery, St. Thomas Crescent Nursery, Rockwood Frank Schenk Perennials, Belfountain Harper's Nursery, Ancaster Hosta Choice Nursery & Gardens, Appin Humber Nurseries, Brampton JEA Perennials, Strathroy Knecht Landscaping, Brampton Lost Horizons, Acton Olde Towne Gardens, Niagara on the Lake Parkway Gardens, London Plant World, Etobicoke Richlyn Nursery, Fergus Trillium Gardens, London Terra Nursery, Milton Valleybrook Perennials, Virgil Van Dongen Nursery, Milton Van Wissen Perennials, Huttonville Please show your support for these businesses as they provide us with access to both the latest and traditional quality plants. Check them out for good hosta companion plants too!
By Joseph P. Rocchi/Binbrook, You have heard of square dances and square roots, but have you ever considered a square garden? My wife and I live in Binbrook just south of Hamilton. The whole township is notorious for its heavy clay and very few root vegetables are grown here. As my collection of Hostas increased from 30 to 60 and then to 90, I was concerned about displaying them to their best advantage. About four years ago, while I was perusing an English gardening magazine, I saw a picture of an enclosed courtyard laid out in a checkerboard pattern of patio stones. It immediately occurred to me that this was the answer to my problem and I proceeded to construct a rectangular garden of alternating patio stones and growing spaces. As the ground was so hard, I only had to level it with a spade where necessary and place the patio stones on the levelled ground. I then removed the clay soil between the stones. In each cavity I put a foot of old leaves and then a foot of compost and well aged manure. Because I was using 24" square patio stones, each space also measured 24" by 24", more than enough room for most Hostas. There was plenty of room for a giant ‘Sum and Substance’ to grow and for my then fourteen month old granddaughter to cavort. The first time I opened my garden to a fundraising tour for a local charity, the most often heard comment was that of a wife saying to her husband, " Dear, isn't this beautiful? Now I know what we can do with the old patio stones we have stored behind the garage." Two years ago I doubled the size of the plot and this year I added another twelve squares to give me a total of 60. This enables me to highlight some of the 190 varieties of Hostas I now own. My square garden lies in front of a fishpond filled with water hyacinths, arrowhead plants, water lilies, and a magnificent Mrs. Perry Slocum lotus. Surrounding the pond are more hostas, aruncus, and several varieties of ligularia and datura to provide vertical detail. I highlight the outer edges with tulips and daffodils for early colour. I have found many benefits from using this square scheme. I appreciate most of all that there is less grass to cut. The plants are more accessible for visitors who want to examine them more closely for scent or texture. There is not as much weeding to do and the plants can be moved without fear of damaging adjacent plants. When I spray for insects, the whole plant is exposed. Less fertilizer is needed, and the clay barrier which surrounds each square helps to retain water. The cost of constructing a square garden is not large. I recommend using 24" square stones which will cost you about $5.00 each, but used stones are acceptable at $1.00 each or free if you are willing to remove them. You may also wish to get away from the absolute checkerboard plan and break up your motif with an L shaped-space or any other variation you wish. I hope that my success with this plan of gardening on the square will help others struggling to grow Hostas in hostile terrain.
Hostas, A to Z by David Barham/Bramalea
This article should probably be sub-titled, "You know you are infected with Hostavirus mustaffa when..." In the Summer of 2000 I was wandering around the garden looking at my slowly expanding Hosta collection when I noticed that many of the variety names began with the letters B and S, but few with D or M and none with I, O, X and Y. A few weeks later I was forcibly taken to a Hosta nursery a little to the west of London, Ontario, by my friend and co-conspirator, RJM. Bob and I have an agreement that we will co-buy hostas we cannot "afford" (we do listen to our respective spouses, Diane and Margaret on occasion), and I cleave and grow them on until we each have a plant. Well, since I found O ( sort of ) and Y but no X to add to my list, I thought it would be fun to do an A to Z of my favourites. I don't expect that my choices will necessarily be your choices, so don't be upset if I omit your favourites.
A is for Aphrodite (I will omit the Hosta and quotation marks). This plain green hosta has shiny leaves and beautifully fragrant double flowers. Those who would cut off the flowers need not grow this one. The new introduction Venus is supposed to be superior, 4 rows of petals instead of 2, but I think its perfume is inferior.
B is for Birchwood Parky's Gold, a vigorous, medium sized, gold plant with a fascinating name. This hosta is very easy to propagate. Brooke's Streaking Strain comes a close second B; however, M. says it looks like it has some terrible disease because its leaves are so streaky.
C is for Chinese Sunrise, another prolific variety. It comes up early with beautiful chartreuse green leaves, and blooms late with deep lilac coloured flowers. I would have chosen Chartreuse Wiggles before I recently obtained it: it's not like the one I saw a couple of years ago which M described as "looking like something the cat threw up". That one had very wavy #9 coloured leaves (Hosta Leaf Colour Wheel, by Bill Meyer) which hugged the ground. D is for Diamond Tiara, since it is the better looking of the two Ds I have.
E is for
Embroidery. Well, you have to brag a bit. Bob and I just co-bought it and it is
growing in two halves, I hope. This plain green
hosta with a band of puckering close to the leaf edge is purported to
be a result of genetic damage caused by exposure to
nuclear radiation. Having tried many such experiments with the now-defunct
University of Toronto SLOWPOKE reactor without any luck. I commend the
originator of this weird hosta. F is for Fragrant Bouquet. What can I say that will adequately describe this gold-edged green-centred hosta with pale lilac flowers, which appear late in the season and have an exquisite perfume. Perhaps the ugliest hosta I have encountered is the "exotic" form of Francee. Its cupped, puckered, white edged leaves look like they have been through a meat grinder when the edges inevitably split and brown.
G is for Guacamole, for no other reason than I like it. I had great expectations of Great Expectations but have been disappointed by its poor showing. Perhaps it needs more sun than it gets in its present spot under a Katsura tree.
H is for Halcyon. In my opinion, this is still the most beautiful of the blues, as long as it is grown in shade. The miniature hosta Harlequin, the variegated form of Venusta, comes in a close second.
I was to have been for Inniswood until Invincible found me. The shiny green, heavy substance, somewhat triangular leaves make Invincible an attractive green hosta. J is obviously for June, particularly the blue type. This is one of the hostas that garden visitors want to know the name of so that they can be owned by one.
K is for Krossa Regal, a tall, elegant, grey-green beauty with a fountain-like habit. My second choice is very narrow-leaved variegated miniature, found as a seedling at an eastern Ontario nursery that has been tentatively named Kee Wee!
L is for Little Sunspot, a fairly new miniature; mine has gold leaves edged with apple green.
M is for any of the Montanas. I love these large hostas for their long, lance shaped leaves which can have a variety of edge variegation colours. Montana Chirfu is a streaked variety.
N is for Nigrescens, since this is the only N I have. I believe that the very dark green petioles give it its name. O is for On Stage. OK, so it probably should be called Choko Nishiki, but it was the prettiest of the Os I could find at the time. A recent garden visitor said "it looks like a multi $ job!"
P is for Pandora's Box. What can I say about this beautiful miniature that hasn't already been said? Paul's Glory is pretty sharp too, but it takes up so much space!
Q is for Queen Josephine, a small/medium sized beauty which has thick substance, shiny leaves which are #6 green with cream edges. Of course, it also happens to be my only Q.
R is for Regal Splendor, a gold edged sport of Krossa Regal. This hosta is only about half as tall as its parent in my garden.
S is for either Spilt Milk, which M says is diseased, or Sum and Substance, which M says is beautiful, but "a bit large". Perhaps Summer Music ought to be our combined choice.
T is for Tokudama Aureonebulosa. a beautiful puckered, cupped blue-green with strange green-gold central variegation, or is it a green-gold with strange edges of blue-green? This hosta has been in the garden for four years and has hardly grown; there are now three growing points compared to the one it had when it found me U is for Univittata. OK, so it's only a green one with a thin central white stripe, but it is easy to grow; unlike Uzu No Mai, which only visited the garden for two years!
V is for Venusta, for sentimental reasons. M and I were at the Experimental Farm rock garden in Ottawa when I first saw this one growing in a rock garden setting. Since both M and rock gardening are my passions, I was captivated.
W is for Whirlwind, a hosta with twisted, dark green leaves with central, irregular cream-white variegations. It truly does look as though it has been through a tornado and survived.
X I have been unable to find; however, I fantasize that it eventually will either be X-file, an alien looking grey-green, large dark eyed cross between Hosta Dana and Hosta Fox, or Xerox, a rapidly duplicating variety recently found to occur in many colours.
Y is for Yellow River, a beautiful yellow edged, fountain like green, lance leaved hosta, and my only Y, of course.
Z is for Zounds; Egad, or words to that effect! Spotlight on Members’ Activities On September 11, 2000, John Goodger decided to
enter the 10th Annual Canadian Gardening Magazine’s “Gardens of
the Year” contest. The contestants had to John has a unique shade garden that takes up the complete backyard of his home. He has over 160 varieties of Hostas. Some of them are six feet wide and some are about four inches wide.. The sizes are only surpassed by the colours. The deep blue ones are hardy with tough leaves while the whiter versions are tender. Each year the collection grows by about 10 new plants. The weather this past summer has been great for hostas. It was wet and cool with very few periods of great heat. Oh, by the way, John won Third Prize! His win was announced in the December/January issue of Canadian Gardening He received a voucher for $150 to purchase bulbs from Vesey’s Catalogue (located in Prince Edward Island). Perhaps he can now start new collection and enter for spring bulb gardens! First Canadian Accredited AHS Provisional Judge Margot Dargatz has just recently received notification that she has met the requirements and passed the exam to advance onwards from being a Student Judge and is now officially listed as a Provisional Judge with the American Hosta Society. Currently there is only one other Canadian who holds Student Judge status with the AHS. Membership Does Have its Advantages! by John Kee An update on our American Hosta Society memberships program that started in 1999. In 1999, 48 OHS members received their AHS 1 year membership. Leora Abernethy, Joan Avery, Randall Arthur and Barb Kearns, Alan Bewell, Bill Centen, Ron Crawford, Bruce Cumpson, Udo and Margot Dargatz, Larry Davidson, Wendy de Jaray, Marion Dorosh, Jean Foss, John Gallagher, Wayne Good, Dave Harper, Linda Hawkins, Virginia Hildebrandt, Elizabeth Ingolfsrud, Mary Ann Robinson and June Brett, John Kee, Don Klamer, Markus Knecht, Stephen Knecht, Richard and Allison Laurie, Bob Leask, Fred Lesage, Phil Little, Rosie Lombaert, Ran Lydell, Joseph Madden, Fritz Marthaler, Bill Nash, Franz Peters, David and Kathleen Petrie, Jean and Peter Ruh, Donna Russell, Frank Schenk, Gary Shaw, David Simmons, Sherry Smith, Craig Stubbs, Tom Thomson, John Vanwissen, Louise Weekes, Martin Wolf, Paul Zammit In 2000, 46 OHS members received their AHS 1 year membership Janet Anderson, Janice Armstrong, Jim Babinetz, Dave Barham, Ricki-Lee Baxter, Bruce Bennett, Vanhof & Blokker Ltd., Joyce Bockmaster, Roger Bouh, Cathy Boyko, Jeanne Brown, Barbara Bullock, Merna and Betty Burkholder, Bryan Culver, David Dunn, Edward Endersby, Carol Evans, Norma Evans, Bill Fletcher, Jennifer Giavedoni, John Goodger, Tony Grinevicius, Kathy Guest, Uli Havermann, Pauline Intven-Casier, Catherine Keith, Owen Kelsey, Tom and Ruth Kendall, Keith Larocque, Earl Lindsay, Pat Loy, Ken MacDonald, Lorraine Macquarrie, Toyozo Nakayama, Irene Nicoll, Bonnie Priest, Melinda Barry and Raanan Mintz, Robert Saunders, Sheila Shearing, Jill Snape, Alan Square, Mary Stoner, Diane Everest and Suzan Fawcett, Barbara Twiner, Terry Williamson, Bill Woolgar As we did last year, the OHS is continuing our program to reward long term members with a 1 year membership in the American Hosta Society. To qualify for a 1 year AHS membership, the OHS member must have been in our society for 4 years. This will be an on-going program and every member will receive the benefit after another 4 years of continuous membership. Please get your renewals in as quick as possible so we can start on the 2001 list. Note: All members that qualified for the 2000 AHS membership should be receiving their AHS Hosta Journals in late 2000 or early 2001. From the Editor’s Desk! NEW ! The OHS Newsletter is online now! Recently, a friend of Bruce Cumpson, Bruce Zimmerman www.brucezimmerman.com, from Rittenhouse (a well-known garden tool company based in St. Catharines) offered to host the Ontario Hosta Society newsletter on their company website. This represents a wonderful opportunity for our society to let more people know about our favourite perennial. The web-site address is: http://www.rittenhouse.ca This takes you to the Rittenhouse Company Welcome page. Click on the right-hand side on Hort-Pro Magazine. When that page opens, scroll down the left hand side until you see the Ontario Hosta Society listing. You will find the most recent newsletter, and in time, more of the past newsletters will be added to the archives. When contributing to the OHS newsletter, please specify whether you prefer that your article be only in the printed form or if it is all right to include it in the online version. Margot Dargatz/Editor Margot Dargatz Ontario Hosta Society Ontario Hosta Society Box 731, Erin, Ontario, Canada N0B 1T0 Annual Dues: $15.00 American: $16.00 Foreign: $17.00 Your membership year runs from January 1st to December 31st. Members joining after October 1st in any year are deemed to be paid-up until December 31st of the following year. Ontario Hosta Society
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Current Issue
Re:
Mini-Rossizing
write
an essay and submit up to 25 pictures of their garden in order to qualify. John
entered the category, Small Gardens. He also took his own photos even though
professional photographers were allowed to be used.