Mickfield Hostas news

Issue 40 | April 2010

H. 'Montana' - the large leaved hosta (Oba Giboshi)
This month we look at this variety, which has long been regarded as a species.
The debate over whether h. 'Montana' can be classified as a botanical species continues, which is why we refer to it as a cultivar. As ever, we prefer to delight in its classical beauty rather than worry about what to call it...

H. 'Montana' can be found, in a perplexing range of forms, growing along the margins of forests and mountain valleys of central and northern Honshu, and southern Hokkaido, Japan.

Because h. 'Montana' grows in so many different forms in the wild, it would be difficult to declare a definitive set of characteristics. However, there are a few characteristics that set it apart from other hosta varieties, such as the prominent veining and the lack of rugosity.
The leaves tend to be large and quite flat, although some forms show wavy margins, almost piecrust rippling.

H. 'Montana' provides an excellent foil for other planting and was used to great effect in a Gold Award winning concept garden at Hampton Court Flower Show in 2009.

Find out more about this wonderful
garden, click on the image.

In the side column, click on the variety page to see a photograph of how h. 'Montana' was used.

These typical characteristics are even more striking in the offspring of
h. 'Montana', and its sports and hybrids. The following table lists all the varieties in our collection directly related to h. 'Montana', and includes images some of the more popular relatives:

H. 'Frosted Jade'	H. 'Montana' varieties in our collection h. 'Alligator Shoes' - an unregistered cross with h. 'Dorothy Benedict' h. 'Big Boy' - a hybrid registered in 1980 h. 'Devon Desire' - an unregistered type h. 'Devon Tor' - a selection crossed with unspecified hosta, registered in 2005 h. 'Donahue Piecrust' - hybrid registered in 1999 h. 'Dragon Wings' - a cross with h. 'Fortunei' registered in 1996 h. 'Frosted Jade' - a hybrid of a selection registered in 1978 h. 'Ginrei' - unregistered sport h. 'King James' - hybrid registered in 1992 h. 'King Michael' - form registered in 1992 h. 'Kinkaku' unregistered type h. 'Lakeside Cha Cha' - cross with h. 'Fascination' registered in 1994 h. 'Montana Aureomarginata' - sport registered in 1987 h. 'Montana Macrophylla' - unregistered type h. 'Mount Everest' - cross with h. 'Sea Prize' registered in 1996 h. 'Mr Big' - unregistered type h. 'On Stage' - sport registered in 1986 h. 'Peppermint Ice' - cross with h. 'William Lachman' registered in 1994 h. 'Prince of Wales' - unregistered cross with h. 'Elegans' h. 'Shining Image' - unregistered type h. 'Silk Kimono' - cross with h. 'Dorothy Benedict' registered in 1999 h. 'Stingray' - cross with h. kikutii registered in 2000
H. 'Lakeside Cha Cha'
H. 'Montana Aureomarginata'
H. 'Montana Macrophylla'
H. 'On Stage'
H. 'Silk Kimono'

Psst... why are my leaves plain?
Don't panic if it looks like your beautifully variegated hosta is emerging with plain leaves. Some varieties are lutescent, which means their colouration appears gradually as the season progresses.

Website update
It may have been a long winter but we haven't been idle. Our website has grown by over 1,800 new pages, which we have designed to provide more information about each variety we have in our collection.

Listing page

The alphabetical page listings now consist of two columns, which have (in most cases) a leaf image alongside the variety name, mound size and price (if available for sale). The 'More Information' links now take you to a separate page for that variety - click the image below to view the
h. 'Montana' variety page:

Each page contains more information and images about that variety, and has been designed to enable us to add more content as we go.
We hope this development will add greatly to the browsing quality of the website.
As ever, we welcome your comments and feedback, so we can continue to improve - don't be shy to give us your views via email.

Harrogate Spring Flower Show 2010
If you would like orders taken to the show for collection, please let us know before Monday 12th April.

This year the theme in the Floral Hall is ‘It’s Show Time’, see the show website for highlights and a reminder of our stand from last year.

Malvern Spring Flower Show 2010
If you would like orders taken to the show for collection, please let us know before Monday 26th April.

This year we will be in the Floral Marquee on stand MFM23, which is a different location to last year. We will also be outside in our usual spot by the Rock Garden - hope to see you there.

Next month:

We look into the h. 'Montana' family tree a little further...

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