Hosta 'Piper Cub' 25 July 2022

Because I am a card-carrying member of the American Hosta Society I have friends who are invaluable in answering my questions. One of them is C.H. (Clarence) Falstad from New Holland, Michigan, who in his many jobs at the Walters Gardens (a very reputable nursery) is in charge of plant patents.

I often send him questions. This was his answer to a couple of them:

Alex,

The easy answer to your first question is genetics . . . or environment, or maybe a combination of the two.

The young man who hybridized by Piper Cub was Peter Cross.  His father Oscar was known for wearing overalls at the [hosta] conventions.  Last I heard Peter was married and living in the south west US.

C.H.

On Tue, Jul 26, 2022, 7:44 PM alexwh <[email protected]> wrote:

 Dear CH

What makes H. 'First Frost' have so many prominent flowers and hostas like Hirao Majesty only always have two scapes? Did the Frosts and other hostas with Tardiana blood inherit from sieboldiana?

Who was the young man who many years ago sold me H. 'Piper Cub' for $40? More should be done in giving credit to the folks who introduce them.

 Alex

My Hosta ‘Piper Cub’ I purchased for the name as the plant itself is a smallish yellow hosta that is not particularly appealing. When I bought it, the reason is that I have always had an interest in airplanes which I shared with my  writer friend Sean Rossiter whom  miss every day because of his stability in answering my questions on politics. That sort of stability is as rare now as Rositter’s brand of journalism.

Because there are at least 15,000 hostas it should be of no surprise that I have Hosta ‘Captain Kirk’.