H. 'First Frost'

I'm starting to gather more and more members of the 'Halcyon' family. This is the second one this year, 2010, the first one was 'Blue Ivory'. This particular one came to me as part of a 'Secret Trade' from Port Hope, ON. Others in the family include 'June' and 'Touch of Class', though I'm not too sure of the real identity of my specimen of the latter, at present it looks way too much like an immature 'June' for my liking, which is the main reason I haven't put it up on the site as yet.

This cultivar was selected Hosta of the Year for 2010 by the American Hosta Growers Association. To receive this honor the plant must be readily available in the nursery trade for retail distribution and meet the criteria for pricing, which is around $15 in the year of selection.

It has done well in its second year in our yard. This shows the second flush of growth, late August, and is a nice illustration of how the colours change during the course of the year, going from blueish green with cream edges to a decidedly blue and white one.

I must admit that I'm very impressed by how good it still looks on 25 October, 2011. While it didn't flower this year, it more than made up for that with additional offsets and its staying power. I'm looking forward to what next year will bring.