(7-4-19) You can always tell when there is interest in a particular hosta, that happened this week on the Hosta Auctions Facebook Page (see above).
With the goal of many hybridizers to create the perfect streaker, the thought of adding a Mildred Seaver creation catches the eyes of many top breeders, ‘Diane Gray Dalton‘ started out with a $75 bid (as of this writing it is up to $250) and will end Friday (7-5-19).
For those who keep track of pod and pollen parents, this one might disappoint due to not knowing the cross that produced it. But the plus side is that it is originator stock being auctioned. Seaver’s breeding style might have led to not knowing the make-up of ‘Diane Gray Dalton’. According to the Walters Garden web site, her hybridizing style was more artistic than methodical—she let bees do all the work. The hostas she wanted the bees to pollinate, she would allow to flower. Those she did not had the flowers removed before they matured.
“Bees are much better breeders than I am. hey know which hostas to take pollen from and which to pollinate.”
Her success is in the seedlings she was responsible in creating (‘Spilt Milk’, ‘Allan P. McConnell’, ‘Komodo Dragon’, ‘Queen of the Seas’, and ‘Humpback Whale’) before her death are the proof. That is why this offering is getting the response it is during the auction.
Hosta Heritage Lines 