<i>Hosta </i>plant named ‘Twin Cities’

Abstract

A new and distinct Hosta plant named ‘Twin Cities’ of large, upright spreading mound of dense, bullate, glaucous, ovate to round, variegated foliage with wide chartreuse margins, blue-green centers with a melding color zone between the center and the margins. The flowers are near light lavender, densely arranged in mostly upright scapes beginning to open just above the foliage in late June. ‘Twin Cities’ is useful in the landscape as a specimen or en masse.

Claims

1. A new and distinct Hosta plant named ‘Twin Cities’ as herein described and illustrated.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

(1) The photographs of the new plant demonstrate the overall appearance of the plant, including the unique traits. The colors are as accurate as reasonably possible with color reproductions. Ambient light spectrum, temperature, source and direction may cause the appearance of minor variation in color. The drawings show ‘Twin Cities’ plant in various growing conditions.

(2) FIG. 1 shows a mature ten-year-old plant viewed from above in a display garden at a nursery in Indianapolis, Ind.

(3) FIG. 2 shows a semi-mature plant prior to flowering in a display garden at a nursery in Indianapolis, Ind.

(4) FIG. 3 shows a close-up of a mature leaf of the new plant prior to flowering.

(5) FIG. 4 shows a comparison of the sport parent ‘St Paul’ (below) and the new plant (above) prior to flowering and growing in a display garden at a nursery in Indianapolis, Ind..

(6) FIG. 5 shows the flowering scape of ‘Twin Cities’ with open flowers and buds.

(7) FIG. 6 shows a close-up of the inside of an open flower.

(8) FIG. 7 shows a close-up of the outside of an open flower and buds.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

(9) The following descriptions and color references are based on the 2015 edition of The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart except where common dictionary terms are used. The new plant, Hosta ‘Twin Cities’, has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that certain characteristics will vary with plants that are more mature or plants that are less mature. The phenotype may vary slightly with different environmental conditions, such as temperature, light, fertility, moisture and maturity levels, but without any change in the genotype. The following observations and size descriptions are of an eight-year-old plant in a shaded display garden in Indianapolis, Ind. provided with supplemental water and fertilizer. Botanical classification: Hosta x hybrid; Parentage: A partial plant sport mutation of ‘St Paul’; Propagation: Garden division and sterile shoot tip plant tissue culture; Time to initiate roots from tissue culture: About two to three weeks; Growth rate: Moderately vigorous; Crop time: About three months to four months to finish during the spring in a one-liter container from rooted tissue culture plantlet; Rooting habit: Fleshy, lightly branching; Root color: Typically between RHS 155D and RHS NN155C when actively growing depending on soil mineralization; Plant shape and habit: Hardy herbaceous perennial with a basal rosette of leaves and petioles emerging from rhizomes producing a low spreading mound with slightly arching scapes flowering just above foliage; Plant size: Foliage height to about 81.0 cm above soil line to the top of the leaves, and to about 163 cm wide at the widest point about 20.0 cm above the soil line; Foliage description: Ovate to rounded; acute apex; cordate base; entire margin; glabrous and glaucous both surfaces; blades stiff, bullate, flat to slightly sinuate; moderately impressed adaxial veins and costate, smooth, abaxial veins; Leaf blade size: To about 33.0 cm long and about 25.5 cm wide; average about 31.5 cm long and 24.0 cm wide; margin variable in an individual leaf and increasing with plant maturity from 1.5 cm to about 5.0 cm wide; center variable in an individual leaf and decreasing with maturity to about 28.0 cm; Leaf blade color: Early season and expanding adaxial margin between RHS 146D and RHS 145A, center nearest RHS 137B and intermediate melded zone nearest RHS 146B; early season and expanding abaxial margin between RHS 146D and RHS 145A, center nearest RHS 146A and intermediate melded zone nearest RHS 146C; mid-season and later adaxial margins variable, nearest RHS 160A and between RHS 146D and RHS N144A, center nearest RHS 137B and intermediate melded zone variable, between RHS 145A and RHS 146D and between RHS 146C and RHS 138B; mid-season and later abaxial margin variable, nearest RHS N138C and between RHS 11C and RHS 151D, abaxial center nearest RHS N138C, abaxial intermediate zone variable, between RHS N138C and RHS 151D and between RHS 151D and RHS 146D; Petiole: Glabrous and glaucous both adaxial and abaxial; deeply “V” shaped; stiff; to 53.3 cm long and 22.0 mm wide at base and about 7.0 mm deep near base, average about 48.0 cm long and 18.0 mm wide; Petiole color: Adaxial margin between RHS 146D and RHS, center between RHS 138A and RHS 137C; abaxial margins nearest RHS 145A center nearest RHS 137C and midrib nearest RHS 145D; Veins: To seventeen pairs on either side of midrib; parallel; moderately impressed adaxial; costate and smooth abaxial; Veins color: Adaxial nearest RHS 160A; abaxial nearest RHS 194B; Flower description: Buds one to two days prior to opening: Clavate with rounded apex, and narrow tube base; to about 4.7 cm long and 13 mm dimeter at widest bulb portion, with base narrowing in basal 1.8 cm to about 0.3 cm diameter; “bulb portion” is used here to describe the distal inflated portion of the bud that is attached to the pedicel by the narrow tube; Bud color: Between RHS 85C and RHS 85D distally about one day prior to opening and nearest RHS 85C proximally in tube; Flowers: Perfect; campanulate; outwardly to slightly drooping; to 5.4 cm long to exserted stigma; corolla fused in basal 3.7 cm, free in the distal 1.5 cm, about 3.6 cm wide at tepal apices, corolla length about 5.2 cm, corolla tube portion to about 2.3 cm long and 0.3 cm diameter; swollen bud portion to size decreasing distally; effective for a normal period, usually about one day on plant; flowers tightly arranged on scape; dropping shortly after opening; Flowering period: Scapes remain effective with flowers beginning late June for about four weeks; Inflorescence: With about 40 flowers per scape; flowering in upper 20 cm; mostly secund; Fragrance: No detectable fragrance; Tepal: Two nearly identical sets of three, glabrous; entire margins; Inner set.—Average about 4.5 cm long and 9.0 mm wide slightly above fusion point; fused in basal 3.0 cm; clavate with acute apex; entire margin; basal 2.3 cm fused into tube. Inner set color.—Distal portion adaxial center between RHS 85C and RHS 85D and margin nearest RHS NN155D, abaxial between RHS 85D and RHS NN155D; corolla tube portion adaxial nearest RHS NN155D and abaxial nearest RHS 85D. Inner set.—About 4.0 cm long and 8.0 mm wide slightly above fusion point; fused in basal 3.0 cm; clavate with acute apex; entire margin; basal 1.8 cm fused into tube; with an irregular translucent edge of about 1.0 mm wide. Inner set color.—Adaxial and abaxial nearest RHS NN155D with adaxial having very lightly blushed nearest RHS 91D and the center veins nearest RHS 84C; corolla tube base adaxial and abaxial nearest RHS 91D. Gynoecium: single; to about 5.4 cm long; superior; exerted; Style.—Cylindrical; to about 4.6 cm long, 0.2 cm diameter; arcuate upward 90 degrees in distal 1.2 cm; color nearest RHS 157D distally and nearest RHS 145C proximally. Stigma: puberulent; globose; about 1.2 mm across and 1.0 mm tall; color nearest RHS NN155A. Ovary.—Ellipsoidal; superior; apex rounded; base rounded to truncate; to about 6 mm long and 3 mm diameter in middle; color nearest RHS 145A. Androecium: Six; Filaments.—Six, approximately 4.7 cm long and 0.1 cm in diameter; curved upward to nearly 90 degrees in the distal 0.8 mm; color distally nearest RHS NN155B, base nearest RHS 145C. Anthers.—Ellipsoidal with rounded ends; dorsifixed; longitudinal; about 3.5 mm long and 1.5 mm wide; color nearest RHS 79A. Pollen.—Spherical; less than 0.1 mm diameter; color nearest RHS 11A. Peduncle: Cylindrical; usually one per mature division; about 14 per plant; glabrous; glaucous; mostly erect with slightly arching distally; to about 152 cm tall, and about 0.9 cm in diameter at base, average about 145 cm tall and 0.8 cm diameter at base; Inflorescence: Flowering in distal 22.0 cm of peduncle, to about 9.0 cm wide; with small floral bracts subtending each flower; Peduncle color: Proximal portion below leaves nearest RHS NN137C, distal portion between RHS N138A and RHS 137A with light blush of nearest RHS 79A; Pedicel: Terete; glabrous; slightly lustrous; about 1.1 cm long and 0.2 cm diameter decreasing distally; slightly drooping; Pedicel color: Nearest RHS 193B with light blush of nearest RHS 79D; Floral bracts: Each flower normally subtended by a single bract; lanceolate; narrowly acute apex and truncate base; entire margin; glabrous and glaucous abaxial and adaxial; persistent through flower drop; to about 4.8 cm long and 1.0 cm wide, decreasing distally; forming upright beak prior to bud development; Foliar bract color: Adaxial and abaxial between RHS N148B and RHS 146D; Fruit: Tri-valved dehiscent capsule; oblong, cylindrical; apex acute; base rounded; about 32.0 mm long and 7.0 mm diameter; Capsule color: Nearest RHS 137B as developing, nearest RHS 161C as seeds dehisce; Seed: Under natural pollination typically about 30 per capsule; endospermic; flattened-ellipsoidal wing surrounding embryo toward one end; about 6.0 mm long, 3.0 mm wide and 1.0 mm thick at embryo; Seed color: Nearest RHS 202A; Disease resistance: The new plant shows some resistance to slug feeding. Other resistance or susceptibility to pests (including: Odocoileus virginianus and Oryctotagus cuniculus) and diseases common to Hostas has not been observed. Growth: The plant grows best and shows best coloration with good drainage, plenty of water, light cool shade, but is able to tolerate some drought when mature. Hardiness: The new plant is winter hardy to at least from USDA zone 3 through 8.