It'd be nice if all hosta were always pristine spring thru summer.....Frances Williams desiccation or not will continue to have a place in my garden.

Paul

Yeah, I guess that's the thing....everything in the spring is so perfect. I don't mind the imperfections that come later in the summer after the critters and the heat have had their way....but fresh out of the ground, they should not be ugly, IMO.

My Frances Williams always looks ugly. It comes up with fried edges and marks all over it every year so far. If it was ever pristine, I might recommend it. Mine is on it's third or fourth year and it's always looked ugly. I think some just don't like Texas, and FW might be one of those.

bk

Don R has a list of hosta that suffer spring dessication.

bk

Here is a link that might be useful: Hosta that have spring dessication

I agree with you about FW mine are only 2 yrs. old and are in a great location. Way to persnickety for me. They are UGLY. I might see if they'll grow in the woods. Gotta do what makes ya happy. WW

FW's will grow well in the woods,and the more shade the better,up to a point. Nothing will grow well in too much shade. I don't have Maui Buttercups,but it's sport,Rainforest Sunrise grows well in my garden,with morning sun. Phil

Thanks for posting that list, bkay! FW doesn't like Maine either, apparently. And mine used to be in total shade. So it didn't grow well and it still desiccated in the gold areas. I mean, hypothetically, if you were just starting your hosta garden and liked the look of FW, wouldn't you opt for Olive Bailey Langdon, given the choice?

That said, FW ain't got nothin' on my Emerald Ruff Cut this year. It's on it's way to be truly hideous....again.

It's been suggested that FW does better with desiccation if you can delay its emergence - find a spot where the soil warms last in the spring. In TX good luck with that.

Pic of FW below is probably as bad of desiccation as I have had. Located at north side of the house where it is slow to warm the soil. If I recall we got a couple of 90's early that caused the damage. Samurai is another that suffers - it looks like a slightly smaller form of FW.

Paul

That doesn't look too bad to me, Paul. Tomorrow I will take a pic of ERC.

I just looked at that list and Maui Buttercups and ERC need to be added. I thinking remember reading MB is related to FW, so I guess that makes sense.

That doesn't look to bad to me either. Gotta check into OBL now that I've seen all of the pictures and read the comments on GWF. Might be a better choice for me all around and I love that coloring. WW

Here is a pic of Emerald Ruff Cut today. Virtually every leaf looks this bad. If anyone knows of a similar looking hosta without this issue I'd love to know it. Maybe ERC does better in other zones, I don't know.