Rob Mortko

The fourteenth September Fall Forum, presented by the Western New York Hosta Society and the Daffodil and Hosta Society of Western Pennsylvania, was once again a roaring success. This year’s theme was ‘Wild Thangs.’ One is never disappointed with the lineup of speakers, activities, and auction for this two-day event, and this year was no exception. The event was advertised as the wild side of the garden and the plants therein, where “wild” meant species hostas, a presentation called “Wild Thing-I think I Luv You” by Rob Mortko, or wild as on the cutting edge of Doug Beilstein’s talk “FOoSF and The Untamed Hosta” about his hybridizing program and FOoSF happenings! Ferns and mosses were also featured on the bill of fare. Both Friday and Saturday included the omni-present vending area, which featured an ample selection of hostas, ferns, mosses, bulbs, and many other shade loving companion plants.

Sue DeArmmt from the Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation Center

This gathering was held in the quaint, late 1800s, Riverside Inn, located in Cambridge Springs, PA. Those arriving on Friday, September 16th, were treated to a hearty dinner buffet, and a gift plant reflecting the “Wild Thangs” theme, H.‘Swamp Thing’, followed by a “Wild Thangs’’ presentation, complete with live, wild birds of prey. Sue DeArmmt from the Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation Center gave an entertaining, as well as informative, talk about each of the birds she brought, which included rescue projects, such as an owl, a hawk, and a falcon. The evening concluded with socializing among longtime, as well as newfound friends. Conversations focused on how each of our gardens fared during the unusual spring and summer weather, garden walks and conventions we had enjoyed, and the hosta already purchased, as well as those to be sought the following day.

Saturday, September 17, began with a breakfast buffet for those who had stayed overnight and a continental breakfast area for those folks just arriving that morning. Ample time was provided for visiting and shopping the vending area before the formal presentations were to begin. A silent auction was set up as well, with an array of gardening items, plants, tools, décor, and containers that everyone was encouraged to bid on all morning.

Cyndi Fink

Mike Shadrack from the WNY Hosta Society, and Chuck Olescyski from the Daffodil and Hosta Society of WPA, presided as the masters’ of ceremonies throughout the day. The first speaker introduced was Cyndi Fink, a popular guest lecturer at the famous Phipps Conservatory. Cyndi holds an M.S. degree in plant ecology and a B.S. in environmental chemistry. She gave us an overview of the use of native mosses in the garden, how to collect mosses, and the ecology of mosses. Scientific facts were woven throughout her power point presentation, taking us from pre-historic times, where we learned that moss is a descendent of ocean algae, into our present gardens, where, she explained, we could encourage moss to grow using a recipe she shared. Giving us a new perspective, about which most of us never gave a second thought, she informed us that mosses are found on every continent, can survive in a hundred percent dormant state for many years, adapting to the environment in which they find themselves, are not pollinated by bees, and, interestingly, do not contribute to the food chain, although they do provide homes for insects, tiny mollusks, and microscopic creatures. Cyndi concluded with pictures of some tranquil Japanese gardens, filled entirely with mosses, and moss paths, as well as furniture, logs, and sculptures, totally covered with mosses. She certainly inspired us to consider the use of low maintenance mosses within our gardens.

After a short break, Rob Mortko (aka "The Hosta Guy") owner of a home-based business, Made in the Shade, that retails over 400 of the most popular varieties of hosta, was introduced. Did you ever think of hosta species as boring? They made our ‘heart sing’ as we watched Rob’s “Species Hosta, Wild Thang, I Think I Luv You” presentation. Rob first wondered, jokingly, where the big band was to introduce him. Mike Shadrack explained that the budget did not allow for a band, but he did present Rob with a large, brown cardboard box. We heard sounds of The Troggs singing their familiar tune, “Wild Thing” emanating from within. Rob reached into the box, donned a wig attached to a wild hat, and proceeded to dance around wildly, in step with the music! It was one of the liveliest introductions I have ever witnessed, especially for the topic of species hosta. The crowd responded with enthusiasm.

Rob, a master gardener, as well as the AHS Vice President for Genius Hosta, then gave a fabulous talk about what he called the forty-ish or so species of hosta. He, with the help of Kermit the Frog, echoed that ‘it isn’t easy being green’ and, via a power point visual presentation, gave the audience information about the definition, growing habits, and local of species hosta in their ‘wild’ (natural) habitat of Japan, Korea, and parts of China. Rob focused on some of his favorite species and gave many cultivar examples as he flashed through recognizable photos of each. Along the way, he entertained the audience with interesting tidbits relating to those hosta. It was a most informative, fast-paced presentation, and we all hated to have it end. I might also add, Rob was one of the vendors at this year’s Fall Forum.

Doug Beilstein

Just before our lunch break, Doug Beilstein, a member of the Fraternal Order of Seedy Fellows (FOoSF), was introduced. Doug took us through the inception of the FOoSF and showed us what ‘wild’ plants that group of hosta hybridizers has been working on. He showed us pictures of some these hybridizers and some of their hosta registrations, as well as crosses they are watching carefully, for future introduction. Doug mentioned Brian and Virginia Skaggs, Stuart Asch, Dave and Bev Stegeman, “Indiana” Bob Balitewicz, along with several others.

Highly motivated, Doug is the newly elected President of AHS and has a personal collection of over 1200 named cultivars. He has been hybridizing for about 15 years, and treated us to a summary of how he goes about selecting hosta parents, pollinating, labeling crosses, collecting, and labeling those seeds, before he germinates his own seedlings. We were thoroughly enlightened, as he took us step by step, through his hybridizing program. He shared his meticulous record keeping, explained the process of growing 60,000 seedlings in his basement, then having to reduce that number to 1,500 finalists to go to his outside seedling beds. We heard about his culling system and what qualities he looks for in his selections. We were even given a sneak peek as to what some of his future registrations might be. Doug then proceeded to hand out bundles of breeding plants to the lucky few who were quick enough to raise their hands to indicate that they would like to try hybridizing. Each generous donation included a streaky, a blue, and a gold plant. Doug’s passion for his hobby was evident and, we, the hosta buying public, have a source for some wonderful introductions from Doug, such as H.‘Brutus’, ‘Singin the Blues’, ‘King of Spades’, and ‘Dream Boat’.

After Doug’s session we departed for the buffet lunch that was included in our registration. Everyone was buzzing about the wonderful morning speakers, and we had much to discuss over lunch. When we returned to the auditorium, we were reminded to place our final bids for the silent auction and then the afternoon programs began.

Len Lehman

Len Lehman, a retired biology teacher, who taught thirty-five years on both the high school and college level, was introduced. Len began by relating that from the time when ninety-five percent of the world’s life went extinct, ferns (Gallic word fearne, meaning feather), were able to ‘make the jump’ from water and adapt to land conditions. We were to learn about ferns as companion plants to hosta, along with how ferns are identified and classified. Len shared information about fern structure, uses of ferns throughout history, plus good ferns to know and grow in our gardens. The highlight of this session was learning about how to propagate ferns. Len gave us fern spores and containers, complete with peat pellets, as he instructed us on how to maintain conditions to germinate and grow these ferns. Just in case we were not successful with our project, Len gave all of us a fern, as well. It was an informative, hands on experience.

For our last segment, we were treated to the always-exciting auction, run by the entertaining duo of Ran Lydell and Mike Shadrack! This fast-paced event had over eighty hostas on the block. Much laughter, along with serious bidding, provided entertainment for the novices, as well as the veterans in the crowd. Winning bids ranged from three dollars to well over one hundred dollars. Folks attending Fall Forum had donated most of the plants. Doug Beilstein donated several breeding plants and a couple of his own registrations. Len Lehman donated a couple of trays of ferns as well.

With an almost capacity registration of hosta lovers, not only from the local area, but also from Illinois, Maine, Kansas, Alabama, and Ohio, it was a wonderful, fun-filled Fall Hosta Forum. All of us were smiling as we departed, arms full of plants, friendships renewed, and plans to return again next year.