A non-registered sport of H. 'Gold Standard', this hosta is credited to
Luc Klinkhamer and
Witteman from the
Netherlands. The mound grows
into a large size hosta about 18 inches in
height and around 48 inches in width with heavily corrugated leaves.
Its near white flowers bloom in late June.
According to
The Hostapedia by Mark Zilis (2009), "The general consensus among hosta
collectors is that the plants being sold as 'Darwin's Standard'
in the nursery trade are not derived from 'Gold Standard'.
Instead, they closely match 'Paradigm' in both foliage and
flower."

An article by Warren I. Pollock in
The
Hosta Journal (2004 Vol. 35 No. 1) states that, "There's
a hosta coming from Holland with an interesting name and uncertainty about its
origin. It's 'Darwin's Standard' from Witteman Company in...the
Netherlands, a
wholesale exporter that uses the name Darwin Plants...Two stories about the
origin of 'Darwin's Standard' are going around. One is that it is
'Paradigm'...or a look-alike. The other story is that it's a (tissue-culture)
sport of 'Gold Standard'. ..The confusion in the trade is that 'Darwin's
Standard', or at least some plants bearing that name, look like
'Paradigm'...maybe that's the problem with this cultivar. There hasn't been
sufficient quality control in the tissue-culture lab or by the exporter."
A Photo Essay article by Steve Chamberlain in
The
Hostta Journal (2010 Vol. 41 No. 1) makes comments about
H. 'Darwin's Standard', "This is an unregistered sport of 'Gold Standard' from
Darwin Plants in Hillegom, the
Netherlands. Although it has the same basic medio-variegated
leaf pattern as its parent, the clump shape, leaf substance and ultimate
appearance of the mature clump are quite different."
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An article by
Warren I. Pollack in
The
Hosta Journal (2020 Vol. 51 No. 1) titled
Doppelgänger Hostas: Fancy Name for
Look-alike Hostas, included a long list of hostas
which various hostaphiles, published articles or other sources have
indicated "look" the same. Some of these are, in fact, the same
plant with two or more different names. Others are hostas that vary
in some minor trait which is not immediately discernable to the
casual observer such as seasonal color variations, bloom traits, ploidy, etc. So, as Warren mentions, hostaphiles may differ as to the
plants listed but then, their opinions are based on visual observations and interpretations. |
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H. 'Paradigm' appeared on two lists in the article.
According to my last algebra class, if A=B and B=C, then A=C so it
would seem that all hostas on the two lists would qualify as
look-alikes.
List #1 - H.
'Brother
Stefan' and
H. 'Paradigm'
List #2 - H.
'Darwin's
Standard', H. 'Dick
Ward', H. 'Goldbrook
Gayle' and
H. 'Paradigm' |




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