This small sized, non-registered cultivar is a seedling of H. longipes which was discovered in the wilds of Japan. The foliage is dark green with chartreuse to yellow streaked variegation. Its leaves are slightly rippled, ovate and have red petioles.

Mikiko Lockwood in an article on The Hosta Library titled, A Little About Japanese Hosta Terms defines the term nishiki as brocade (rich-colored woven fabric) i.e. something colorful and beautiful and the term yama as mountain.