I grew up in a town the size of Dell. We had an acre and a half fenced beside and behind our house, and every year my grandmother and I grew a one acre garden for the entire family (and most of the rest of the town).
Along the back fence, which was the east side of the yard, my mother had cultivated several mulberry trees. I have come to find out that in this area of Arkansas, mulberries have some type of insect in the fruit that make them hard to eat. However, that is not the case in the area of north central Illinois in which I grew up, and we always looked forward to those mulberries ripening so that mom could make her wonderful mulberry pies.
But the real jewel of the garden was the stand of hollyhocks that grew along the rest of that east fence row. Some of the plants would shoot up spires of flowers six feet high or higher, and they came in a myriad of colors.
When I moved out here to the Lendennie Homestead, one of the first flowers I planted were hollyhocks. I have had several different colors of the plants, which flower up the spire in a manner similar to a gladiola. I have also moved them a number of times, until I finally managed to find a spot they seem to like, with lots of sun and good drainage.
Hollyhocks are believed to have originated in China and to have traveled around the world on the Silk Road. They are grown in gardens in so many parts of the world, however, that they are considered indigenous almost everywhere.
The scientific name of the plant is Alcea, and it is part of the mallow family. It is related to the marsh mallow that grows in the ditches around Mississippi County. And yes, originally the candy treat marshmallows were actually made from those ditch flowers. As a matter of fact, you can easily go online and find instructions to do that very thing. The name hollyhock came from the old English holihoc, or holy mallow. There is reason to believe they were planted in English church yards and used in early religious ceremonies. They come in many colors from white or pale pink to a purple that is almost black, and the blooms can be single or double.
The hollyhock plant is biennial, which means it grows leaves only the first year of its life and then blooms during the second year. In climates with long growing seasons, such as ours, the hollyhock can actually grow and bloom a third year. I have a pink one doing that very thing right now. After that second or third season, the plant dies. However, if you have them in a good spot with good soil and lots of sunlight, they will re-seed themselves and you can maintain a bed for many years, with some of them always blooming.
Hollyhocks are very easy to grow from seed, but it is best to start the seeds in the fall with a couple of months to develop a good root system. If you do that, the plants will over-winter well and be healthy the following spring.
There are some pests you need to watch out for, though. Japanese beetles, the Painted Lady butterfly larvae, and weevils feed on the plant and weevils will overwinter inside the plant. There is a rust that appears late in the season and discolors the leaves, and a dusty mildew that I have had a particular problem with, especially since I have my hollyhocks planted next to my garden phlox, which are susceptible to the same dusty mildew.
One note of warning. While researching this column I found information that hollyhocks may be toxic to animals, particularly dogs. On a question and answer site hosted by the North Dakota State University Cooperative Extension Service, there were questions from several people saying their dogs had become deathly ill after digging and eating hollyhock roots. Although the extension agriculture agent said he could find nothing in his literature saying the plants are toxic, he suggested people with dogs that dig and eat roots check with their veterinarians.
Since Jingle may strip a shrub or tree down to its stems, but she does not dig them up and eat the roots, I am not worried, but if you have a canine friend who does, you might want to check with a vet before planting them in your garden.
All in all, though, hollyhock is an easy to grow, beautiful addition to any yard or garden. The seeds can be found almost anywhere, and I highly recommend them for those of you looking to add a little charm to your yard.
(Information for this column was gathered from the North Dakota State University Cooperative Extension web site, Wikipedia, gardeningknowhow.com, and landscapeamerica.com.)
Pat Lendennie
plen@rittermail.com