The height of glamour
At up to 10ft tall, striking hollyhocks can add an extra dimension to any garden
MY MATERNAL grandmother was pretty keen on hollyhocks. There was a long row of differentcoloured ones alongside a boundary wall, and their towering spires punctuated numerous island beds, borders and even the sides of the gravel driveway in her large, suburban garden.
As a youngster, I was fascinated by these sun-loving perennials because of their speedy growth and imposing presence. The flower stems would start their unstoppable ascent in spring and keep on going until I was dwarfed by tapering stalks clothed with huge saucer-shaped flowers by mid-summer.
So they would stay in peak condition, I was forbidden to kick a football anywhere in her back garden, and can clearly remember being ticked off when she found me stripping the ripe, brown seed pods from the stems. Doing this reduces their ability to self-seed.
A mainstay of cottage gardens for generations, hollyhocks (Alcea rosea) originate from the Far East. Over the centuries, wild forms have been improved by nurserymen, leading to scores of garden-worthy varieties with showy single, semi-double or fully double flowers. These vary from saucer to funnel-shaped with petals that are sometimes ruffled or have lacy edges. Hollyhocks come in a range of colours, including white, yellow, pink, red, purple and near-black. Apart from single colours, there are plenty of showier varieties with flowers that are veined, edged or marked with a darker, lighter or contrasting shade.
Flowers smother stems that generally range in height from 3ft to 10ft. Some are more petite. Alcea rosea ‘Fiesta Time’ has fancy cerise pink flowers on 31in stems from mid to late summer, while ‘Majorette Mixed’ is a blend of double, palecoloured flowers with frilly edges that appear on 3ft stalks. Their size makes them perfect for a large container.
I’M NOT huge fan of dwarf hollyhocks, preferring those that add a bit of height to displays. ‘Polestar’ boasts single white flowers with a yellow eye, and ‘Pleniflora’ has double, ruffled flowers in either yellow or pink. ‘Creme de Cassis’ is a cracker thanks to its blackcurrant-red flowers with pink edges – single, semi and double flowers appear on the same stem.
The all-time favourite of mine is ‘Nigra’, with its deeply lobed leaves and dramatic chocolate-purple single flowers that look almost black in the centre.
Hollyhocks prefer well-drained soil and a sunny, sheltered position. Plant them against a wall, fence or bed, or beside a path as a living screen. Their lofty nature makes them ideal for the back of the border or as a centrepiece in island beds. Roses, dahlias and cosmos are all good partners.
Apart from adding colour and height to the summer garden, some hollyhocks are a magnet to bees, butterflies and other beneficial creatures. Those with large, open, single flowers contain generous amounts of pollen and nectar that’s easily accessible. Don’t grow varieties with double flowers if attracting wildlife is important. Seeds can be sown directly into the ground now for plants to flower next summer. Make a shallow trench and sow thinly along the row. Cover with a thin layer of soil. Thin out seedlings to 24in apart when large enough to handle. If you have heavy or poorly drained soil, it’s best to start seeds in pots to prevent rotting during the winter. Flower spikes will need to be supported. Place a stout cane a few inches away from the plant, pushing it into the ground to about half the eventual height of the stem. Loosely tie together with soft twine. Unfortunately, hollyhocks are a martyr to rust, a disfiguring fungal disease that causes the upper surface of leaves to discolour and an outbreak of tiny, orange spots on the underside. Pick off the worst-affected leaves, then spray with a suitable fungicide, such as Bayer Fungus Fighter Plus or Scotts Fungus Clear Ultra Gun. These measures will help to limit the impact of the disease, but won’t eradicate it entirely. Cut infected plants down to ground level in autumn, destroy the debris and be prepared to continue taking action from spring onwards, once new growth appears. In order to ditch the fungicides, some gardeners prefer to treat hollyhocks as biennials, discarding them after the blooms have faded. Another option is to sow a variety that shows greater disease-resistance. Try Alcea ‘Happy Lights’, ‘Antwerp Mixed’ or ‘Las Vegas’.