Hollyhock
Alcea spp. and hybrids
Type: Biennial or perennial
Blooms: All colors except blue in early to late summer
Light: Full sun
Soil: Moist, well-drained
Pests: None serious
Size: 5 to 9 ft. tall, 1 to 2 ft. wide
Hardiness Cold hardy in USDA zones 3 to 9
Grow cottage garden classic: Hollyhocks
Some flowers never seem to go out of style. Take hollyhocks for example — you can use them in so many ways. They look picture-perfect next to a picket fence, adding structure to the homespun jumble of a cottage garden. Tall and stately, they make an eye-catching focal point along a rustic wall (the group above has reseeded there for years). Or add them to the back of a flowery border using the plants in “Perfect hollyhock companions” below. There are even dwarf varieties you can tuck in at the front of the border or grow in large containers.
Hollyhocks can be biennial or perennial
Most older hollyhock varieties are biennial, so they’ll produce a rosette of foliage the first year and bloom the second. But some species and many newer hybrids are perennial (though usually short-lived) and may bloom the first year. Whatever you get, plants reseed easily, so once you’ve planted some you’re sure to get plenty more just by letting them do their thing (even though the new generation may not look exactly like the ones you started with.) Let’s take a look at some of the beautiful varieties you’ll find and discover some tips for growing them.
Did you know?
Pollinators are frequent visitors when hollyhocks are around. Bees love their blooms and so do butterflies. In fact, you may even find the caterpillars of painted ladies and common checkered skippers munching on the foliage. Hollyhock is a favorite plant for these species to lay eggs on.
Plants to pair with hollyhocks in the garden
- Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
Purple-pink or white blooms arrive in early summer and reseed, too, creating an easy-care combo. Coneflower grows 1 to 4 ft. tall, 1 to 3 ft. wide and is cold hardy in USDA zones 3 to 9. - False sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides)
Add another easy-care butterfly magnet to the back of the border with the yellow daisy-shaped summer blooms of false sunflower. Plants grow 1 to 6 ft. tall and 1 to 4 ft. wide and are cold hardy in USDA zones 3 to 9. - Garden phlox (Phlox paniculata)
Contrast dome-shaped garden phlox with spiky hollyhocks for instant drama. Garden phlox flowers in pink, magenta, red, lavender, purple or white and grows 12 to 48 in. tall and 12 to 36 in. wide. Plants are cold hardy in USDA zones 3 to 9. - Oriental poppy (Papaver orientale)
Hollyhock will cover the empty spot left when Oriental poppy goes dormant. Oriental poppy has orange, red, white, purple, pink or burgundy blooms and grows 18 to 40 in. tall and 15 to 24 in. wide. It’s cold hardy in USDA zones 2 to 9. - Shrub rose (Rosa hybrid)
Shrub roses produce loads of blooms in late spring to frost, providing plenty of color even when hollyhocks are fading. Plants grow 1 to 6 ft. tall and 2 to 6 ft. wide and are cold hardy in USDA zones 3 to 10.
How to grow gorgeous hollyhocks
The group of hollyhocks in the first photo above is typical of the color range you’ll find when hollyhocks reseed. But if you want a single color or double blooms, this old favorite won’t let you down. There are lots of varieties to choose from — the gallery above gives you an idea of what’s available.
Many hollyhock hybrids bloom prolifically the first or second year and then get spindly and die out. But there are some species and hybrids with a lengthier lifespan — 3 to 4 years and even longer. ‘Mars Magic’ is one of those long-lived varieties. It blooms the first year from seed with single red flowers and grows 5 to 6 feet tall and 1 to 2 feet wide. Russian hollyhock (Alcea rugosa) and figleaf hollyhock (Alcea ficifolia) species also tend to last for years. They have single yellow blooms with foliage that’s deeply lobed. Russian hollyhock grows 5 to 9 ft. tall and 1 to 2 ft. wide. ‘Las Vegas’ is a figleaf variety in a mix of colors on 5- to 6-foot-tall plants.
While 6-foot-tall ‘Blacknight’ is more typical in size for hollyhocks, there are also smaller varieties, such as 30-inch-tall ‘Queeny Purple’. Chater’s Double Pink is an antique series that’s reliably double, and ‘Halo Blossom’ is part of the rust-resistant, reblooming Halo series and grows 5 to 8 ft. tall.
Hollyhock plant sources
- Annie’s Annuals | 888-266-4370
- Select Seeds | 800-684-0395
- Swallowtail Garden | 877-489-7333
Hollyhock plant care
Hollyhocks need full sun and well-drained fertile soil. Regular moisture when plants are blooming and a slow-release plant food in spring will ensure you have picture-perfect plants.
Don’t worry about deadheading unless you want to prevent reseeding or tidy things up. Tall varieties will stay upright better if you stake the long stems.
Common problems with hollyhocks
Rust is a common hollyhock problem that you can see in the photo above. It spreads to cover the leaf but won’t usually kill plants. To minimize the problem, grow resistant varieties and water at ground level so the foliage doesn’t get wet. Moisture encourages the spread of this fungal disease.
