PlantFiles: Salt Marsh Mallow, Seashore Mallow
Kosteletzkya virginica

this plant was hard to find and i've wanted one for years. when i finally tracked one down and it came this past winter, it was dormant and bare-root. i didn't hold out much hope. i planted it in a small pot and put it in my outdoor "nursery" under the eave of the house.
when spring came (very early this year), i transplanted it to an enormous bottomless pot in the garden, something i would not normally do but since this plant loves swampy conditions, i figured i'd try it.
it's been a couple of months now and the plant itself, not counting the pot is about 4' tall and full of blooms every day. the blooms aren't large; it's not going to blow you away from a distance, but it's a nice full plant and i'm enjoying it.
i've posted some pictures in the PF.
it has not had one pest or disease problem. i had concerned that it might be prone to spider mites as the leaves droop downwards a bit and would be ideal conditions for mites, but it is a carefree plant.

One of the nicest blooms of I've seen although mine does not produce a lot of blooms durng the year. Grows well in the east Texas hot weather.

We have a plant growing almost exactly like this one but the center is not yellow but a bulbus purple. The other difference is that we are in SW PA and the ground is not marshy. It has been coming up for several years and we have been pulling it for a weed. This year we decided to let it go and it is almost 4ft now.

There is also a pure white form of this plant called 'Immaculate' which was introduced by Johnny Mayronne of Natives Nursery, Covington LA. It is sometimes available in the trade.

Native to fresh and brackish marsh areas from New York to Florida and west to Louisiana, this shrubby perennial can top 6 feet and flower much of the summer.
Named for the Bohemian botanist V.F. Kosteletzky, this upright perennial mallow is similar to lavatera. It has fuzzy, light green, hibiscus-like leaves and blooms from midsummer through fall and longer in warmer climes. Salt Marsh mallow will grow equally as well in brackish swampy conditions, shallow standing water or in normal garden soil.