Alcea, Common Hollyhock, Garden Hollyhock 'Mixed Hybrids, Noids'

On Mar 16, 2011, sunnydaze45 from Mesa, AZ wrote:

I'm giving this plant a neutral rating for now because it's taking it's own sweet time when it comes to flowering. I planted hollyhocks last spring in the northwest side of my yard. They did nothing. Three of the six plants didn't make it at all. This winter they've finally started to grow much bigger and it appears they might flower sometime this year. I plan on planting more in a different location to see if they'll do better elsewhere in the yard.

On Feb 25, 2006, catcollins from West Friendship, MD (Zone 6b) wrote:

Enjoy these in moderation and do not allow this plant to escape your control. When we moved into this house, the garden lining the driveway was full of hollyhocks that had been allowed to run wild for years. They were lovely and we enjoyed them very much. When we cut them back at the end of the season, we discovered some evergreen shrubs and a hemlock tree that had been completely buried by the hollyhocks. It took us weeks to dig out all the heavy hollyhock roots. Now we allow no more than a couple dozen in our yard and always deadhead to reduce the volunteers.

On Aug 25, 2005, gonedutch from Fairport, NY wrote:

Hollyhocks are just a natural in historic and traditional landscapes. I sowed this biennial near some of the historic structures in our community (see images). They require little care and they bloom for several weeks.

On Jan 12, 2004, ButterflyDust from Riverside, CA wrote:

Had problems with gophers killing my hollyhocks by eating the roots and under parts of the plants until I planted garlic and onions next to them. Have not been touched by them since!

Plant still needs protection from dogs walking on them. So I cut chicken wire about 6 inches high and placed around plants.

Would assume edible by deer because people can eat the flowers.

I have heard you should never transplant them, but I have not had any problems myself with transplanting as long as you do it after it has finished flowering and you are careful.

On Jul 19, 2003, samacus from Socorro, NM wrote:

This plant does extremely well in a hot, dry climate. It grows naturally without any attention so enthusiastically that many people in central and southern New Mexico consider it a weed.

On Aug 14, 2001, gardendragon from Ladysmith, BC (Zone 8a) wrote:

Biennial hollyhocks can be deadheaded to prompt them to act more like perennials.

Even if you don't want to keep up with removing the maturing seedpods, keep the foliage pruned (remove and destroy the yellowing leaves and those defaced by Japanese beetles and rust. )

Prune severely in late summer, and allow new basal foliage to take over - this foliage may remain semi evergreen with snow cover or in areas with mild winter temperatures.

In the spring, remove the winter-damaged foliage. Taller forms can be pruned back before flowering to create shorter, stockier plants that don't need staking. The blooms will be smaller, but more in scale with the plant size.