How to grow hollyhocks in your garden. Enjoy these helpful tips and tricks for beginners and those who struggle.
Hollyhocks are a pollinator host plant and beautiful flower that adds height and beauty to any garden. Hollyhocks are easy to grow and can thrive in everyone’s garden, from beginners to experts!
Let’s grow Hollyhocks (some spell it Holly hocks) in your Cottage Garden one easy step at a time.
A simple-to-grow biennial or perennial (depending on cultivar) that is perfect for beginner gardeners.
Plant Hollyhocks in a location that gets 4 to 6 hours of sun
Plant from seed or buy plants at the garden center
You can start seeds directly in the garden in Fall or sow in the garden a few weeks before the last frost
Keep well watered until they are growing well. Once established they are quite drought tolerant.
Hollyhocks have been part of Cottage gardens from the beginning. Many equate them with England but in fact, the English got them from the Middle East during the Crusades.
The soldiers brought the seeds home because of the many medicinal uses of the plant.
It is believed the name ‘Holy Hocks’ is derived from treating sore horse hooves on the battlefields during that time and somehow it became Hollyhock.
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Hollyhocks are considered biennials but mine have lived for several years now, so I consider them more of a perennial.
Grow Hollyhock from Seeds
Many of my freely reseeding plants get sown in Fall and they bloom the following Summer, Hollyhocks are one of them.
To read how you can start Hollyhock seeds easily in Fall, just click to read...Sow your seeds in Fall. How to save Hollyhock seeds after they bloom is included in that post.
Many times I don’t do a thing other than let the plant drop its seeds in place but if I am taking seeds to another spot in the garden I will loosen the soil with my Hoe Dag and toss the seeds on top.
Press the seeds into the soil with a firm step. Sprinkle a bit of compost or soil on top, not much, the seeds do need light to germinate, and then let them overwinter in place.
Hollyhock plants get rather large so thin the seedlings out in Spring to about 18 inches to 2 feet apart. Doing this helps them stay healthier. (I rarely do this but it is most likely the best practice)
If you wish to start some in pots in February you will still get blooms in Summer. Hollyhocks are a perfect candidate for Winter Sowing, if you want to start a lot of seeds easily then give it a try!
Related: Winter Sowing Seeds
To start seeds in a greenhouse or inside your home, plant the seeds in pots or trays, space the seeds about an inch or so apart, press them into the soil, and sprinkle a bit of potting mix on top, very lightly firm it down.
I will sometimes pre-germinate the seeds like I do my Delphiniums.
The seeds like it warm to get started so at 70-75 degrees they will germinate in 14 to 28 days.
Plant the hollyhock seedlings out in the garden about 2 weeks after the last frost. (they prefer warmer soil)
Growing Hollyhock Flowers
Hollyhocks like fertile soil with regular moisture though once established they are drought tolerant.
Some around the neighborhood thrive in gravelly soil close to the road with no irrigation. For best performance, irrigate from below and provide good air circulation.
After flowering, cut back plants hard, to within a few inches of the ground.
Mulch and fertilize with some well-composted manure and you may get another flush of blooms. (much depends on your growing season)
Once you get Hollyhocks established you will have them forever. You will have to be sure and deadhead them to prevent getting too many, they spread easily but that is all part of gardening.
Single-flower hollyhocks attract hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies and they are host plants for the Painted Lady larvae. So Hollyhocks are a must in your Butterfly garden!
Bees like the easy accessibility of the single hollyhocks but the doubles are just too gorgeous not to grow as well.
Where to Plant Hollyhocks
Hollyhock plants can get up to 10 feet tall and when the flowers are blooming near the top they get top-heavy and can topple over.
Plants may need staking to keep upright, especially if you have much wind.
They look best up against a wall or at the back of a border where they can be used as a screen.
It is claimed that back in the in the old days Hollyhocks were planted in such as way as to screen the view of the outhouse from the main house which sounds like a very practical use of them to me.
They like full sun with lots of heat. Some will tolerate a little shade but it can cause them to ‘reach’ for the sun and lean.
Hollyhock Problems
Hollyhocks are easy to grow, but they are not without their problems. When growing hollyhock flowers, you need to keep an eye out for rust.
Rust will typically attack the lower leaves but it may spread to upper leaves. In the past couple of years, Rust has become a problem for me.
See the little brownish yellow spores under the leaf?
You can try to use a fungicide but I found that had limited success.
So I have resorted to just cutting off the infected leaves and let it bloom. Or if a plant is very infected I chop it off low to the ground and let it regrow.
It seems that later in the season the rust is not as prevalent though the hollyhocks will stay shorter.
Dispose of the leaves, don’t compost them, the rust spores won’t be killed off and the problem will continue.
In the photo below you can see they are only about 2 or 3 feet tall.
This old neighborhood has lots of hollyhocks growing around that are infected with Rust and the spores travel on the wind. So if I want rust free I probably need to grow a resistant variety.
Park Seed has a variety of Hollyhocks that are reputed to be rust-resistant and I will start some of those to try, they are called Happy Lights.
Hollyhocks come in various colors, even ones that are nearly black called the Watchman!
There are also some dwarf varieties but I have yet to grow them so I cannot say how well they do compared to the others.
If they grow well in your region you can keep them in check by pruning them back hard before they start to go to seed.
For some people, the ease in which Hollyhocks reseed and grow abundantly is a nuisance but that is easily cured by not allowing the seeds to drop.
Don’t be afraid to plant these wonderful flowers and enjoy the beauty they bring to your garden.
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Happy Gardening!
Hi, I’m Pamela
With 45 years of hands-on gardening experience, I love sharing practical tips, proven techniques, and inspiration drawn from my own gardens. My goal is to nurture your confidence, spark your passion, and help make every step of your gardening journey more enjoyable.
Pamela Groppe a Garden Friend!
Pamela Groppe a Garden Friend!