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Hollyhocks Advice

chelseagibbschelseagibbs Posts: 4
in Plants
Hi there, any advice would be great. I was given some hollyhocks seedling last year and planted them into my new garden back in April this year. They look like they have settled in well with huge green leaves but no flowers yet. I have noticed other hollyhocks in neighbours gardens are displaying lovely flowers at the moment. Should mine also be developing flowers or at least the main stem? I have been very much looking forward to seeing them in all their glory this year. Do I need to be patient as they could still flower? Or could I do something to encourage this? I am very much a new gardener keen to learn so any advice would be great. Thank you! 
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  • chelseagibbschelseagibbs Posts: 4

  • msqingxiaomsqingxiao Posts: 482
    I'm not an expert on this but it looks like a shady spot? Think hollyhocks need a sunny location?
  • chelseagibbschelseagibbs Posts: 4
    msqingxiao said:
    I'm not an expert on this but it looks like a shady spot? Think hollyhocks need a sunny location?
    Thank you for your comment. That side of the garden does get full sun shining on it for most of the day. But I will keep close eye on it to check nothing is shading the hollyhocks. Thank you. 
  • didywdidyw Posts: 3,573
    I have self-seeded hollyhocks which are not flowering yet although there are lots of buds. Other hollyhocks in the neighbourhood are flowering.  But I planted another one late last year in a similar spot to yours and it looks pretty much the same as yours.  I am not expecting flowers this year - unless much later in the season.
    Gardening in East Suffolk on dry sandy soil.
  • miketa00Onfv53drmiketa00Onfv53dr Posts: 1
    My hollyhocks were 7 feet tall last summer. This summer , they are 1 foot tall. I am in Michigan, USA . We had a late freeze at the end of May. Could that be the cause of their stunted height? So Disappointed.
    I love the hollyhocks you have featured in the "10 Best Hollyhocks" article. Do you have any of these available for sale?
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    Mine have been in buds for weeks. Hopefully with the strong sun by me at the weekend will help them pop.
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    You just need to be patient. They've been planted this year as tiny plants, and are getting established - hence the green growth. You may get some flowers later on if conditions suit, or it may be next year before they're mature enough.
    They're mostly biennials.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • chelseagibbschelseagibbs Posts: 4
    Fairygirl said:
    You just need to be patient. They've been planted this year as tiny plants, and are getting established - hence the green growth. You may get some flowers later on if conditions suit, or it may be next year before they're mature enough.
    They're mostly biennials.  :)
    Thank you! Nice to know there is hope for them still! 
  • REMF33REMF33 Posts: 731
    Mine aren't flowering either although they are in bud. Possibly not in an optimum spot too but not full shade. Snails ate through the stem just below the buds of one plant... :( I have to say that what with snails and rust, I am not very successful with them. I used to have them come up in cracks in the paving stones every year out the front of my last house.
  • BenCottoBenCotto Posts: 4,718
    edited July 2021
    Reiterating, if they were put in as young plants this spring then they might not flower at all this year or, if they do, it will be much later in the season. Next year you can look forward to 7’ giants but, as Mike from Michigan has discovered, they might burn themselves out or succumb to rust. Traditional hollyhocks are best thought of as biennials but newer strains such as Halo should be good for a few years.

    Don’t be hasty in cutting back the spent flower stems as the dropped seed will be the source of future plants. Note, too, REMF33’s comment about growing in cracks between paving stones. Hollyhocks can thrive in impoverished soil and do less well in richer ground. Never put them in a fertilised bed or give them an organic mulch.

    The first two pictures show self-sown hollyhocks, the pink ones in a hot, dry spot at the base of a bank and the maroon ones, only just flowering, growing in a degraded tarmac pavement. The third picture is one of the Halo hollyhocks, planted as a plug in early May.









    Rutland, England
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