'The papery texture of the petals reminds me of the Christmas decorations we made as children from white crepe paper, to hand as snowflakes on the tree.' J J Marshall
Of all the flowers associated with the cottage garden, the Hollyhock is one of the most evocative and one of the oldest. Because they are one of the tallest flowers you can grow, they are often seen peering over walls or even into windows. They are versatile in that they come as double or single flowers and in a useful palette of colours: white, cream, yellow, salmon pink, pink, crimson, magenta and a dark red.
The Hollyhock appears in John Gardener’s poem of 1440 which tells us which plants were being grown in cottage gardens at that time:
‘Periwinkle, violet, cowslip and lily
Rose red, rose white, foxglove and pimpernel
Hollyhock, coriander, paeony.’
Hollyhocks are perennials and benefit from the addition of decayed manure to their soil each spring, especially if they are planted dry spots. They need the support of a six-foot stake during flowering and to be cut down afterwards.