Alcea rosea | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Malvales |
Family: | Malvaceae |
Genus: | Alcea |
Species: | A. rosea |
Binomial name | |
Alcea rosea | |
Synonyms [1] | |
List
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Alcea rosea, the common hollyhock, is an ornamental dicot flowering plant in the family Malvaceae. It was imported into Europe from southwestern China during, or possibly before, the 15th century. [2] William Turner, a herbalist of the time, gave it the name "holyoke" from which the English name derives.
Alcea rosea is variously described as a biennial (having a two-year life cycle), as an annual, or as a short-lived perennial. [3] [4] [5] It frequently self-sows, which may create a perception that the plants are perennial. [3] The plant may flower during its first year when sown early. [4] It will grow in a wide range of soils, and can easily reach a height of 8 ft (2.4 m)
The flowers are in a range of colours from white to dark red, including pink, yellow and orange. Different colours prefer different soils. The darker red variety seems to favour sandy soils, while the lighter colour seems to favour clay soils.[ citation needed ] The plants are easily grown from seed, and readily self-seed. However, tender plants, whether young from seed or from old stock, may be wiped out by slugs and snails. The foliage is subject to attack from rust (fungus), which may be treated with fungicides. [6] Commercial growers have reported that some closely related species ( Alcea rugosa and Alcea ficifolia ) are resistant to this fungus. [7]
Growing up to 8 feet tall, this plant usually does not require staking, producing large flowers around 5 inches in diameter. Its leaves are large and heart-shaped. The flowers attract hummingbirds in the Americas, and butterflies. [8]
The leaves are vulnerable to rust, leaf spot and anthracnose. Pest problems include Japanese beetle and spider mites. Though damage to the leaves can be extensive, the flowers are rarely affected. [8]
In herbal medicine, hollyhock is believed to be an emollient and laxative. It is used to control inflammation, to stop bedwetting and as a mouthwash in cases of bleeding gums. [9]
Tropaeolum, commonly known as nasturtium, is a genus of roughly 80 species of annual and perennial herbaceous flowering plants. It was named by Carl Linnaeus in his book Species Plantarum, and is the only genus in the family Tropaeolaceae. The nasturtiums received their common name because they produce an oil similar to that of watercress.
Senecio vulgaris, often known by the common names groundsel and old-man-in-the-spring, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is an annual herb, native to the Palaearctic and widely naturalised as a ruderal species in suitable disturbed habitats worldwide.
Hibiscus syriacus is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family, Malvaceae. It is native to areas of east Asia, but widely introduced elsewhere, including much of Europe and North America. It was given the epithet syriacus because it had been collected from gardens in Syria. Common names include the rose of Sharon,, Syrian ketmia, shrub althea (or simply althea), and rose mallow. It is the national flower of South Korea and is mentioned in the South Korean national anthem.
Alcea is a genus of over 80 species of flowering plants in the mallow family Malvaceae, commonly known as the hollyhocks. They are native to Asia and Europe. The single species of hollyhock from the Americas, the streambank wild hollyhock, belongs to a different genus.
Althaea is a genus of herbaceous perennial plants native to Europe, North Africa and western Asia. It includes Althaea officinalis, also known as the marshmallow plant, whence the fluffy confection got its name. They are found on the banks of rivers and in salt marshes, preferring moist, sandy soils. The stems grow to 1–2 m tall, and flower in mid summer. The leaves are palmately lobed with 3–7 lobes. Althaea species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Bucculatrix quadrigemina.
Andropogon gerardi, commonly known as big bluestem, is a species of tall grass native to much of the Great Plains and grassland regions of central and eastern North America. It is also known as tall bluestem, bluejoint, and turkeyfoot.
Malva moschata, the musk mallow or musk-mallow, is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae, native to Europe and southwestern Asia, from Spain north to the British Isles and Poland, and east to southern Russia and Turkey. Growing to 60 cm (24 in) tall, it is a herbaceous perennial with hairy stems and foliage, and pink saucer-shaped flowers in summer.
Lobelia cardinalis, the cardinal flower, is a species of flowering plant in the bellflower family Campanulaceae native to the Americas, from southeastern Canada south through the eastern and southwestern United States, Mexico and Central America to northern Colombia.
Malva alcea is a plant in the mallow family native to southwestern, central and eastern Europe and southwestern Asia, from Spain north to southern Sweden and east to Russia and Turkey.
Astragalus bisulcatus, commonly called two-grooved milkvetch or silver-leafed milkvetch, is a leafy perennial with pea-like flowers. It is native to central and western North America, and typically grows on selenium-rich soils. It accumulates selenium within its tissues, and when livestock consume it, the selenium can be toxic.
Penstemon digitalis is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family, Plantaginaceae. The flowers are white and are borne in summer. It is native to eastern Canada and the eastern and southeastern United States. Penstemon digitalis is the most widespread species of Penstemon east of the Mississippi River.
Malva preissiana, the Australian hollyhock or native hollyhock, is a herbaceous perennial in the family Malvaceae, found in all Australian states.
Liriope spicata is a species of low, herbaceous flowering plant from East Asia. Common names include creeping lilyturf, creeping liriope, lilyturf, and monkey grass. This perennial has grass-like evergreen foliage and is commonly used in landscaping in temperate climates as groundcover. Creeping lilyturf has white to lavender flowers which produce single-seeded berries on a spike in the fall. It is one of the most popular groundcovers in the southeastern United States and areas with a similar climate.
Liriope muscari is a species of flowering plant from East Asia. Common names in English include big blue lilyturf, lilyturf, border grass, and monkey grass. This small herbaceous perennial has grass-like evergreen foliage and lilac-purple flowers which produce single-seeded berries on a spike in the fall. It is invasive to North America and considered a threat to native wildlife.
Puccinia malvacearum, also known as hollyhock or mallow rust, is a fungal species within the genus Puccinia known for attacking members of the family Malvaceae. An autoecious pathogen, it can complete its life cycle using a single host.
Paeonia tenuifolia is a herbaceous species of peony that is called the steppe peony or the fern leaf peony. It is native to the Caucasus Mountains, with large fields found in Vashlivani National Park in Georgia and the Black Sea coast of Ukraine, spreading westward into Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia and eastward to northwestern Kazakhstan. It was described by Linnaeus in 1759. The leaves are finely divided into almost thread-like segments and grow close together on the stems. This peony can reach 30–60 cm (12–24 in) in height. The scented red flowers have numerous yellow stamens in the centre.
Alcea setosa, the bristly hollyhock, is an ornamental plant in the family Malvaceae.
Rubus tricolor is an evergreen prostrate shrub, native to southwestern China. Leaves are dark green above, pale green below, and stems have red bristles. It has white flowers in summer and edible red fruit. It grows approximately 0.3 m (0.98 ft) high and usually forming a vigorously spreading, dense mat. In cultivation, it is mainly used as groundcover. Common names include Chinese bramble, groundcover bramble, creeping bramble, Korean raspberry, Himalayan bramble, and groundcover raspberry. In Chinese, it is called 三色莓.
Alcea rugosa, the Russian hollyhock, is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae. It is native to Ukraine, Crimea, south European Russia, and the Caucasus, and has been introduced as a garden escapee into Wisconsin and Maryland in the United States. It is resistant to Puccinia malvacearum rust, and hardy to USDA zone 4.
Alcea digitata, the fingered hollyhock, is a tall hollyhock with large flowers native to the Middle East.